Net-Zero Energy Houses

and Offices
a vision of the future?
Sustainable Operations 19 Nov 08
Webinar Presentation
FPL, Madison, WI
by
Mel Tyree BA PhD LLD FRSC
NRS-10

The Globe & Mail
28 June 2008
The energy content of 1 barrel of oil = the
energy content of 8.6 years of human labor.
Think about it.
A human lifespan could produce the energy of
about 3 barrels of oil in usable work or impact on
the world (@ 10 h of work per day).
CONCLUSION: human-kind has dominated life
on earth thru the unfair advantage of fossil fuels.
What is our future when this advantage (fossil
fuel) is gone?
Energy cost of buildings in Canada
30% of Canadas energy consumption
50% of Canadas electricity consumption
28% of Canadas greenhouse gases
Energy cost of buildings in Canada
30% of Canadas energy consumption
50% of Canadas electricity consumption
28% of Canadas greenhouse gases
With declining fossil fuels and rising prices,
WHAT MIGHT THE HOUSING FUTURE
BE?
My Net-Zero Energy House
(Also zero emission house)
My Net-Zero Energy House
(Also zero emission house)
This house will save a projected
$165,000 in fuel and energy costs.
Over the next 20 years.
My Net-Zero Energy House
(Also zero emission house)
This house will save a projected
$165,000 in fuel and energy costs.
Over the next 20 years.
AND IT COST ONLY $65,000 EXTRA
TO BUILD COMPARED TO A
CONVENTIONAL HOUSE.
My Net-Zero Energy House
What were the design criteria?
Objectives of my Net-Zero Energy House
Sustainable Energy Design (uses no fossil fuels)
Generate as much energy on site in a year as
is used on site in that year.
Be energy efficient
Be cost-effective
Burn NO fuel of any kind on site IF POSSIBLE
Use sustainable materials
Use materials with low toxicity
Cost should be competitive with conventional
home over a 20-year period, i.e., if you pay more
to build it then savings from operating costs to
pay for it should break even in the first 20 years.
Cost-effective Considerations
Which costs more?
Insulating the house?
Providing sun & wind power systems?
Cost-effective Considerations
Which costs more?
Insulating the house?
Providing sun & wind power systems?
To answer these questions we first need
to know how much energy a typical house
uses in a year.
Cost-effective Considerations
Which costs more?
Insulating the house?
Providing sun & wind power systems?
To answer these questions we first need
to know how much energy a typical house
uses in a year.
Where does most of my energy go?
To general electrical needs?
To heating?
Energy Audit of my House
Lights and electrical appliances?
Hot water needs?
Heating in winter months?
Need to use common units!
J = Joules or GJ = Giga Joules
kWh = kilowatt hours = 3,600,000 J
BTU = British Thermal Units
(1 kWh = 3,412 BTU)
Approximate Energy Audit
Energy Consumption Per Year
9,000 kWh lights, appliances etc
4,500 kWh hot water
35,000 kWh heating (assumes 90% burn efficiency)
Total: 48,500 kWh
18.5% lights, appliances etc
9.3% hot water
72.2% heating
Lights & Appliances: 18.5%
How to save energy?
Compact fluorescent lighting VERY cost
effective
Select washing machine with high spin
cycle
Dry clothes outside on line (free) rather
than in drier as much as possible
Select energy efficient dish washer
Use microwave rather than stove as much
as possible.

Domestic Hot Water: 9.7%
How to save Energy?
Use heat pump to boost heating efficiency up
to 300%.
Add insulation to your hot water tank
Lower the thermostat temperature on hot water
tank
Use less hot water
1. Install low-flow shower heads
2. Take quicker showers
3. Wash all clothes in cold water
4. Select dish washer that uses less water
Heating of your home: 72.2%!!
How to save energy?
Biggest potential saving!
Needs energy audit of your home!
Where does my heat go? Considerations are:
1. Heat loss through walls & roof
2. Heat loss through windows
3. Heat loss to provide fresh air in winter
4. Efficiency of your furnace
5. Cost of your fuel (for cost-effective solutions)
Insulation efficiency determined by
R-values of ceiling, walls, windows
Typical values for modern homes
Windows R = 2.8 to 3.3
Walls R = 18 to 22
Ceiling R = 30 to 35
Bigger R values are better
But heat loss for each item determined by
BTU/h = (Sq ft surface area/R)*(T
in
-T
out
)

