Account Classification
The method in
which suppliers of electricity, natural gas, or fuel oil classify
and bill their customers. Common account classifications are "Commercial,"
"Industrial," and "Residential."
Activities
with Large Amounts of Hot Water
An energy-related
space function within a building that requires large amounts of
hot water for uses other than space heating. Examples of these activities
are commercial laundry rooms, heated swimming pools, spas, saunas
and steam rooms.
Alkylate
A gasoline blending
component composed of isobutene and propylene or butylenes.
Air-Handling
Unit
A type of heating
and/or cooling distribution equipment that channels warm or cool
air to different parts of a building. This process of channeling
the conditioned air often involves drawing air over heating or cooling
coils and forcing it from a central location through ducts or air-handling
units. Air-handling units are hidden in the walls or ceilings, where
they use steam or hot water to heat or chill water to cool the air
inside the duct work.
Asphalt
1. A mixture
of bitumen and mineral aggregate as prepared for the construction
of roads or other paving.
2. In the US
a product that is known as bitumen in the rest of the world.
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Barrel
A volumetric
unit of measure for crude oil and petroleum products equivalent
to 42 U.S. gallons, 35 Imperial gallons or 159 litres.
Boiler
A type of space-heating
equipment consisting of a vessel or tank where heat produced from
the combustion of such fuels as natural gas, fuel oil, or coal is
used to generate hot water or steam. Many buildings have their own
boilers, while other buildings have steam or hot water piped in
from a central plant. For this survey, only boilers inside the building
(or serving only that particular building) are counted as part of
the building's heating system. Steam or hot water piped into a building
from a central plant is considered district heat.
Btu (British
Thermal Unit)
A unit of energy
consumed by or delivered to a building. A Btu is defined as the
amount of energy required to increase the temperature of 1 pound
of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit, at normal atmospheric pressure.
Energy consumption is expressed in Btu to allow for consumption
comparisons among fuels that are measured in different units. (See
Btu Conversion Factors and Metric Conversion Factors.)
Built-Up
Roof
A roof covering
consisting of several successive layers (each of which is called
a "ply"), usually of roofing felt, with mopping of hot
asphalt between layers and topped by a mineral-surfaced layer or
by gravel embedded in a heavy coat of asphalt.
Calorie
The heat required
to raise one gram of water by 10C
Cases or
Cabinets
Refrigeration
in open or closed units for the purpose of selling, displaying,
or storing perishable materials. "Open" refers to cases
or cabinets with no covers or with flexible covers made of plastic
or some other material, hung in strips or curtains to stop the flow
of warm air into the refrigerated space. "Closed" refers
to units with doors that shut.
Central Chiller
A type of cooling
equipment that is centrally located and that produces chilled water
in order to cool air. The chilled water or cold air is then distributed
throughout the building by use of pipes or air ducts, or both. These
systems are also commonly known as "chillers," "centrifugal
chillers," "reciprocating chillers" or "absorption
chillers." Chillers are generally located in, or just outside,
the building they serve. Chillers located at central plants are
included under District Chilled Water.
Central Physical
Plant
A plant that
is owned by, and on the grounds of, a multibuilding facility that
provides district heating, district cooling, or electricity to one
or more buildings on the same facility. The central physical plant
may be by itself in a separate building or may be located in a building
where other activities occur. (See Multibuilding Facility, District
Heat, or District Chilled Water.)
Centralized
Water-Heating System
A type of water-heating
equipment that heats and stores water for purposes other than space
heating which provides hot water from a single location for distribution
throughout a building. A residential-type tank water heater is a
good example of a centralized water heater.
Coal
A black or brownish-black
solid, combustible substance formed by the partial decomposition
of vegetable matter without access to air. The term includes anthracite,
bituminous and subbituminous coal, as well as the derivative of
coal (formed by destructive distillation or imperfect combustion)
known as coke. Data on the use of coal were collected but no consumption
and expenditure data were collected. Coal is included in the "Other"
category for the energy sources, main space-heating energy sources,
and space-heating energy sources categories. (See Energy Source.)
