Air change rate in ventilated attics – reality and input for simulations

To remove moisture by ventilating constructions is a well-known strategy, used successfully in numerous facades and roofs. However, simulating ventilation is often difficult as convection in this case is in another dimension than what is usually in focus in 1D hygrothermal simulations. There are strategies for simulating ventilation in 1D programs assuming a fixed air change rate (ACH). Unfortunately, ACH in roofs highly depend on wind direction and speed, hence a constant rate is a gross simplification. The article describes a comparative study between simulations with a 1D hygrothermal simulation program (WUFI) and simulations with BSim, a program in which the indoor climate can be simulated in different zones, in this case the ventilated attic. Focus is the effect of ACH in the attic on temperature and relative humidity. Finally, measurements of ACH in attics of ten single-family houses are presented. These measurements show that average ACH measured over more than two weeks differ very much from house to house although the ventilation openings in all houses seemed to be in accordance with current guidelines. Even measurements of the same attic differ considerably from time to time. The paper discusses what implications this should have on simulations.