How I learned to do the calculations!
The Passive Solar House by James Kachadorian
Approximate Energy Audit of a home
NEEDS A PLAN for computations
Approximate Energy Audit of
modern home.
TOTAL heat loss rate 550 BTU per h per
o
F
13.5% thru windows
13.6% thru walls
8.7% thru roof
15.7% thru basement OVER ESTIMATE!
49.1% TO PROVIDE FRESH AIR
(16 room volume exchanges per day
recommended by building code)
Summary Energy costs
to run my new home
48,500 kWh/yr (72% of this for heat)
How much can I generate from a wind
turbine and PV system purchased under
NYSERDA incentives?
www.powernaturally.org
Use above web site for info on NY State Cash
Incentives from NYSERDA
Mr. Sal Graven, NYSERDA, informed me that as of
Feb 2008
1. 28 Residential wind turbines have been installed
2. 13 more wind turbines are scheduled under the
NYSERDA incentive program
3. 900 Photovoltaic residential systems have been
installed
4. My home is the first (and only) in NY State to provide
all power needs from the sun and wind under the
NYSERDA program.
NYSERDA INCENTIVES SUMMARY
System Net Price System Est. An. Investment
type after rebates size Production per kWh
per year
Turbine $24,850 10 kW 10,500 kWh $2.36
PV $35,000 10 kW 9,500 kWh $3.69
PV price includes battery back up system ($8,000)
Total Estimated Annual Production
20,000 kWh
Closing the gap
Energy needs: 48,500 kWh
Energy production: 20,000 kWh
Possible solutions include:
Use Passive Solar heating
Use Active Solar for hot water
Use Active Solar heating for house
Decrease energy needs thru insulation
Increase efficiency of heating
Problem with active or passive solar in the
North Country: Very little sunshine in winter
AND systems are expensive
Month
Heating Deg Days
% sunshine
October 542 43
November 896 25
December 1341 24
January 1471 24
February 1283 34
March 1091 43
April 615 47
May 317 53
Option of Adding Insulation?
A complete analysis is beyond the scope of this
workshop (takes too long) but I consulted a
Green Builder in the Adirondacks who said he
could reduce my heat load by 40% thru better
insulation etc at 20% extra cost.
Saving on heat load: 13,500 kWh
Added cost to construction: $44,000
Cost per kWh saved: $3.26
Remaining load: 48,500-13,500 = 35,000 kWh
Shortfall on project: 15,000 kWh
Ultimate Cost-Effective Solution
used in my home.
Biggest heating load (49%) is to provide
fresh air
Solution: Install fresh-air heat recovery
system
Reduce energy cost to heat my home
Solution: Install Geothermal Heat Pump
which provides 330% efficiency!
Heat Recovery System
Cost: $2500 (installed)
Savings on heat load: 8,000 kWh
Cost per kWh saved: $0.31
Geothermal Heat Pump
Cost: $7,500 (installed)
Savings on heat load: 20,000 kWh
(because of 330% efficiency)
Cost per kWh saved: $0.38
Air-heat recovery system
70% heat recovery on
air that passes thru system
Geothermal Heat Pump
Explaining how it works needs workshop of its own!
So details beyond the scope of my talk.
Types of Geothermal Heat Pumps
Open loop: most efficient (400%) but
usually more expensive to install
Closed loop: less efficient (300%)
PLUS the heat pump assists the hot water
tank and hence reduces the energy
needed to heat hot water with electricity.
Explain how it works (it is a very large
refrigeration system)
Cost & Payback Analysis
y = 5.7643x - 4.6466
R
2
= 0.9316
0.90
1.40
1.90
2.40
2.90
3.40
0.90 1.00 1.10 1.20 1.30 1.40
Electrical power price relative to 1999
o
i
l

p
r
i
c
e

r
e
l
a
t
i
v
e

t
o

1
9
9
9
Rel price increase Linear (Rel price increase)
In past 9 years (basis 1999)
NYSERDA data shows
Electrical price inflation: 3.7%
Fuel Oil price inflation: 14.6%
Cost & Payback Analysis
This analysis uses conservative estimates of energy inflation rates
($80,000)
($60,000)
($40,000)
($20,000)
$0
$20,000
$40,000
$60,000
$80,000
$100,000
$120,000
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030
Year
C
a
s
h

f
l
o
w
3.6%+12.5% 3.6% inflation
20 year cash flow analysis 2007-2027
Electrical inflation: 3.7% Fuel oil inflation: 14.6% in last 9 years
Break-even system pays for itself
Final building costs
House with one-car garage: $220,000
Barn (one-car parking + shop): $35,000
Sun & Wind Energy systems: $60,000
Extra cost of Geothermal: $5,500
Price premium for Net-Zero
Energy House vs conventional: 27%
more than conventional home.
Construction sequence
illustrated by photos and words
1. Built turbine in 2004/05
2. Built barn in 2005
3. Added photovoltaic system in 2006
4. Built house in 2007

