How user practice and habits impact the energy need in nearly zero energy youth housing in Denmark

Several projects constructed during the last years demonstrate that it is possible to design buildings which can be defined as “zero-energy buildings”. However, research show that it can be difficult to meet the expected low energy consumption. Studies suggest that one of the reasons for this is that occupants’ behaviour and lifestyle strongly influence the final energy consumption.
This paper presents a preliminary study of a larger research project that studies the relation between energy use and user practice and habits as well as the users’ expectations to and experiences of living in a newly built nearly zero-energy youth housing complex in Denmark. The objective of this study is to examine to what extend user practice and habits influence the energy consumption and on that basis to identify representative user characteristics within this specific user group. Methodologically this is done through a case study where data on measured energy consumption for space heating is juxtaposed with the results of a questionnaire survey. The study indicates that variations in heat consumption across the apartments are not primarily related to apartment type, orientation or floor, but rather related to the inhabitants’ use of their apartment.