Cogeneration
The sequential
or simultaneous process in which useful heat/steam is generated,
used in a variety of process applications, and then directed into
a turbine to generate electricity and/or mechanical work from the
useful thermal energy still available for use. This process of electric
generation may be electrically interconnected with an electric utility
and grid, to deliver electricity to the grid as well as receive
it from the grid. Neither generation of electricity without use
of the byproduct heat, nor waste-heat recovery from processes other
than electricity generation is included in the definition of cogeneration.
(See Electricity Generation.)
Commercial
Neither residential,
manufacturing/industrial, nor agricultural. (See Residential, Manufacturing/
Industrial, Agricultural, and Commercial Building.)
Commercial
Building
A building with
more than 50 percent of its floorspace used for commercial activities.
Commercial buildings include, but are not limited to, the following:
stores, offices, schools, churches, gymnasiums, libraries, museums,
hospitals, clinics, warehouses, and jails.. (See Building, Commercial,
Residential, Manufacturing/Industrial, Agricultural, and Principal
Building Activity.)
Commercial
Food Preparation
An energy-related
function that has space specifically designed and equipped to meet
the needs for preparing and serving food commercially. This includes
kitchens in restaurants, diners, and other commercial institutions,
such as schools. The term "commercial" also includes what
is sometimes classified as "institutional" -- that is,
food preparation and serving areas in schools, hospitals, prisons,
shelters, churches and nursing homes. This category includes cafeterias
where food is brought in and kept warm with steam tables or other
warming devices until it is served. It does not include employee
or student "lounge" areas with microwaves or other food
preparation equipment and/or vending machines.
Commercial
Refrigeration/Freezer Equipment
commercial refrigeration/freezer
units for the sale or storage of perishable materials; residential-type
refrigerators/freezers that are a necessary part of the building's
principal activity; or any other commercial refrigeration equipment,
excluding air conditioning. Data are collected on refrigeration/freezer
equipment inside and/or adjacent to the building. (See Cases or
Cabinets and Walk-in Refrigeration Units.)
Compact Fluorescent
Light Bulb
A light bulb
designed to replace screw-in incandescent light bulbs, they are
often found in table lamps, wall sconces, and hall and ceiling fixtures
of commercial buildings with residential type lights. They combine
the efficiency of fluorescent lighting with the convenience of standard
incandescent bulbs. Light is produced the same way as with other
fluorescent lamps. Compact fluorescent bulbs have either electronic
or magnetic ballasts.
Conditional
Energy Intensity
Total consumption
of a particular energy source(s) or fuel(s) divided by the total
floorspace of buildings that use the energy source(s) or fuel(s),
i.e., the ratio of consumption to energy source-specific floorspace.
This measure is used in the fuel-specific detailed tables.
Consumption
The amount of
energy used in, or delivered to, a building during a given period
of time. However, primary consumption is the amount of site consumption
plus losses that occur in the electricity generation process.
Conversion
Losses
The amount of
energy lost during generation, transmission, and distribution of
energy sources, particularly electricity, including plant and unaccounted-for
uses. (See Site Electricity and Primary Electricity.)
Cooking
As an energy
end use, the use of energy for commercial or institutional food
preparation. Specifically, cooking that took place in a kitchen
facility that was not part of a residence. It does not include employee
lounge areas that are equipped with microwaves, other food preparation
equipment, and/or vending machines. (See Energy End Use.)
Cooling
As an energy
end use, the conditioning of air in a room for human comfort by
a refrigeration unit (such as an air conditioner or heat pump) or
by a central cooling or district cooling system that circulates
chilled water. Excluded is the use of fans or blowers by themselves,
without chilled air or water. (See Energy End Use.)
Cooling Degree-Days
(CDD)
A measure of
how hot a location was over a period of time, relative to a base
temperature.
