Energy demand by the residential sector constitutes approximately twenty percent of the total United States energy demand. The Ohio State University under Phase One of a contract from the Electric Power Research Institute investigated fuel utilization in nine Columbus, Ohio residences. The primary objective of this research effort was to develop and field validate procedures for predicting hourly thermal loads and associated energy requirements of residences. Field research work began in the spring of 1974 and terminated in the fall of 1975.

The topic of this paper is the development and verification of procedures for predicting hourly thermal loads on residences.