Figure 1
Aerial view of the Fairwater precinct.
Source: SixMaps (https://maps.six.nsw.gov.au)
Figure 2
Annual electricity consumption with respect to the number of occupants and NSW electricity benchmark.
Figure 3
Annual air-conditioning (AC) energy with respect to conditioned floor area.
Figure 4
Indoor operative temperature and concurrent outdoor temperature in summer (December–February).
Figure 5
Indoor operative temperature and concurrent outdoor temperature in winter (June–August).
Table 1
Summary of the SMS survey environmental conditions and outcomes in summer.
| SURVEY DATES | OUTDOOR CONDITIONS | FANS | AC (GSHP) SWITCHED ON | NO AC | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SURVEY DATES | NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS | MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE (°C) | MINIMUM TEMPERATURE (°C) | AVERAGE TEMPERATURE (°C) | % WITH FANS | % WITH AC | AVERAGE INDOOR TEMPERATURE (°C) | THERMAL SENSATION MEAN VOTE | MEAN SATISFACTION WITH THERMAL COMFORT | % WITH NO AC | AVERAGE INDOOR TEMPERATURE (°C) | THERMAL SENSATION MEAN VOTE | MEAN SATISFACTION WITH THERMAL COMFORT |
| 23 January | 19 | 41.3 | 20.3 | 30.8 | 84% | 74% | 26.1 | 0.4 | 4.9 | 26% | 26.2 | 0.8 | 3.8 |
| 24 January | 2 | 30.0 | 21.8 | 25.8 | 100% | 50% | 28.9 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 50% | 29.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 |
| 25 January | 33 | 31.6 | 22.1 | 25.5 | 67% | 39% | 25.4 | –0.8 | 5.9 | 61% | 26.1 | 0.4 | 5.1 |
| 26 January | 30 | 37.5 | 22.6 | 28.1 | 77% | 67% | 25.5 | –0.5 | 5.9 | 33% | 26.5 | 1.2 | 3.6 |
| 25 February | 41 | 31.1 | 18.3 | 24.0 | 51% | 32% | 25.5 | 0.0 | 5.9 | 68% | 27.6 | 0.7 | 5.3 |
| 26 February | 28 | 33.2 | 19.6 | 25.6 | 75% | 29% | 26.0 | 0.6 | 5.0 | 71% | 28.1 | 0.5 | 5.2 |
| 27 February | 37 | 25.5 | 19.0 | 21.5 | 49% | 8% | 25.6 | 0.3 | 5.0 | 92% | 26.0 | 0.2 | 5.7 |
| 2 March | 27 | 37.6 | 19.6 | 25.2 | 59% | 30% | 26.3 | –0.4 | 6.0 | 70% | 27.8 | 0.7 | 4.8 |
| 19 March | 33 | 32.8 | 15.7 | 23.1 | 45% | 18% | 23.9 | –1.0 | 5.7 | 82% | 26.1 | 0.8 | 5.1 |
| 20 March | 26 | 35.6 | 19.2 | 26.3 | 62% | 19% | 26.0 | 0.6 | 5.4 | 81% | 26.5 | 0.5 | 5.5 |
| 21 March | 35 | 26.4 | 16.5 | 20.9 | 63% | 11% | 25.7 | –1.0 | 6.5 | 89% | 26.0 | 0.3 | 5.5 |
[i] Notes: All responses are based on the status at the time when survey respondents completed the two-minute SMS survey.
Thermal sensation votes are recorded on a seven-point scale from +3 to –3, where +3 is hot, +2 is warm, +1 is slightly warm, 0 is neutral, –1 is slightly cool, –2 is cool and –3 is cold.
Mean satisfaction votes are recorded on a seven-point scale, where 1 is unsatisfactory and 7 is satisfactory.
With the exception of extreme days when over 65% of respondents had ground source heat pump (GSHP)-air-conditioning (AC) switched on at the time of responding to the survey, a general preference to adopt ceiling fans and other adaptive strategies is evident in Figure 6. Other coping measures included extending the time spent in cooler spaces including malls with AC.