Cooling Distribution
Equipment
The part of
a cooling system that distributes conditioned water and/or air throughout
a building by means of pipes, ducts, or fans. Often the distribution
serves both heating and cooling. (See Duct, Individual Air Conditioner,
and Fan-Coil Unit.)
Cooling Equipment
The equipment
used for cooling room air in the building for human comfort. (See
Residential- Type Central Air Conditioner, Heat Pump, Individual
Air Conditioner, Central Chiller, District Chilled Water, Packaged
Unit, and Evaporative Cooler (Swamp Cooler).)
Cubic Foot
(cf)
As a natural
gas measure, the volume of gas contained in a cube with an edge
that is 1 foot long at standard temperature and pressure (60 degrees
Fahrenheit and 14.73 pounds standard per square inch.) The thermal
content varies by the composition of the gas.
Demand
The rate of
energy consumption per unit of time. The term is most commonly applied
to electricity, for which demand is typically measured in watts
(W) or kilowatts (kW). (See Peak Demand.)
Demand-Metered
Having a meter
to measure peak demand (in addition to total consumption) during
a billing period. The 1995 CBECS collected data on metered demand
only for electricity. Demand is not usually metered for other energy
sources. (See Peak Demand.)
Distributed
Water-Heating System
A type of system
for heating water for purposes other than space-heating which is
located at more than one place within a building. Often called a
"point-of-use" water heating system, the water heater
is located at the faucet and heats water only as required for immediate
use. Because water is not heated until it is required, this equipment
is more energy efficient.
District
Chilled Water
Water chilled
outside of the building in a central plant and piped into the building
as an energy source for cooling. Chilled water may be purchased
from a utility or provided by a central physical plant in a separate
building that is part of the same multibuilding facility (for example,
a hospital complex or university). (See Energy Source.)
District
Heat
Steam or hot
water produced outside of the building in a central plant and piped
into the building as an energy source for space heating or another
end use. The district heat may be purchased from a utility or provided
by a central physical plant in a separate building that is part
of the same multibuilding facility (for example, a hospital complex
or university.) District heat includes district steam and/or district
hot water. (See Energy Source.)
District
Hot Water
District heat
in the form of hot water. (See District Heat.)
District
Steam
District heat
in the form of steam. (See District Heat.)
Duct
A type of heating
and/or cooling distribution equipment that is a passageway made
of sheet metal or other suitable material to convey air from the
heating, ventilating, and cooling systems to and from the point
of use. (See Air-Handling Unit.)
Economizer
Cycle
A heating, ventilation,
and air-conditioning (HVAC) conservation feature consisting of indoor
and outdoor temperature and humidity sensors, dampers, motors, and
motor controls for the ventilation system to reduce the air-conditioning
load. Wherever the temperature and humidity of the outdoor air are
more favorable (lower heat content) than the temperature and humidity
of the return air, more outdoor air is brought into the building.
Electricity
Electric energy
supplied to a building by a central utility via power lines or from
a central physical plant in a separate building that is part of
the same multibuilding facility. Electric power generated within
a building for exclusive use in that building is specifically excluded
from the definition of electricity as an energy source. (See Energy
Source.)
Electricity
Generation
As an energy
end use, the onsite production of electricity by means of electricity
generators on either a regular or emergency basis. (See Energy End
Use and Electricity.)
EMCS
See Energy Management
and Control System (EMCS).
Energy Audit
An energy management
practice consisting of an evaluation to provide information on the
physical and operating characteristics of a building and its energy
uses and processes. The energy audit is conducted at the premise
or facility by trained auditors. Audit services vary from simple
walk-throughs to building management training programs and site-specific
process and efficiency evaluations.
Energy Conservation
Features
This category
includes building shell conservation features, HVAC conservation
features, and lighting conservation features incorporated by the
building. (See Building Shell Conservation Features, HVAC Conservation
Features, and Lighting Conservation Features.)
Energy-Efficient
Ballasts
A lighting conservation
feature consisting of an energy-efficient version of a conventional
electromagnetic ballast. The ballast is the transformer for fluorescent
and high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps and provides the necessary
current, voltage, and wave-form conditions to operate the lamp.
