Heating load in Cape Girardeau
A home in Cape Girardeau has to be heated against a design temperature of −11.8 °C. That figure is measured, not modelled: it is the 1st percentile of daily minimum temperature over 15 years at Cairo Regional Airport, 38 km away.
Design temperature
−11.8 °C
Heating degree days
1,605
Coldest month
Jan
Coldest night on record
−24.6 °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 | 20.5 kW | 18.0 kW | 16.0 kW | 17.5 kW | 8.5 kW | 10.4 kW |
| Unfilled cavity, early double glazing | 13.9 kW | 12.0 kW | 10.4 kW | 10.2 kW | 6.2 kW | 7.7 kW |
| Insulated to 1980s standards | 7.9 kW | 7.1 kW | 6.5 kW | 6.1 kW | 4.4 kW | 5.6 kW |
| Modern, roughly 1995-2010 | 4.9 kW | 4.4 kW | 4.1 kW | 3.9 kW | 3.0 kW | 3.6 kW |
| Current building regulations | 3.7 kW | 3.4 kW | 3.2 kW | 3.1 kW | 2.3 kW | 2.8 kW |
| Passive house | 2.2 kW | 2.0 kW | 1.8 kW | 1.7 kW | 1.2 kW | 1.6 kW |
Where the heat goes
For a 120 m2 detached house of this construction, at the design temperature.
| Element | W | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Walls | 2,612 | 33% |
| Roof | 763 | 10% |
| Ground floor | 515 | 7% |
| Windows | 1,488 | 19% |
| Thermal bridges | 437 | 6% |
| Ventilation and draughts | 2,108 | 27% |
| Heating load | 7,924 | 7.9 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 | 2.4 | 4.1 | 9.9 | 15.4 | 20.8 | 25.6 | 26.3 | 25.0 | 21.3 | 15.1 | 8.8 | 4.5 |
Where these numbers come from
- Measured: the design temperature, the degree days and the monthly means. All of it from one station, Cairo Regional Airport, over 15 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.