Window retrofits: Interaction and life-cycle costing

This paper deals with the interaction between different types of building energy retrofits. The means for finding this interaction has been via the OPERA model, which is used for energy retrofit optimization. The solution is an optimum when the total life-cycle cost, LCC, for the building, i.e. the sum of the building, maintenance and operating costs, is minimized. The model finds the candidates for the optimal strategy by calculating the total LCC for one retrofit after another, i.e., an incremental method is used. All the measures are implemented with respect to the building and the resulting LCC is calculated. Usually, the LCC for this combination is higher than the incremental LCC, i.e. the incremental way of calculation overestimates the savings. However, when window retrofits are considered, the opposite might happen due to the use of shading factors. These factors indicate the decrease in solar radiation through a window when an ordinary one is replaced by a window with enhanced thermal performance. The paper also shows that the interaction between the different measures usually can be neglected, as long as optimal retrofits are introduced.