On-site monitoring and dynamic simulation of a low energy house heated by a pellet boiler

Prefabricated low energy houses are becoming increasingly popular thanks to their low cost and high energy performance. Heating systems installed in these houses should be optimally designed and controlled, to ensure thermal comfort for the whole heating season. This study presents the on-site monitoring and dynamic simulation of a low energy house heated by a pellet boiler via a floor heating system. The house combines a lightweight envelope, a heat distribution system with a high thermal inertia and a biomass-based heat supply. The one-year monitoring campaign allowed to closely investigate the system's response to the heat demand. Moreover, a coupled simulation of the house and its heating and hot water supply system was set-up, calibrated, and validated against measured indoor temperature profiles and energy consumptions. Root mean square deviations between simulated and measured indoor temperature were in the range 0.4–0.8 K, while simulated energy consumptions fulfilled the criteria of the ASHRAE 14-2002 Guideline. As monitoring data evidenced the importance of better managing the high thermal inertia of the floor heating system, two improved control strategies were tested in the simulation environment and evaluated in terms of thermal comfort, pellet consumption and efficiency of the pellet boiler. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.