Net ZEB Design Processes and Tools - Modeling, Design, and Optimization of Net-Zero Energy Buildings - page 191

projects (Musall, 2013), The Zero Energy Buildings Database (DOE
EERE, 2013a), and Chapter 7 of this topic.
- Assessing typical local climate for conditions can identify the most
promising passive strategies. Prior to specific building design
knowledge, a portfolio of suitable design strategies can be established
that specifically exploits or has superior tolerance to steady state or
dynamic sequences of weather conditions (e.g., solar, wind,
temperature, relative humidity). Example tools to visualize climate data
include Climate Consultant and Ecotect. Use of such tools in the design
process is discussed at length later in the chapter.
- Tools based on look-up tables, design charts, or rules of thumb can
provide an efficient means for applying preconceived or simplified
situations to the design at hand. Such methods are typically based on
experimental or numerical results that would be time consuming or
expensive to obtain for early stage design. Their limitation is that they
are based on assumptions of the software developer and may not be
suitable for application to other design circumstances. Examples
include: Advanced Buildings' Daylighting Pattern Guide (Advanced
Buildings Institute, 2013), Tap the Sun (CMHC, 1998), and passive
solar design charts from Sander and Barakat (1985).
- Single-component or single-aspect tools allow designers to focus on
one building aspect at a time. As explained in Section 4.3.2, this can
lead to the risks of neglecting interactions between systems. However,
where coupling is weak, using single-feature tools can be a helpful
approach to design because they allow the designer to focus on a single
system (e.g., windows, wall constructions, PV systems). Examples of
single-component tools include: LBNL Window for window thermal
and optical property analysis, RETScreen for RETs, DAYSIM for
daylighting analysis, and MOIST for combined heat and moisture
transfer through wall constructions. An example of the use of a
single-aspect tool is Radiance for the NREL RSF building. Later, the
results from Radiance were used in other tools for assessing total energy
use.
- Simplified tools based on dynamic sub-hourly-timestep simulations
but with a limited number of inputs . While these programs may have
underlying complex models or simulation engines, the inputs are
normally restricted to reasonable values by the tool developer; thus, the