Page 10 - Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes-Volume 2

ZERO NET ENERGY CASE STUDY HOMES INTRODUCTION
Introduction
This book is the second in a series on case studies of zero-net-energy (ZNE) homes and the fifth about ZNE buildings of all types, developed under the direction of the California Public Utili- ties Commission (CPUC) to support the adoption of ZNE building practices1. As in the previous volumes, each case study focuses on the process of decision-making that resulted in a built ZNE design and provides a detailed analysis of the project’s performance, along with the all- important lessons learned.
This second volume presents details about the design, construction and performance of six ZNE residential projects in California, which continue the sequence of case studies from Vol- ume 1 (namely Case Study No.6 through No.11). As in Volume 1 of Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes, the projects discussed in this second volume include single-family homes—one a major renovation and a second that is entirely new construction. Both of these case studies are built in low-rise urban neighborhoods of greater Los Angeles and thus offer instructive ex- amples of solutions to common issues for single-family homes in these types of locations.
Volume 2 also adds several different types of residential construction that have achieved ZNE performance, which expand the range of housing types and broadens the base of discussion of the two volumes. One such type is affordable housing for the formerly homeless population. A second is affordable housing for seniors. The funding mechanisms and design criteria for these types of multifamily housing are different and strongly influence the design decisions for ZNE performance. In addition to these two types of residential projects, a third case study of market- rate multifamily housing performing at ZNE presents an interesting contrast in all aspects of this type of multi-unit project development.
Finally, the sixth case study represents a project process that is experienced by many home- owners in general, namely a do-it-yourself (DIY) multi-weekend home improvement project. In this case, the painstaking project work involved a complete overhaul of a basic 1960-era suburban house that results in ZNE performance with no real visible change to the external ap- pearance of the house itself. Although the project is atypical with regard to the extent of the DIY work, it nevertheless provides a common template for the to-do list of ZNE features that can be incorporated into most California homes.
As with Volume 1, the appropriate metric and definition of ZNE as applied to the case study projects in this book must be described since the meaning varies among the several private organizations and government agencies that track progress in this area. This Introduction sec- tion will therefore reiterate these distinctions as they were explained in Volume 1 and set the common basis for each of the case studies that follow in this Volume 2.
In addition, a recent movement toward the emphasis on decarbonization as well as ZNE is prompting slightly different design solutions to emerge, as exhibited in some of the case study projects in this Volume 2. The next generation of “ZNE case study homes” will no doubt engage with decarbonization in their design, so this Introduction section concludes with an outline of this issue and its implication for the design of buildings.
1 Paperback copies of Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes, Volume 1, can be obtained at Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Energy-Case-Study-Homes/dp/1791732437/ ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Zero+net+energy+case+study+homes&qid=1576886174&s=books& sr=1-1.
The three volumes of non-residential ZNE case studies, Zero Net Energy Case Study Build- ings, Volume 1-3, can also be found at Amazon.com at: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Zero+n et+energy+case+study+buildings&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
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Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes: Volume 2