An energy-efficient ballast requires lower power input than a conventional
ballast to operate HID and fluorescent lamps.
Energy End
Use
A use for which
energy is consumed in a building. (See Cooking, Cooling, Electricity
Generation, Lighting, Manufacturing, Office Equipment, Refrigeration,
Space Heating, and Water Heating.)
Energy Intensity
The ratio of
consumption to unit of measurement (floorspace, number of workers,
etc.) Energy intensity is usually given on an aggregate basis, as
the ratio of the total consumption for a set of buildings to the
total floorspace in those buildings. Conditional energy intensity
and gross energy intensity are presented. The energy intensity can
also be computed for individual buildings. (See Conditional Energy
Intensity and Gross Energy Intensity.)
Energy Management
and Control System (EMCS)
An energy management
feature that uses mini/microcomputers, instrumentation, control
equipment, and software to manage a building's use of energy for
heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lighting, and/or business-related
processes. These systems can also manage fire control, safety, and
security. Not included as an EMCS are time-clock thermostats.
Energy-Related
Space Functions
commercial food
preparation, computer rooms with separate air conditioning systems,
and activities requiring large amounts of hot water. (See Commercial
Food Preparation, Computer Room with Separate Air-Conditioning System,
and Activities with Large Amounts of Hot Water.)
Energy Source
A type of energy
or fuel consumed in the building. In most tables, wood, coal, and
solar thermal panels are included in "Other" in the Energy
Sources category. (See Electricity, Natural Gas, Fuel Oil, District
Heat, District Chilled Water, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Propane,
Wood, Coal and Solar Thermal Panels.)
Energy Source-Specific
Floorspace
Total floorspace
of those buildings that use a particular fuel. (See Conditional
Energy Intensity.)
Evaporative
Cooler (Swamp Cooler)
A type of cooling
equipment that turns air into moist, cool air by saturating the
air with water vapor. It does not cool air by use of a refrigeration
unit. This type of equipment is commonly used in warm, dry climates.
Exterior
or Interior Shadings or Awnings
A building shell
conservation feature designed to reduce the flow of light into a
building. Exterior shadings or awnings include any type of shading
(including architectural) or awning on the outside of the building
designed to limit solar penetration. Interior shadings are drapes,
horizontal or vertical shades, mini blinds, or any other means of
covering a window from the inside to limit the amount of solar or
thermal penetration.
Fan-Coil
Unit
A type of heating
and/or cooling distribution equipment that circulates hot or chilled
water with fans but without ducts. Fan-coil units have thermostatically
controlled built-in fans that draw air from the room and then carry
the air across finned tubes containing hot water, steam, or chilled
water. The hot water, steam, or chilled water can be produced by
equipment within the building or can be piped into the building
as part of a district heating or cooling system. (See Space Heating
and Cooling.)
Floors
The number of
levels in the tallest section of a building that are actually considered
a part of the building, including parking areas, basements, or other
floors below ground level.
Floorspace
All the area
enclosed by the exterior walls of a building, including indoor parking
facilities, basements, hallways, lobbies, stairways, and elevator
shafts. For aggregate floorspace statistics, floorspace was summed
or aggregated over all buildings in a category (such as all office
buildings in the United States). (See Square Footage.)
Fluorescent
Light Bulb
This is usually
a long, narrow, white tube made of glass coated on the inside with
fluorescent material that is connected to an electric fixture at
both ends of the light bulb; the tube may also be circular or U-shaped.
The light bulb produces light by passing electricity through mercury
vapor, causing the fluorescent coating to glow or fluoresce. Excluded
are compact fluorescent light bulbs, which are listed in a separate
category . Fluorescent light bulbs are included in Standard Fluorescent
in the Lighting Equipment category.
Forced Air
through Vents
See Air-Handling
Unit.
Fuel Oil
A liquid petroleum
product used as an energy source that is less volatile than gasoline.
