INDOOR ENVIRONMENT QUALITY EVALUATION IN DWELLINGS: A POLISH CASE STUDY

S t r e s z c z e n i e Parametry środowiska wewnątrz pomieszczeń warunkują odczuwanie komfortu przez ich użytkowników oraz znacząco wpływają na zużycie energii na cele ogrzewania i wentylacji pomieszczeń w budynku. Przeprowadzenie właściwej diagnostyki cieplnej istniejących budynków wymaga zatem wykonania rzetelnej oceny warunków panujących wewnątrz pomieszczeń. Na przykładzie dwóch domów jednorodzinnych i jednego mieszkania w budynku wielorodzinnym zademonstrowano sposób prowadzenia pomiarów i oceny jakości środowiska cieplnego oraz jakości powietrza wewnętrznego. W artykule zwrócono uwagę na zagadnienia warte uwzględnienia w czasie prowadzenia diagnostyki środowiska wewnętrznego w budynkach mieszkalnych. K e y w o r d s : Indoor environment; Thermal comfort; Air quality; Thermal building diagnostics. 4/2017 A R C H I T E C T U R E C I V I L E N G I N E E R I N G E N V I R O N M E N T 163 A R C H I T E C T U R E C I V I L E N G I N E E R I N G E N V I R O N M E N T The Si les ian Univers i ty of Technology No. 4/2017 J . K a c z m a r c z y k , A . L i p c z y ń s k a , P . K a t e u s z 164 A R C H I T E C T U R E C I V I L E N G I N E E R I N G E N V I R O N M E N T 4/2017 future will consume nearly no energy. On the other hand, in order to improve energy performance of existing buildings, the modernization of the building envelope and technical installations is required. It is important that modernization actions lead to lowering energy consumption, but they should simultaneously not decrease the quality of indoor environment. Energy certification of buildings implemented in Poland does not require the evaluation of the indoor environment, despite the fact that EPBD assumed verification of internal environmental conditions, particularly thermal conditions, and indoor air quality. Prior to building modernization, a complex thermal diagnostics of buildings is desired to help to identify the appropriate modernization solutions. Complex thermal diagnostics is also a powerful tool to verify the effectiveness of the implemented improvements [3]. It is necessary to evaluate the performance of all building installations, especially these that contribute to thermal and air quality conditions. Methods for complex thermal diagnostics was developed within Task 4 of a research project entitled Integrated System for Reducing Energy Consumption in the Maintenance of Buildings [4]. Therefore, complex thermal diagnostics of existing buildings should include appropriate measurement procedures of the evaluation of building installations [5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11] and the indoor environment [12]. The paper focuses on the evaluation of indoor air quality and the thermal environment in dwellings. The quality of indoor environment in public buildings has been extensively studied. Special attention has been paid to the indoor quality in offices, since a high quality environment is desired from the perspective of not only the occupants’ comfort but also their productivity. Modern offices often have automatic climate control, some even in the form of a more advanced BEM system that allows the analysis of basic parameters of indoor environment; therefore, it is easier to collect data for evaluation. Less attention has been paid to environmental conditions in dwellings. In Poland, there are approximately 5 million single-family houses and 13 millions of apartments. Over 80% of them have been built before 2003 and were constructed according to lower normative requirements on thermal insulation [13]. By the modernization of a building envelope and technical installations, this building sector has a potential to achieve substantial energy savings. Moreover, when considering the amount of time people spend at home and the effect indoor environment exerts on people, this issue turns out to be equally important as environments at work or at school. Dwellings are, however, specific buildings that require the selection of an appropriate evaluation method. Hitherto developed methods for measuring and evaluating environmental conditions presented in the literature and standards are characterized by varying degrees of complexity [14, 15, 16]. The aim of the present paper is to demonstrate the proposed method of measurements and analysis of indoor climate quality. Practical examples of thermal comfort and air quality examinations in two singlefamily houses and one multi-family block of flats are demonstrated. Issues related to conducting of the measurements are also discussed.