My Net-Zero Energy House
So, did I succeed? What are the measured
data on production and heat pump
performance?
Production
Production. The solar and wind systems
have been grid-tied for > 12 months.
Production from 1 Dec 06 to 1 Dec 07:
19,005 kWh
GHP = 7500 kWh
HW = 4500 (will lower this in future)
All other = 6000 kWh
TOTAL = 18,000 kWh









NZEH IN NZE-CITIES
Advantages for the future:
Sunlight is free & delivery is free
Cost to utilize free sun-energy will
eventually be less than cost of fuel
Will reduce Canada carbon-footprint
Will conserve declining fossil fuels for
more vital needs
Will reduce size of electrical grid and avoid
cost of new power plants (nuclear &
conventional)
NZEH
Impact on how cities will look?
Street layout for S orientation of all houses
Modified look of housing
Modified landscaping (e.g., smaller trees, fewer
trees, or mostly deciduous trees??)
Use of local materials
Use of low toxicity materials
Living roofs? Gray-water use? Rain water
storage?
Unlimited possibilities for a sustainable future!
Questions & Discussion
Heat Pump Consumption?
Data for 22 days in Jan 08
RESULTS:
792 = kWh power consumption of HP
160 = kWh power consumption of water pump
942 = total kWh to heat the house.
1013 = HDD for the same 22 days in Dannemora, NY,
1/8 of an average heating season already!
0.93 = kWh/HDD = 942/1013 (This value has been
constant for the whole period, i.e., on cold days the
value is the same as on warm days)
7448 = estimated kWh for an average heating season
= 0.93x8010
$1191 = estimated cost of heating with electricity @
16cents/kWh.
Heat Pump Efficiency
Definition: 1 BTU = amount of heat energy required to
change 1 lb of water 1
o
F
Heat Extraction rate (HE) from well water in BTU/hr
( 1 Gal water = 8.35 lbs. 60 min per hr. So if you pump
water at 1 GPM you are pumping about 500 lb water per
h)
HE = 500 x GPM x (drop in Water temperature) in
BTU/hr
Typical performance values of my HP:
For Stage 1 Heating: GPM = 9.5 & temp drop = 7 oF,
hence
HE = 500 x 9.5 x 7 = 33,250 BTU/hr
For Stage 2 Heating: GPM = 9.5 & temp drop = 10 oF,
hence
HE = 500 x 9.5 x 10 = 47,500 BTU/hr
Heat Pump Efficiency
Heat Supply rate (HS) to house in BTU/hr
HS = 1.06 x Air Flow Rate (CFM) x (temperature rise
of air
O
F)
Measured temp rise of air is 28 to 31
o
F
CFM counter LED indicates CFM rates of 800, 1100,
1500 or 1800 while system operates. 1.06x28x1500 =
44,500 1.06x31x1800 = 59,150)
Start up sequence: CFM 800 Stage 1 1100 @ 75F
1500 @ 90 F Heat off 800.
ALTERNATIVE CALCULATION
HS = HE +EA, where EA = energy added by my
compressor & fan
Typical performance of my heat pump:
For Stage 1 Heating : EA = 3.0 kW = 10,230 BTU/hr HS
= 43,480 (rated 41,650)
For Stage 2 Heating: EA = 4.26 kW = 14,500 BTU/hr HS
= 62,000 (rated 59,450)
( 1 kW = 3,410 BTU/hr)
Heat Pump Efficiency
Efficiency estimate (needs data on water
pump)
Energy required to pump water = 6.8 A x 220 V
x 50% duty cycle = 0.75 kW
= 2,600 BTU/hr
For Stage 1 Heating:
COP = 43,480/10,230 = 4.25
Efficiency = 43,480/(10,230+2,600) = 339%
For Stage 2 Heating:
COP = 62,000/14,500 = 4.27
Efficiency = 62,000/(14,500+2,600) = 363%
www.powernaturally.org
SWIEP
Small Wind Information Exchange Program
http://www.ualberta.ca/~mtyree/SWIEP/
Items for discussion?
Relative cost of Energy per unit energy
NYSERDA data from 2006
0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00
Electrical
Propane
Kerosene
Fuel Oil
Nat. Gas
Coal
NYSERDA $/millionBTU
$5.51 Coal
$15.49 Nat. Gas
$18.65 Fuel Oil
$21.23 Kerosene
$26.06 Propane
$48.92 Electricity