Fuel oil includes distillate fuel oil (Nos. 1, 2, and 4), residual
fuel oil (Nos. 5 and 6), and kerosene. (See Energy Source.)
Furnace
A North American
term for a type of space-heating equipment with an enclosed chamber
where fuel is burned or electrical resistance is used to heat air
directly without steam or hot water. The heated air is then distributed
throughout the building, typically by air ducts.
Gassoil
An intermediate
distillate product used for diesel fuel, heating fuel and sometimes
as feedstock. The term is often used interchangeably with No. 2
heating oil.
Geothermal
Heat Pump
A renewable
energy feature that uses the natural heat storage ability of the
earth and/or the earth's groundwater to heat and/or cool the building.
The earth has the ability to absorb and store heat energy from the
sun. To use that stored energy, heat is extracted from the earth
through a liquid medium (groundwater or an anti-freeze solution)
and is pumped to the heat pump or heat exchanger. There, the heat
is used to heat the building. In the summer, the process is reversed
and indoor heat is extracted from the building and transferred to
the earth through the liquid. The geothermal heat pump is more efficient
than an air-source heat pump.
Gross Energy
Intensity
Total consumption
of a particular energy source(s) or fuel(s) by a group of buildings,
divided by the total floorspace of those buildings, including buildings
and floorspace where the energy source or fuel is not used, i.e.,
the ratio of consumption to gross floorspace. (See Conditional Energy
Intensity.)
Ground Source
Heat Pump
See Geothermal
Heat Pump.
Halogen Light
Bulb
A type of incandescent
light bulb that lasts much longer and is more efficient than a standard
incandescent light bulb. The light bulb uses a halogen gas, usually
iodine or bromine, that causes the evaporating tungsten to be redeposited
on the filament, thus prolonging its life.
Heating Degree-Days
(HDD)
A measure of
how cold a location was over a period of time, relative to a base
temperature.
Heating Distribution
Equipment
The part of
a heating system that distributes conditioned water and/or air throughout
a building by means of pipes, ducts, or fans. Often the distribution
equipment serves both heating and cooling. (See Radiator, Baseboard,
Duct, Individual Space Heater, and Fan-Coil Unit.)
Heating Equipment
The equipment
used for heating ambient air in the building such as a heat pump,
furnace, boiler, packaged-heating unit, individual space heater,
and district steam or hot water piped in from outside the building.
(See Boiler, Furnace, Heat Pump, Individual Space Heater, and Packaged
Unit. )
Heating,
Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
The system or
systems that condition air in a building.
Heat Pump
A type of heating
and/or cooling equipment that draws heat into a building from outside
and, during the cooling season, ejects heat from the building to
the outside. Heat pumps are vapor-compression refrigeration systems
whose indoor/outdoor coils are used reversibly as condensers or
evaporators, depending on the need for heating or cooling.
High-Intensity
Discharge (HID) Light Bulb
A lamp bulb
that produces light by passing electricity through gas, which causes
the gas to glow. Examples of HID lamps are mercury vapor lamps,
metal halide lamps, and high- and low-pressure sodium lamps. HID
lamps have an extremely long life and emit many more lumens per
fixture than do fluorescent lights.
HVAC
See Heating,
Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC).
HVAC Conservation
Features
A building feature
designed to reduce the amount of energy consumed by the heating,
cooling, and ventilating equipment. This category includes the presence
of a variable air-volume (VAV) system, an economizer cycle, and
HVAC maintenance programs. (See Variable Air-Volume (VAV) System,
Economizer Cycle, and HVAC Maintenance.)
HVAC Maintenance
An HVAC conservation
feature consisting of a program of routine inspection and service
for heating and/or cooling equipment. The inspection is performed
on a regular basis, even if there are no apparent problems.
