Basel zero energy house exceeds planning values
Immobilien Basel-Stadt had its first zero-energy apartment building examined for efficiency and quality of living for three years. The final report shows that both the heat pump and the photovoltaic system are much more efficient than planned.
The first apartment building in the canton of Basel to be certified according to the highest Swiss Minergie-A-Eco standard was moved into in 2015. As an investor, Immobilien Basel-Stadt commissioned the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland ( FHNW ) to carry out a study three years ago. This long-term monitoring should clarify whether the demanding energy goals are being achieved and how the house is being accepted by the residents.
The new building at Basel Aescherstrasse 12 includes seven age-appropriate apartments with two and a half and three and a half rooms. According to a media release from Immobilien Basel-Stadt, the team of experts from the FHNW Institute for Energy in Buildings compared the calculated demand values from the planning with the actual consumption values in operation. The survey of the residents showed that the room temperature in most apartments is higher than the standard value from the planning.
Since the house should generate at least as much energy for the Minergie-A certification as is used all year round for heating, cooling and ventilation, it was then examined how the increased room temperatures affect heating energy consumption. The measurement results showed that, on the one hand, the heat pump was “much more efficient than assumed”. "On the other hand, the yield from the photovoltaic system on the roof was significantly higher than planned."
The energy production in the house today also exceeds the total electricity demand on an annual basis. There is potential for optimization through a partial waiver of building automation. This could improve the solar input in winter and night cooling in summer.
"The building concept has proven itself in operation", summarizes Immobilien Basel-Stadt. "The ambitious goals of sustainable building could also be achieved in practice without having to accept compromises in terms of comfort."