Donald Shearer

An assessment of environmental conditions in bedrooms of contemporary low energy houses in Scotland

This paper describes the monitored environmental conditions in the bedrooms of 26 low energy houses in Scotland, include both naturally ventilation and houses with mechanical ventilation with heat recovery systems (MVHR). The context of the paper is the performance gap that is emerging between design predictions and actual performance of housing, and this paper focuses on the environmental performance of bedrooms. Bedrooms are of particular interest as they are the spaces in which occupants have the greatest exposure to the indoor environment, and in which conditions are relatively constant. The study indicates that ventilation is generally poor in these spaces and that both temperature and humidity frequently exceed accepted parameters for comfort and health. Increased window opening is a mitigating factor, but effects are limited by overall ventilation strategies.

Adapting the Scottish tenement to twenty‐first century standards : An evaluation of the performance enhancement of a nineteenth century “Category B” listed tenement block in Edinburgh

Purpose – The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these, and this was the purpose of the research.Design/methodology/approach – This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. the project undertook a short intensive mo...The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these. This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. The project incorporates low carbon technologies and high thermal performance into an existing and historic structure, including internal insulation, a ground source heat pump with underfloor heating, sunspaces and MVHR, which are intended to reduce energy consumption whilst maintaining the built form and appearance. The paper discusses key outcomes of this performance evaluation, which identified some problems occurring with systems and users interaction with these, leading to incidences of poor environmental quality and increased energy use. The paper concludes by discussing limited improvements which could be made to this structure and future design considerations that could improve performnce.

Adapting the Scottish tenement to twenty‐first century standards

Purpose – The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these, and this was the purpose of the research.Design/methodology/approach – This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. the project undertook a short intensive mo...The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these. This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. The project incorporates low carbon technologies and high thermal performance into an existing and historic structure, including internal insulation, a ground source heat pump with underfloor heating, sunspaces and MVHR, which are intended to reduce energy consumption whilst maintaining the built form and appearance. The paper discusses key outcomes of this performance evaluation, which identified some problems occurring with systems and users interaction with these, leading to incidences of poor environmental quality and increased energy use. The paper concludes by discussing limited improvements which could be made to this structure and future design considerations that could improve performnce.

Adapting the Scottish tenement to 21st century standards: an evaluation of the performance enhancement of a 19th century ‘Category B’ listed tenement block in Edinburgh

Purpose – The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these, and this was the purpose of the research.Design/methodology/approach – This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. the project undertook a short intensive mo...The stone tenement is perhaps the most iconic type of housing in Scotland and to a large extent defines the built environment of its major cities and towns. However in the context of the climate change agenda which demands reduced energy consumption and CO2 production, such buildings are recognised to be a particular challenge in terms of both their poor energy performance, but also the limitations on improvement measures that do not have a detrimental affect on their form and appearance. As a result interventions that improve performance tend to less mainstream and it is therefore import to assess the effectiveness of these. This paper describes the findings of a post occupancy evaluation that examined the user satisfaction and energy performance of a recently completed (2008) adaptive rehabilitation project of a listed 19th Century sandstone tenement block in Edinburgh city centre. The project incorporates low carbon technologies and high thermal performance into an existing and historic structure, including internal insulation, a ground source heat pump with underfloor heating, sunspaces and MVHR, which are intended to reduce energy consumption whilst maintaining the built form and appearance. The paper discusses key outcomes of this performance evaluation, which identified some problems occurring with systems and users interaction with these, leading to incidences of poor environmental quality and increased energy use. The paper concludes by discussing limited improvements which could be made to this structure and future design considerations that could improve performnce.