Incandescent
Light Bulb
A light bulb
that produces a soft warm light by electrically heating a tungsten
filament so that it glows. Because so much of the energy is lost
as heat, these are highly inefficient sources of light. Included
in this category are the familiar type of light bulbs which screw
into sockets, as well as energy-efficient incandescent bulbs, such
as Reflector or R-Lamps (accent and task lighting), Parabolic Aluminized
Reflector (PAR) lamps (flood and spot lighting), and Ellipsoidal
Reflector (ER) lamps (recessed lighting).
Individual
Air Conditioner
A type of cooling
equipment installed in either walls or windows (with heat-radiating
condensers exposed to the outdoor air). These self-contained units
are characterized by a lack of pipes or duct work for distributing
the cool air; the units condition only air in the room or areas
where they are located.
Individual
Space Heater
A type of space
heating equipment that is a free-standing or a self-contained unit
that generates and delivers heat to a local zone within the building.
The heater may be permanently mounted in a wall or floor or may
be portable. Examples of individual space heaters include electric
baseboards, electric radiant or quartz heaters, heating panels,
gas- or kerosene-fired unit heaters, wood stoves, and infrared radiant
heaters. These heaters are characterized by a lack of pipes or duct
work for distributing hot water, steam, or warm air through the
building.
Insulation
A building shell
conservation feature consisting of material placed between the interior
of a building (in the roof below the waterproofing layer or in the
ceiling of the top floor in the building or between the exterior
and interior walls of a building) and the outdoor environment to
reduce the rate of heat loss to the environment or heat gain from
the environment. Examples include glass-wool fill and foam board.
Joule
The amount of
energy produced by one Watt in one second.
Kerosene
A petroleum
distillate with properties similar to those of No. 1 fuel oil; used
primarily in space heaters, cooking stoves, and water heaters. In
this report, no distinction is made between kerosene and fuel oil.
(See Fuel Oil.)
Kilowatthour
(kWh)
A unit of work
or energy, measured as 1 kilowatt (1,000 watts) of power expended
for 1 hour. One kWh is equivalent to 3,412 Btu. (See Btu.)
Lighting
The illumination
of the interior of a building by use of artificial sources of light
Lighting
Conservation Features
A building feature
or practice designed to reduce the amount of energy consumed by
the lighting system. Lighting Conservation Features include natural
lighting control sensors, manual dimmer switches, occupancy sensors,
specular reflectors, time clocks or timed switches, and energy-efficient
ballasts. (See Natural Lighting Control Sensors, Manual Dimmer Switches,
Occupancy Sensors, Specular Reflectors, Time Clocks or Timed Switches,
and Energy-Efficient Ballasts. )
Lighting
Equipment
Light bulbs
used to light a building's interior. (See Incandescent Light Bulb,
Standard Fluorescent Light Bulb, Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb,
High-Intensity Discharge (HID) Light Bulb, and Halogen Light Bulb.)
Liquefied
Petroleum Gas (LPG)
Any fuel gas
supplied to a building in liquid form. Propane is the usual LPG,
but gases such as butane, propylene, butylene, and ethane are also
LPG. (See Energy Source, Propane, and Natural Gas.)
Load Factor
The ratio of
average demand to peak demand
Load Factor
= Annual Consumption (kWh)/(366 x 24 Hours)
Annual Peak
Demand (kW)
LPG
See Liquefied
Petroleum Gas (LPG).
Manual Dimmer
Switches
A lighting conservation
feature that changes the level of light in the building. These are
like residential-style dimmer switches, which are not commonly used
with fluorescent or HID lamps.
Metric Ton
A standard measurement
which averages 7.33 barrels of crude oil.
Natural Gas
Hydrocarbon
gas (mostly methane) supplied as an energy source to individual
buildings by pipelines from a central utility company. Natural gas
does not refer to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or to privately
owned gas wells operated by a building owner. (See Energy Source,
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), and Propane.)
Natural Lighting
Control Sensors
A lighting conservation
feature that takes advantage of sunlight to cut the amount of electric
lighting used in a building by varying output of the lighting system
in response to variations in available daylight. It is sometimes
referred to as "daylighting controls" or "photocells."
