Heating load in Medicine Hat
A home in Medicine Hat has to be heated against a design temperature of −30.3 °C. That figure is measured, not modelled: it is the 1st percentile of daily minimum temperature over 16 years at Seven Persons Agdm Alta, 22 km away.
Design temperature
−30.3 °C
Heating degree days
4,035
Coldest month
Feb
Coldest night on record
−53.5 °C
How many kilowatts
Heating power needed at the design temperature, in kilowatts, for a detached house. Pick the row that matches the building.
| Construction | Detached | Semi-detached | Terraced | Top-floor flat | Mid-floor flat | Ground-floor flat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uninsulated, single glazed | 32.4 kW | 28.4 kW | 25.2 kW | 27.7 kW | 13.5 kW | 16.5 kW |
| Unfilled cavity, early double glazing | 21.9 kW | 18.9 kW | 16.5 kW | 16.1 kW | 9.7 kW | 12.2 kW |
| Insulated to 1980s standards | 12.5 kW | 11.3 kW | 10.3 kW | 9.7 kW | 6.9 kW | 8.9 kW |
| Modern, roughly 1995-2010 | 7.7 kW | 7.0 kW | 6.5 kW | 6.2 kW | 4.7 kW | 5.7 kW |
| Current building regulations | 5.9 kW | 5.4 kW | 5.0 kW | 4.9 kW | 3.6 kW | 4.4 kW |
| Passive house | 3.5 kW | 3.1 kW | 2.9 kW | 2.8 kW | 1.9 kW | 2.5 kW |
Where the heat goes
For a 120 m2 detached house of this construction, at the design temperature.
| Element | W | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Walls | 4,132 | 33% |
| Roof | 1,207 | 10% |
| Ground floor | 815 | 7% |
| Windows | 2,354 | 19% |
| Thermal bridges | 691 | 6% |
| Ventilation and draughts | 3,335 | 27% |
| Heating load | 12,535 | 12.5 kW |
Calculate it for your own home
The climate half of this is measured. The building half is yours to supply.
Monthly mean temperature
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| °C | −7.1 | −7.6 | −0.9 | 5.7 | 11.7 | 15.9 | 19.5 | 18.4 | 13.2 | 5.3 | −1.5 | −7.1 |
Where these numbers come from
- Measured: the design temperature, the degree days and the monthly means. All of it from one station, Seven Persons Agdm Alta, over 16 complete years.
- Assumed: everything about the building. The U-values are typical published figures for each construction era, not a survey of your house. Two houses of the same age and size can differ by a factor of two.
- No credit is taken for sunshine or for the heat given off by people and appliances. That is the EN 12831 convention, because the design condition is a still, dark night.
- This is space heating only. Domestic hot water is a separate load.
- This is a calculation, not a survey. Before spending money, have the building assessed.