STRATEGIES Based on the climate and weather data for Aalborg, potential passive and active strategies for a building are derived from Climate Consultant based on the AHARE model, which might guide the design process of the Spa House (UCLA Energy Design Tools Group, n.d.), see fig. 40 and appendix I-II. The AHARE model is developed for American standards but follows principles close to the European standards, to which the results will be considered as an approximation. In addition to an insulated compact building volume that integrates the mass/envelope ratio, various strategies could benefit the indoor comfort of a high-performance building in Denmark. However, the data outcome from Climate Consultants cannot directly be used for a Spa House since most of the facilities aim for an indoor environment that requires specific conditions that challenge the conventional understanding of indoor comfort. Therefore, some approximations are made to withdraw information useful for the building design of this project, such as specific needs for mechanical systems, the unorthodox distribution of internal heat gains, etc. To achieve a desired atmosphere in specific spaces, the individual rooms most likely require different but steady conditions controlled by mechanical conditioning and ventilation systems. A passive natural ventilation strategy will be suitable for less restricted facilities, such as office spaces, where the perception of the outdoor conditions can be a quality, especially in the summer. Besides, the heating source will be floor heating to provide steady and uniform heat distribution
and avoid cold contact surfaces for barefooted visitors. Due to the Danish climate, heating will be the most prominent, to which additional heat gains become essential, e.g. internal heat gains and solar radiation. In the case of a Spa House, the internal heat gains consist of people, lights, mechanical equipment for heating water and saunas, or the like. A way to store internal heat gain is to utilise the pools as water tanks. This help minimises the energy consumption caused by temperature differences of day and night, similar to the passive strategy of adding thermal mass. Water heating might be supplemented by solar panels such as thermal collectors to utilise renewable resources. Passive solar heat gains harvest solar radiation through window openings to heat up the massive floor surfaces. Therefore, when shading direct sunlight, it must be considered how it compromises the need for solar heat gains in winter to mitigate overheating and glare. A way to handle this delicate trade-off includes the consideration of the altitude and the azimuth of the sun when designing static shading. An alternative to static shading is the implementation of dynamic shading to adjust to seasonal differences. Those strategies will drive the design process of the Spa House, by zoning the building according to the thermal conditions and thereby differentiate which strategies are suitable for what functions or zones and thereby steer the process.
Thermal Mass
Small Minimise Heatloss
Solar Large Radiation
Solar Panels
Heat Source South
North Fig. 40. Strategies
48 | Building