Occupancy
Sensors
A lighting conservation
feature that uses motion or sound to switch lights on or off; also
known as "ultrasonic switching." When movement is detected,
the lights turn on and remain on as long as there is movement in
the room. Occupancy sensors that detect sound work like ultrasonic
switching; when sound is detected, the lights turn on. In this report,
occupancy sensors refer to detecting movement, not sound.
Packaged
Unit
A type of heating
and/or cooling equipment that is assembled at a factory and installed
as a self-contained unit. Packaged units are in contrast to engineer-specified
units built up from individual components for use in a given building.
Some types of electric packaged units are also called "Direct
Expansion," or DX, units.
Passive Solar
Features
A renewable
energy feature with a deliberate approach to designing buildings
to make use of natural ways to heat buildings in the winter and
keep them cool in the summer. No external mechanical power is used
to move the collected solar heat. Passive solar design features
include structuring the building on the lot so that large window
areas face south to capture sunlight during the winter months; building
"overhangs" on the south-facing windows to keep the sun
from over heating the building during the summer; using certain
types of building material to absorb heat during the day and release
heat at night; and planting trees and vegetation to minimize heat
gain in the building in the summer.
Peak Demand
The maximum
rate of energy consumption per unit time over a period of measurement
(also called "peak load (See Demand.)
Peak Intensity
The ratio of
peak demand to floorspace, usually determined only for electricity
(See Peak Demand.)
Peak Load
See Peak Demand.
Photovoltaic
(PV) Arrays
A renewable
energy feature that is a device that produces electrical current
by converting light or similar radiation.
Primary Electricity
The amount of
electricity delivered to commercial buildings adjusted to account
for the fuels used to produce the electricity. That is, site electricity
plus the conversion losses in the generation process at the utility
plant. (See Conversion Losses, Electricity and Site Electricity.)
Primary Space-Heating
Energy Source
The energy source
used to heat most of the floorspace in a building most of the time.
Propane
A gaseous petroleum
product that liquefies under pressure; propane is the major component
of liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG. (See Liquefied Petroleum Gas
(LPG).)
Radiator
A type of heating
distribution equipment that is usually visibly exposed within the
room or space to be heated; it transfers heat from steam or hot
water by radiation to objects within visible range and by conduction
to the surrounding air, which, in turn, is circulated by natural
convection. Typically, a radiator is a freestanding, cast-iron fixture.
Refrigeration
Equipment
See Commercial
Refrigeration/Freezer Equipment.
Reheating
Coils
A part of some
air-conditioning systems, these are electric coils in air ducts
used primarily to raise the temperature of circulated air after
it was over cooled to remove moisture. Some buildings report reheating
coils as their sole heating source. (See Air-Handling Unit, Cooling,
and Space Heating.)
Residential-Type
Central Air Conditioner
(1) a "split
system," where the condensing unit is located outside and the
other components are inside, and (2) a packaged-terminal air-conditioning
(PTAC) unit that both heats and cools or cools only. This system
contains all four components encased in one unit and is usually
found in a "utility closet." If the residential type is
a "PTAC," it is considered a "Packaged air-conditioning
unit."
Roof or Ceiling
Insulation
See Insulation.
Secondary
Heating Fuel
Fuels used in
secondary space-heating equipment. When the building does not use
a secondary space-heating equipment, the secondary space-heating
fuel that is used in the main space-heating equipment is not included
in the tabulations. This occurs when, for example, wood and coal
are both used in a furnace but wood is named the main space-heating
fuel. Coal, in this case, is not tabulated.
Solar Thermal
Panels
A system that
actively concentrates thermal energy from the sun by means of solar
collector panels. The panels typically consist of flat, sun-oriented
boxes with transparent covers, containing water tubes or air baffles
under a blackened heat absorbent panel. The energy is usually used
for space heating, water heating, and for heating swimming pools.
Passive collection of solar thermal energy is not included in this
definition. (See Energy Source.)
