A case study on cooling load performance of a large multi-storey house through simulation

Air conditioning system consumes the most energy in a residential building; therefore, it is necessary to understand the elements that contribute to its design and operation. One of the important factors is the cooling load of the building, which is the result of multiple heat gains from internal and external sources. The research aims to comprehend the distribution and behaviour of cooling load in a house with the help of a case study. The target building is a simulation model of a three-storey bungalow in tropical climate. DS-HL2 modelling is utilised with building specification and measurement as the input. Simulation finding shows that the rooms located at the rear end of the house experienced peak heat gain as early as 11 a.m., compared to 4 p.m. for the room located in the middle. Also, three passive measures were introduced to the premise. Outperforming roof insulation and overhang shade, tinted glass was observed to be the most effective at 11.4 % cooling load reduction. When the combination of all passive measures was implemented, each room in the house had a unique percentage of cooling load reduction per area. The room with highest benefit was Master Bedroom at 28.1 % cooling load reduction per area.