<
https://basc.pnnl.gov/resource-guides/creating-cool-room-extreme-heat-events#edit-group-description>
"Given the reality of global climate change and the increasing likelihood of
extreme heat events, designing and retrofitting homes for resistance to extreme
heat and power outages should be considered in all climates. Extending the
“hours of safety” that a home can provide when air-conditioning is not
available can be life-saving. However, it is not necessary for an entire home
to be resistant to extreme heat. Instead, the design or retrofit can
concentrate on just one room. When full-home-scale measures with backup power
are cost-prohibitive, impractical, or not appropriate for the climate, a cool
room can be a cost-effective and sensible approach.
A cool room is a designated area in a home or dwelling that is designed to
provide protection for occupants during extreme heat events. The room should
intrinsically resist overheating while providing a relatively comfortable place
to take refuge during the day and/or to sleep at night. It should have low
enough heat gains that it can be cooled by a small emergency cooling system
(Figure 1). Ideally the room will be served by a backup power system sufficient
to power the emergency cooling system and any vital refrigeration equipment.
Cool rooms can be included in new construction or created in existing homes as
a retrofit.
It is important to consider what situations are most appropriate for the
creation of a cool room. For instance, a new home built to recent building
energy codes, with reliable central A/C, photovoltaic panels (solar panels),
and a whole-home battery backup system would likely not need a specific cool
room. On the other hand, for an older home that doesn’t have a lot of
insulation and doesn’t have central A/C, establishing a designated cool room
could be critical to survival in an extreme heat event. In this case,
installing a small, dedicated A/C unit for a single, well-designed room would
be a cost-effective approach to mitigating health risk during heat waves as
well as improving general comfort during the summer.
Homes without air-conditioning are likely candidates for a cool room. Many of
these homes are located in regions with typically cooler summers where air
conditioning is usually not needed. Climate predictions show extreme heat
events increasing in northern climates more than in southern climates; for
these areas, the “cool just one room” concept could well be appropriate.
Further, an emergency cooling system can serve double duty if a heat pump is
used rather than just a basic air conditioner. This would allow the unit to be
able to provide efficient supplemental heating in winter as well as cooling in
summer, likely providing cost savings as well as providing backup if the
central heating system fails. A cool room could become a “warm room” during
extreme winter events, taking advantage of the extra insulation and air sealing
used to separate the cool room from the outside and the rest of the home.
Cool rooms also make sense for homes that don’t have full-home backup power.
During a power outage (which is more likely during extreme heat), the small
electric loads needed to cool a single room could be handled by small-scale or
portable backup power. Even with no backup power at all, a room designed to
stay naturally cooler would be a great asset in such a situation."
Via Susan ****
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics