I am trying to determine which building energy simulation software to use for my home design. I've looked through the tools listed at http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/tools_directory/, but the number of tools is somewhat overwhelming. There are a number of questions I'd like to answer using an energy simulation tool:
1. What are the heating and cooling requirement of the home I wish to design? I would prefer to include the conduction effects of the earth sinking/sourcing energy through the slab-on-grade foundation, walls and attic. I would also like to account for solar radiation effects in my region as well as thermal mass contributions.
2. What is the return on investment of insulation thinknesses in the walls and attic? Are the extra inches of insulation worth it?
3. Which A/C system is best for my home design? Can be as simple as tonnage requirement, though I would like to eventually investigate ductwork routing, including inside vs. outside the building envelope as well as ductwork routing efficiencies.
The geometry of the home will not be too complex. As simple as a rectangular home with a hip roof and but potentially including a hip extension of the home for the garage.
I prefer to use a free tool because I'm frugal and it looks like there is plenty of selection in freeware; though, I would be willing to pay for a high-quality tool that saved me time.
I'm an Engineer so I can get involved deeply into the software dynamics and details, though the easier and more user friendly the better.
So which energy simulation tool(s) would you all recommend?
Thanks,
Trevor |