Page 57 - Green Builder November Issue Codes Update
P. 57

www.greenbuildermedia.com/energy-solutions-home

Case Study: Florida

  The Florida Building                                                         Figure 1

  Commission released a                                                        Figure 2

  memo in April, Renewable                                                     Check out this video that details the issues surrounding Florida’s
                                                                               solar-versus-high-performance stance. http://bit.ly/2cUx6AB
  Energy Trade-Offs in the

  Building Energy Code that

  reviews what would happen

  if on-site generation is

  allowed for compliance in

  the Florida Building Code.

FLORIDA ENCOMPASSES TWO CLIMATE ZONES for
                    purposes of building energy code compliance—Climate
                    Zones 1 and 2. For those climate zones, the IECC
                    establishes an ERI compliance target of 52. This target
                    was modified however, by Florida HB 535 to an index
                    of 58 in both climate zones.
                       If on-site generation is allowed for compliance in the
                    Florida Building Code, there is a very real possibility
    that homes will be constructed that meet only minimum efficiency
    standards and still meet the ERI target.
       As Figure 1 illustrates, a home built in Tallahassee to minimum
    2015 prescriptive standards and the 2009 thermal envelope standards
    receives a failing score of 86. That same home with 5 kW of solar
    panels (Figure 2) achieves a passing score of 45.
       Allowing on-site generation to substitute for building energy
    conservation has a number of negative impacts:
    ¦¦ Building envelope energy efficiency measures like insulation,
       sealing and windows deliver efficiency for the life of the building.
       In the case of sealing and wall insulation, these measures are
       typically maximized at time of construction or the opportunity is
       lost for the life of the building.
    ¦¦ Failing to optimize the efficiency of the building envelope means
       a lost opportunity to reduce the size of heating and cooling
       requirement and to reduce the solar PV system needed to meet
       the home’s electricity requirements.
    ¦¦ A less energy efficient home translates into higher utility bills to
       that homes occupants, even with renewable generation.

www.greenbuildermedia.com	                                                     November/December 2016  GREEN BUILDER 55
   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62