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Short-Term Monitoring to Diagnose Comfort Problems in a Residence in Central Texas
Abstract
This paper presents results from a project to
resolve comfort problems created by high indoor
humidity in a 3,400 sq.ft. house in Bryan, Texas. The
case study house had been certified by the local
utility to meet their energy efficiency standards.
However, the resident of the house complained that
the house felt too humid although the desired
temperature conditions were being maintained.
Several HVAC contractors had been previously hired
to resolve the problem without success.
The field measurements undertaken to diagnose
the problem are typical of those that could be
undertaken by a house inspector and include an
inspection of the construction of the house, short-term
monitoring of temperature and humidity, blower
door tests and whole-house pressurization tests. To
perform the analysis both floors of the house were
instrumented with portable data loggers and
monitored for a period of two weeks to measure the
temperature and relative humidity of the supply,
return and ambient conditions. Analysis procedures
applied to the house include comparing the measured
data against the ASHRAE comfort zone (ASHRAE,
1997) which confirmed adequate zone temperatures
with high humidity conditions, and inadequate supply
air delivery temperatures for humidity removal.
Combined results of the blower door tests and whole-house
pressurization tests indicated a potential for
leakage through the return air duct.
After the recommendations were presented to the
homeowner, a new contractor was hired and retrofits
applied on the house (i.e., cleaning the cooling coils,
enlarging the compressor and relining of the return
duct). Measurements were then repeated to determine
that the problem had been f ~ e d . This paper
describes the case study residence, the measurements
used to diagnose the problem, analysis methods, and
presents results of the application of the analysis.
Citation
Kootin-Sanwu, V.; Sresthaputra, A.; Haberl, J. S. (2000). Short-Term Monitoring to Diagnose Comfort Problems in a Residence in Central Texas. Energy Systems Laboratory (http://esl.tamu.edu); Texas A&M University (http://www.tamu.edu). Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /6773.