eQUEST Cookbook

eQUEST Cookbook A Guide for the Perplexed

eQUEST Wizard Introduction Schematic Only for single floor footprint buildings Can create and combine multiple schematic design buildings Maximum two HVAC systems per building Abbreviated input screens Useful for first pass model creation Design Development Permits multiple floor footprints Permits multiple HVAC systems Convert from Schematic to DD wizard Select “Tools” from top pull down menu Select “Convert SD Wizard to DD Wizard”

Starting a Model in Wizard Mode Start eQUEST Select “Create a New Project via the Wizard” Click “OK” Select “Schematic Design Wizard” Project Information Screen Enter building type Used to set up default wall constructions, lighting power density, plug loads, and schedules Enter number of floors and building area More than three floors sets up multiplier for intermediate floors Design Development mode has option to not use floor multipliers; individual floors are created Building area sets overall dimension for standard floor footprints Building Footprint Screen Select footprint from standard shapes or custom Custom shape brings up box that allows entry of CAD background (See Create Polygon and Import CAD Drawing) Define zoning pattern Standard is perimeter/ core Custom zone for spaces with different occupancy schedules/ thermostat setpoints/ HVAC systems Custom zone screen shows footprint in yellow Select “Create New Zone” Enter polygon – active zone polygon is blue Select “Create New Zone” Previously created zone is green Enter Floor-to Floor Height and Ceiling Height Plenum is automatically created if floor heigh is greater than ceiling height Building Envelope Construction Screen See Specifying Wall Construction and Infiltration Building Interior Construction Interior walls can be air walls, mass walls, or frame walls Exterior Door Glass doors are windows Exterior Windows See “Specify and Edit Windows”

Create Polygon Polygon Properties 120 vertices maximum for any one polygon. Create vertices are in counter-clockwise order. Legal Polygon Shapes No cutouts (i.e., no donut shapes) No line segments can cross another segment in the same polygon Select vertices Select the pointer button , then single click on any existing vertex in the drawing (do not double click). Vertices will appear in one of three colors red (i.e., not the currently selected vertex) light blue (i.e., currently selected and ready to copy) yellow (i.e., currently selected and ready to move). Left mouse click toggles the selected vertex between light blue and yellow. Move an existing vertex Select any vertex. Make it yellow (by single clicking as needed… do not double click) Drag the yellow vertex to a new preferred location. Create a new vertex (same as copy an existing vertex) Select any vertex. Make it light blue (by single clicking as needed… do not double click). Drag the light blue vertex to a new preferred location Repeat steps as required to complete polygon Use spreadsheet to create vertices or modify their position

Import CAD Drawing Selecting "-custom-" from the Footprint Shape list Start with blank slate Initial Display Extents. Specify the extents (in feet) of the drawing area of he Custom Building Footprint dialog screen. Background Image. Select Import DWG File. This will cause an Open dialog to be presented. Use this to locate and import a DWG file. Select a DWG file from the Open dialog, the DWG File Open dialog will be presented (above). "1 DWG Unit =". This is the unit conversion used in the original DWG file. It is normally sufficient to allow the settings for DWG units to default (e.g., "inches"). "Drawing origin in Building Model Units". This entry should be the world coordinates of a point in the DWG file that the user wants to coincide with the origin of the eQUEST drawing screen (i.e., eQUEST building origin). The origin of the eQUEST building will be the point on the Custom Building Footprint screen where the vertical and horizontal axes intersect (i.e., X=0, Y=0). If you can first open the DWG file in a CAD program, a point can be selected (e.g., the lower left hand corner of the building in plan view) as the building origin and its coordinates relative to the world coordinate system determined. The X and Y values for these world coordinates should be entered at "Drawing origin in Building Model Units". If you do not have a CAD program that can read a DWG file (e.g., AutoCAD™), allow this value to default. Select then to import the DWG file. If a "full" DWG file is imported into eQUEST (not one that has been simplified as suggested on the previous page), the user may find it helpful to "turn off" the irrelevant layers to avoid clutter on the eQUEST screen before attempting to "trace" it. Do this via the drawing layers button . Selecting the drawing layers button will display the DWG Layers list dialog. Selecting any layer on the list will cause the DWG drawing elements assigned to the selected layer to blink on and off. This should aid the user to identify the assigned drawing elements. Uncheck any DWG drawing elements that clutter the view of the thermally significant features of the drawing, e.g., the exterior building envelope and interior partitions associated with HVAC zone boundaries.

