Most UK homes will overheat without retrofit

Majority of existing dwellings would breach CIBSE recommended limits for night-time overheating without intervention

CIBSE Journal November 2016 news overheating BSERT

Most UK homes will regularly breach CIBSE’s night-time overheating criteria if they are not retrofitted to adjust to a warming climate, a new government-commissioned report has warned.

The report – Assessing the future heating and cooling needs of the UK housing stock – was published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero last month. It concludes that most existing UK dwellings would fail overheating criteria for new-build properties unless they are modified.

CIBSE’s TM59 states that temperatures in bedrooms from 10pm to 7am should not exceed 26°C for more than one per cent of the hours across a year.

This level, according to researchers from the Climate Services for a Net Zero Resilient World academic programme, will be exceeded for 14.3% of night-time hours per annum in English homes by 2030, taking into account anticipated increases in temperatures, without interventions in building stock. This proportion rises to 15.4% by 2050.

Flats and mid-terrace houses tend to be overheated for longer than bungalows and detached properties, according to the report.

Ethnic minority and low-income households in England and Wales are also likely to face a ‘significantly higher’ risk of overheating at night because they are more likely to live in these higher-density properties.