Table 2
Summary of the SMS survey on environmental conditions and outcomes for winter.
| SURVEYDETAILS | OUTDOOR CONDITIONS | AC (GSHP) SWITCHED ON | ALTERNATE HEATING SWITCHED ON | NO HEATING IN USE | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SURVEY DATES | NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS | MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE (°C) | MINIMUM TEMPERATURE (°C) | AVERAGE TEMPERATURE (°C) | % WITH AC | AVERAGE INDOOR TEMPERATURE (°C) | THERMAL SENSATION MEAN VOTE | MEAN SATISFACTION WITH THERMAL COMFORT | % WITH ALTERNATE HEATING (GAS OR PORTABLE HEATERS) | AVERAGE INDOOR TEMPERATURE (°C) | THERMAL SENSATION MEAN VOTE | MEAN SATISFACTION WITH THERMAL COMFORT | % WITH NO HEATING | AVERAGE INDOOR TEMPERATURE (°C) | THERMAL SENSATION MEAN VOTE | MEAN SATISFACTION WITH THERMAL COMFORT |
| 19July | 28 | 20.0 | 6.7 | 12.6 | 21% | 20.4 | –0.5 | 4.8 | 7% | 19.5 | 0.0 | 6.5 | 71% | 19.3 | –0.6 | 5.8 |
| 21July | 36 | 15.8 | 5.4 | 10.1 | 36% | 19.6 | –0.1 | 6.0 | 6% | 17.9 | –2.0 | 3.0 | 58% | 19.4 | –0.5 | 5.9 |
| 23July | 37 | 17.9 | 6.5 | 11.3 | 24% | 21.3 | 0.3 | 6.3 | 8% | 19.2 | –1.3 | 4.0 | 68% | 18.6 | –0.4 | 5.9 |
| 26July | 42 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 13.2 | 33% | 20.9 | –0.2 | 5.8 | 14% | 19.7 | –0.8 | 4.8 | 55% | 18.0 | –1.1 | 5.6 |
| 4August | 42 | 20.9 | 7.8 | 13.0 | 24% | 20.3 | –0.2 | 6.3 | 10% | 18.2 | –1.0 | 4.8 | 67% | 19.5 | –0.3 | 6.0 |
| 5August | 32 | 17.2 | 4.5 | 9.7 | 22% | 20.5 | –0.3 | 6.0 | 16% | 19.8 | 0.0 | 5.8 | 66% | 18.1 | –0.6 | 5.8 |
| 6August | 40 | 15.3 | 3.6 | 8.7 | 33% | 19.1 | –0.4 | 6.3 | 8% | 14.2 | –3.0 | 4.0 | 63% | 16.9 | –1.1 | 5.5 |
| 7August | 37 | 12.4 | 7.5 | 10.1 | 65% | 21.0 | –0.3 | 5.7 | 14% | 15.7 | –2.3 | 4.0 | 27% | 17.0 | –2.1 | 4.9 |
[i] Notes: All responses are based on the status at the time when survey respondents completed the two-minute SMS survey.
Thermal sensation votes are recorded on seven-point scale from +3 to –3, where +3 is hot, +2 is warm, +1 is slightly warm, 0 is neutral –1 is slightly cool, –2 is cool and –3 is cold.
Mean satisfaction votes are recorded on a seven-point scale, where 1 is unsatisfactory and 7 is satisfactory.
AC = air-conditioning; GSHP = ground source heat pump.
Figure 6
Nominated comfort strategies across the home in summer.
Figure 7
Snapshot survey outcomes for one summer campaign in February 2020.
Figure 8
Thermal sensation votes in summer.
Figure 9
Nominated comfort strategies across the home in winter.
Figure 10
Snapshot survey outcomes for one winter campaign in August 2020.
Figure 11
Thermal sensation votes in winter.
Table 3
Summary of the annual and seasonal energy used in the three cases.
| CASE | ANNUAL ELECTRICITY (kWh) | ANNUAL GSHP-AC ENERGY (kWh) | TOTAL FLOOR AREA (m2) | CONDITIONED FLOOR AREA (m2) | GEOTHERMAL AC (GSHP-AC) ENERGY NORMALISED FOR CONDITIONED FLOOR AREA (kWh/m2) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPRING, 91 DAYS | SUMMER, 91 DAYS | AUTUMN, 92 DAYS | WINTER, 92 DAYS | ANNUAL, 366 DAYS | |||||
| A | 3759 | 1393 | 173 | 104 | 1.47 | 6.00 | 1.47 | 4.45 | 13.39 |
| B | 4551 | 2425 | 111 | 76 | 4.49 | 6.46 | 6.61 | 14.34 | 31.90 |
| C | 4735 | 2277 | 189 | 138 | 1.84 | 4.63 | 3.39 | 6.64 | 16.50 |
[i] Note: AC = air-conditioning; GSHP = ground source heat pump.
Figure 12
Indoor and concurrent outdoor temperatures during occupied hours: case A.
Figure 13
Indoor and concurrent outdoor temperatures during occupied hours: case B.
Figure 14
Indoor and concurrent outdoor temperatures during occupied hours: case C.