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Multi-Family Housing
IOf the 106 million housing units in the U.S., 19 million, or 18%, are multi-family. The amount of energy used in multi-family buildings varies depending on their condition, age, and original design. Overall, residential housing accounts for 22% of the energy consumed in the United States.
Residential CHP systems work best in large buildings with heavy power demands. The buildings with the highest potential for energy
savings are
multi-family dwellings (approximately 200 apartments or more) that have high electrical and heating usage for 16 hours a day
or more, six days a week.
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General Guidelines for CHP Projects in Multi-Family Buildings |
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- Does the building contain at least 200 units?
The economics for installing CHP currently favor buildings containing at least 200 dwelling units, but there are examples of installations in smaller buildings. Buildings that share a common boiler room can each be smaller in size (less than 150 dwelling units) and still benefit from CHP.
- Is the building's electric load master-metered/sub-metered?
A residential building that is master-metered or sub-metered by an electric utility can be a good candidate for CHP since the electric load of each apartment, as well as the building's common areas (and the thermal load), is available to the CHP system.
- Does the building consume at least 500,000 kWh of electricity per month?
- Does the building consume at least 300,000 CCF of natural gas per year?
- Does the building contain a central laundry or pool?
- Does the building use a hot water (hydronic) or steam space-heating system?
- Does the building's existing HVAC system need to be upgraded or replaced soon?
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If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then your building is a likely candidate for an
Alcor CHP system. |
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