Specifying Wall Construction and Infiltration Wizard Mode Select wall, roof, and slab constructions Select infiltration coefficients Wizard limited to air change method Wizard assigns infiltration schedules Check Wizard defaults and modify in detailed mode if infiltration modeling is important Detailed Mode Create wall construction From component tree, scroll down to “Constructions” and right click on a construction On “Layers” tab, under “Currently Active Layer” scroll to top to select “Create New Layer” Enter materials from outside to inside, using library materials Create new material from “Materials” tab if material is not in library Return to “Construction” tab, create new construction. “Type” = “layers” Enter surface roughness and color Navigate to wall in “Building Shell” screen Click on wall in view Click on highlighted wall in component tree Assign new construction to wall Change Infiltration Under “Internal Loads” screen click zone Click on highlighted zone in component tree Under “Infiltration” tab, change infiltration method and schedule

Specify and Edit Windows Wizard Mode Specify glass selection Glass Category Standard Library Window 5 Glass Type Specify frame type Specify frame width Specify height, width, sill height, % glass by exposure Set width=0 for continuous strip window Custom window placement Click on “Custom Window Placement” on lower right Click on window to select (window highlighted in red) Enter new size, glass type Add or delete windows Reposition window by clicking and dragging or enter “x”, “y” position Click new wall in floor plan view, or click “prev” / “next” to navigate through different walls Detailed Mode In 2-D or 3-D building shell view, click on window Window will be highlighted in Component Tree Click on highlighted window Change window size, glass type, “x”, “y” in “Basic Spec” screen Click on “Fins/ Overhangs” to add external shading surfaces Click “Blinds- Slats-Drapes” to add internal or external shading devices

Add Daylighting Select “daylighting from the “General Shell Information” screen. Up to three “Daylight Zoning Screens” available. Daylit From. Select the daylighting source (side glazing and/or top glazing). Daylit from top lighting is available only for zones with roofs (i.e., top floor zones) that contain skylights. Daylight layout diagram. In the daylight layout diagram, click (with left mouse button) on zones to activate or deactivate daylighting (acts as a toggle, available only on zones with glass). # of Photosensors per zone. Select either one (default) or two photosensors per daylit zone. % Lights Controlled and Design Light Level. Indicate the fraction of zone lighting controlled by the daylight sensors and the interior design lighting level. eQUEST will assume this lighting level results from the associated lighting power (from the Occupied Loads screen) and will supplement calculated daylight levels using artificial lights as needed. Photosensor Location. Indicate photosensor placement, i.e., height above floor and % depth of zone (from zone window wall to back wall). Side-to-side placement is done automatically by eQUEST (attempts to center sensor along length of first window in zone while avoiding skylights). Lighting Controller. Indicate lighting controller type and its properties.

Specify Schedules The Min Schedule Information screen allows the user to specify the number of seasons, up to three, to be used in the building operations schedules. This screen is always displayed in the DD Wizard, but it is only available in the SD Wizard if “Usage Details” on SD Wizard “General Information” screen is set to “Hourly End use Profiles” (in which case the screen illustrated above is Screen #13 in the SD Wizard). Description of Seasons. Select the option that best describes the building’s operational periods or seasons. For some building types, "Typical Use Throughout Year" is the only available selection. For others there may be more than one selection for Season Description. The available selections represent preset options describing the building’s operation over the course of a year. For example, for a school, the available Season Descriptions are "Year Round Classes", "Full Nine Months, Reduced Summer Session" and "Full Nine Months, No Summer Session." Observed holidays. Presents a predefined list of 20 possible holiday dates with 10 pre-selected for observance. Number of season. Select 1, 2 or 3 seasons to be used in all of the building operations schedules (three seasons illustrated above). This limit of three seasons is one of convenience for use in the Wizards. In the detailed Interface, you can have up to 52 seasons in any schedule. Number of Date Periods. Use these controls to specify multiple date periods though the year to be associated with any of the (up to three) seasons. Any date periods not included in Season #2 or #3, are assumed to be included in Season #1.

Assign and Edit Schedules Select the use option that best describes the operational characteristics of the building for each Building Operation Season. The choices for Season Use vary by building type. Show Zone Groups. For the DD Wizard, this option is selected by default. This enables the presentation of the Zone Groups screen Occupancy Profiles by Season. Up to three lists (one for each season) are presented at the bottom of this screen, containing a list of all seasonal profiles. The button at the right lower corner of this screen, allows user access to the hourly profiles (see the following page). Edit hourly profiles by via clicking on the button at the right lower corner of the Activity Areas Allocation Screen Profile Group. In the upper left corner of the screen, use the pull-down pick list to select the Profile Group you wish to review (e.g., occupancy, lights, office equipment, DHW usage, etc.). Since fan schedules are simple On/Off schedules, they are not available on this hourly profile dialog. Active Profiles. Near the upper left corner of the screen, use the list box to select a preferred schedule season for the profile group selected Day Selector. Click on a preferred day of the week at the top of the dialog to view the detailed dialog in the main view/edit area of the dialog. Profile Maximum. In the main view/edit area of the dialog, click on the red number displayed near the upper right are of the screen (right hand end of the horizontal red line). Edit this number to raise or lower the overall profile. “Profile Minimum” controls the unoccupied profile level. Shift Start Hour. Edit this number (e.g., +1 or -1) to shift the start-up time for the profile. Use “Shift End Hour” similarly. Other Active Profiles. Displays profiles from other seasons, for comparison.