Space Heating
As an energy
end use, the use of mechanical equipment (including wood stoves
and active solar heating devices) to heat all, or part, of a building
to at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit. (See Energy End Use.)
Specular
Reflectors
A lighting conservation
feature that is the mirror-like backing of a fluorescent lighting
fixture specifically designed to reflect light into the room. The
materials and shape of the reflector are designed to reduce absorption
of light within the fixture, while delivering light in the desired
angular pattern. The most common materials used are silver (highest
reflectivity) and aluminum (lowest cost).
Standard
Fluorescent Light Bulb
See Fluorescent
Light Bulb.
Supplementary
Multiple Glazing
A building shell
conservation feature consisting of storm windows, storm doors, or
double- or triple-pane glass that are placed on the exterior of
the building to reduce the rate of heat loss. For Storm Doors, the
feature consists of a second door installed outside or inside a
prime door creating an insulating air space. Included are sliding
glass doors made of double glass or of insulating glass, such as
thermopane, double- or triple-pane glass as well as sliding glass
doors with glass or plexiglass installed outside or inside of the
door. For Storm Windows, the feature consists of a window or glazing
material placed outside or inside a window creating an insulating
air space. Windows with double glass or thermopanes are considered
storm windows as well as windows with glass or plexiglass placed
on the outside or inside of the window. Plastic material(s) over
windows or doors are counted only if they can be used year after
year.
Summer and
Winter Peaking
Having the annual
peak demand reached both during the summer months (May through October)
and during the winter months (November through April). (See Peak
Demand.)
Summer Peaking
Having the annual
peak demand during the summer - May to October. (See Peak Demand.)
Swamp Cooler
See Evaporative
Cooler (Swamp Cooler).
Time Clocks
or Timed Switches
A lighting conservation
feature which has automatic controls that turn lights off and on
at predetermined times.
Tinted or
Reflective Glass, or Shading Film
A building shell
conservation feature consisting of tinted or reflective glass or
shading films installed on the exterior glazing of a building to
reduce the rate of solar penetration into the building.
Trillion
Btu
Equivalent to
1,000,000,000,000 (1012) Btu. (See Btu.)
Variable
Air-Volume (VAV) System
An HVAC conservation
feature usually referred to as "VAV" that supplies varying
quantities of conditioned (heated or cooled) air to different parts
of a building according to the heating and cooling needs of those
specific areas.
Ventilation
The circulation
of air through a building to provide fresh air to the occupants,
and to deliver heating and cooling to the occupied spaces. End-use
estimates are provided for ventilation and eight other end-uses.
(See Energy End Use.)
Walk-In Refrigeration
Units
Refrigeration/freezer
units (within a building) that are large enough to walk into. They
may be portable or permanent, such as a meat storage locker in a
butcher store. Walk-in units may or may not have a door, plastic
strips, or other flexible covers.
Wall Insulation
See Insulation.
Water Heating
As an energy
end use, the use of energy to heat water for purposes other than
space heating. (See Energy End Use.)
Water-Heating
Equipment
Automatically
controlled, thermally insulated equipment designed for heating water
at temperatures less than 180 degrees Fahrenheit for other than
space heating purposes. (See Centralized Water-Heating System and
Distributed Water-Heating System.)
Well Water
for Cooling
A renewable
energy feature with cooling that uses water from a well drilled
specifically for that purpose. The temperature of the ground water
remains relatively constant; therefore, it provides a means of obtaining
55-degree Fahrenheit water with no mechanical cooling. Usually used
for heat rejections in a water source heat pump.
Wind Generation
A renewable
energy feature that converts wind energy into mechanical energy.
The mechanical energy is then used to generate electricity. Wind
energy generators are distinguished by a propeller which rotates
with the wind and a tall tower on which the propeller and generator
are mounted.
Winter Peaking
Having the annual
peak demand during the winter - November through April. (See Peak
Demand.)
Wood
As an energy
source, wood logs, chips, or wood products that are used as fuel.
(See Energy Source.)
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