Heating load in Yellowknife
A home in Yellowknife has to be heated against a design temperature of −41.0 °C. That figure is measured, not modelled: it is the 1st percentile of daily minimum temperature over 29 years at Yellowknife, 4 km away.
Design temperature
−41.0 °C
Heating degree days
7,122
Coldest month
Jan
Coldest night on record
−45.8 °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 | 39.3 kW | 34.5 kW | 30.6 kW | 33.6 kW | 16.4 kW | 20.0 kW |
| Unfilled cavity, early double glazing | 26.6 kW | 23.0 kW | 20.0 kW | 19.5 kW | 11.8 kW | 14.8 kW |
| Insulated to 1980s standards | 15.2 kW | 13.7 kW | 12.4 kW | 11.7 kW | 8.4 kW | 10.8 kW |
| Modern, roughly 1995-2010 | 9.4 kW | 8.5 kW | 7.9 kW | 7.5 kW | 5.7 kW | 6.9 kW |
| Current building regulations | 7.2 kW | 6.6 kW | 6.1 kW | 5.9 kW | 4.4 kW | 5.4 kW |
| Passive house | 4.2 kW | 3.8 kW | 3.5 kW | 3.3 kW | 2.2 kW | 3.0 kW |
Where the heat goes
For a 120 m2 detached house of this construction, at the design temperature.
| Element | W | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Walls | 5,011 | 33% |
| Roof | 1,464 | 10% |
| Ground floor | 988 | 7% |
| Windows | 2,855 | 19% |
| Thermal bridges | 839 | 6% |
| Ventilation and draughts | 4,044 | 27% |
| Heating load | 15,201 | 15.2 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 | −24.7 | −22.2 | −16.3 | −5.5 | 5.3 | 14.0 | 17.3 | 14.6 | 7.8 | −0.9 | −12.3 | −21.5 |
Where these numbers come from
- Measured: the design temperature, the degree days and the monthly means. All of it from one station, Yellowknife, over 29 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.