Producing domestic energy benchmarks using a large disaggregate stock model

Abstract

Within the UK, domestic buildings account for 16% of total national emissions. Considerable improvements to the performance of the existing building stock will be necessary in the context of the UK’s commitment to emissions reductions, and for this to be achieved successfully and efficiently will require an improved understanding of the current performance of the stock. This paper presents an analysis of metered gas and electricity use from 808,559 dwellings with detailed building characteristic data in London, showing how energy use can be examined using a highly detailed, fully disaggregate building stock model. New gas and electricity benchmarks have been produced for houses (split by the level of attachment) and flats, for both gas- and electrically-heated properties. The paper shows how energy use varies with form, and how the choice of units influences the relative performance of different types. Comparing gas use across the types, for example, when calculated as kWh/m2, consumption follows building compactness, but when calculated as kWh/household, the trends follow building size. Finally, the paper examines how energy use varies with building thermal performance, using the Heat Loss Parameter (HLP), a standardised measure which accounts for thermal transfer through building envelopes as well as via air flow. Practical Application: This paper presents domestic energy consumption benchmarks based on measured not modelled data, produced from a large sample of London houses and flats. Results are shown for different dwelling types and heating fuels. Additionally, the relationship between gas use and envelope thermal performance is explored. The results will hopefully be beneficial for researchers, policy-makers and designers interested in better understanding current domestic energy use, and informing decisions about future improvements to energy efficiency within the stock. This paper also provides details for anyone interested in the production of the domestic benchmarks for the CIBSE benchmarking tool.