Thermal properties

The Room Type Manager Thermal properties panel contains controls used to define the room thermal properties for rooms of the selected room type.

Note: Thermal properties data on subsequently created rooms of the selected room type can be edited individually using the corresponding thermal properties data controls found on the Properties For: Room dialog box or globally using the controls found on the Global Changes dialog box’s Thermal properties data panel.

Setting	Description
Space type	Used to set the default type of conditioning used to maintain the room design temperatures for rooms of the selected room type. Available Space types appear on the drop-down list: Ventilated — Defines the room space as having only ventilation. This can be natural ventilation or mechanical ventilation or a combination of both. Energy usage is considered for the fan equipment used in ventilating the room Unconditioned — Defines the room space as having no air conditioning. Meaning there is no HVAC equipment servicing the room, which affects simulations and energy calculation results. Semi-heated — Defines the room as being a semi-heated space. Typically, semi-heated spaces are large warehouses where a minimum temperature is maintained to allow for adequate working conditions. Residential conditioned — Defines the room as being a conditioned residential space. Conditioned residential spaces in buildings are used primarily for living and sleeping. Residential spaces include, but are not limited to, dwelling units, hotel/motel guest rooms, dormitories, nursing homes, patient rooms in hospitals, lodging houses, fraternity/sorority houses, hostels, prisons, and fire stations. Non-residential conditioned — Defines the room as being a non-residential conditioned space. Non-residential conditioned spaces are building areas that are not used for living or sleeping.
Thermal weight	Used to set the Thermal weight factor used for rooms of the selected room type. The thermal weight of a room refers to the extent of the room's energy consumption occurs with changes in local weather conditions. Light — Sets the room to have a light thermal weight. Thermally light rooms are those whose heating and cooling requirements are proportional to the weather. Medium — Sets the room to have a medium thermal weight. Medium weighted rooms have heating and cooling requirements that are proportional to the weather to a lesser degree than lightly weighted rooms. They require more energy to condition them than thermally light rooms, and less energy than thermally heavy rooms. Heavy — Sets the room to have a heavy thermal weight. Thermally heavy rooms have heating and cooling requirements that are not proportional to the weather. Heavier rooms being less dependent on weather than lighter rooms, are less likely to produce accurate results in simple temperature dependent energy consumption calculations.
Furniture amount	Used to set a default Furniture amount factor to be used for rooms of the selected room type. The amount of furniture in a room affects the amount of thermal energy the room gains or loses. Furnishings create additional surface areas which affect thermal gains and losses. Furniture also covers floor and wall areas, providing an insulating effect in the room space Low — Sets the room to have a low amount of furniture. Average — Sets the room to have an average amount of furniture. High — Sets the room to have a high amount of furniture.
Furniture weight	Used to set a default Furniture weight factor to be used for rooms of the selected room type. Furniture weight in a room refers to the amount of weight per unit of floor space furniture exerts. This factor affects the amount of thermal energy the room gains or loses. Light — Sets the room to have a light furniture weight factor. Low mass furniture absorbs and emits less thermal energy at a faster rate than more massive furniture. Medium — Sets the room to have a medium furniture weight factor. Medium mass furniture absorbs and emits thermal energy at a slower rate than less massive furniture, but faster than more massive furniture. Heavy — Sets the room to have a heavy furniture weight factor. High mass furniture absorbs and emits more thermal energy but at a slower rate than less massive furniture.