Assign Activity Select “Show Zone Groups Screen” check box on the Activity Areas Allocation screen Zone Groups The list box in the upper left corner of the dialog lists predefined zone groups, e.g., ground floor core zones, second floor perimeter zones, etc. Create new zone groups or delete existing zone groups by selecting the buttons below the zone groups list box. Floor Plan Views. Zone assigned to the currently selected zone group are displayed in dark green in floor plan views. Any zones not assigned to a zone group are displayed in pale red. To assign or re-assign zones to zone groups, left click on a zone in any of the floor plan views, and select “Assign Zone to Active Group” or “Assign Zone to Other Group”. Activity Area Types. Assign or adjust activity area assignments to zone groups by editing the Percent (%) column of the Activity Area spreadsheet control in the upper right area of the dialog. %’s must sum to 100% for each zone group. The resulting area (sqft) is also reported for the selected zone group. Percent and sqft is also reported for the whole building (shell). HVAC System. Assign air-side systems to zone groups by first selecting a preferred zone group then selected the preferred HVAC system.

Create HVAC Systems “ Cooling Source” and “Heating Source” in “HVAC Definition” screen System types on pull-down screen will change depending on selection of cooling and heating sources If “DX Cooling” is selected the following is available on the “Packaged HVAC Equipment” Screen “ Overall Size” “ Auto-size” means no size is specified by the user, rather, the size of the cooling equipment is automatically determined during the simulation “ Specify” means the user inputs overall cooling capacity, in which case, a second input field is displayed in which the user indicates the total size of the package cooling equipment (in tons). Note that this is not the typical unit size of the size of any one specific unit, but rather, the sum of the anticipated tonnage for all system #2 package equipment. “ Typical Unit Size” This input does not determine or restrict the ultimate size of any package unit, rather, it is only used to select the appropriate minim efficiency level. NOTE: the efficiency indicated or user input here will be used for ALL package systems. Use the Zone Group capabilities of the DD Wizard to get around this simplification in the Schematic Wizard. “ Condenser Type” If “Water-Cooled” is selected, a separate condenser loop and tower is provided (separate from any central plant). “ Efficiency.” Used to input or indicate the efficiency of every DX cooling unit in system

Specify HVAC Fans “ HVAC SYSTEM FANS” Screen “ Fan Power” Specify total fan power (e.g., total static, not just external static). Note that while eQUEST accepts fan power inputs either in units of inches of static pressure or brake horsepower, switching units does not convert user input; rather, it resets input to the default for the selected units. Fan Flow. Currently, eQUEST's Schematic Design Wizard automatically sizes fan flow based on common rules of thumb (e.g., 400 cfm/ton with sqft/ton based on building peak sensible internal load and climate zone). If the user wishes for the DOE-2 simulation engine to size the air flow usingits design procedures, the user should input a "0" for fan flow. Fan Motor Efficiency. Specify fan motor efficiency as "Standard", "High"or "Premium". "Standard" would be appropriate only for older, existing fan motors. Fan Type. Fan types input provides the simulation engine with part-load fan performance data. The fan "curves" used by eQUEST's Schematic Design Wizard are based on CEC’s ACM manual.

Specify Chillers Applies only if “Chilled Water Coils” is selected for HAVC system “Cooling Source” Wizard permits up to two types of chillers to be modeled, with multiple chillers of each type. Chiller control assumes that the first chiller(s) will lead and the second chiller(s) will lag and that when two chillers are operating, both are equally loaded (no preferential loading). 1) Pump Configuration. Select/confirm the preferred pump placement. Circulation pumps can be placed in any of three configurations: only at the loop, only at the chiller(s), at both the loop and the chiller(s). CHW Loop Flow. Indicate/confirm loop as either constant or variable. If loop flow is set to variable, the Schematic Design Wizard prompts for the method of pump control (single speed, two speed, or VSD). Loop Pump Head/Flow. Loop pump head defaults based on building type. Loop flow defaults using simple rules of thumb (10F water delta-t, sqft/to based on building peak internal gain and climate zone). If the user wishes for the simulation engine to size the water flow using its design procedures, input a "0" for loop pump flow. Chiller Count/Size/Efficiency. Chiller size defaults using simple rules of thumb (sqft/ton based on building peak internal gain and climate zone). If the user wishes for the simulation engine to size the chiller using its design procedures, select “Auto-size". Chiller efficiency defaults based on chiller type and size. Check efficiency defaults

Specify Boilers Applies only if “Hot Water Coils” was selected as HVAC system “Heating Source” Wizard permits up to two boilers to be modeled. Boiler control assumes that the first boiler will lead and the second boiler will lag andthat when two boiler are operating, both are equally loaded (no preferential loading). Pump Configuration. Select/confirm the preferred pump placement. Circulation pumps can be placed in any of three configurations: only at the loop only at the boiler(s) at both the loop and the boiler(s). HW Loop Flow. Indicate/confirm loop as either constant or variable. If loop flow is set to variable, the Wizard prompts for the method of pump control (single speed, two speed, or VSD). Loop Pump Head/Flow. Loop pump head defaults based on building type. Loop flow defaults using simple rules of thumb (40F water delta-t, btu/sqft based on climate zone). If the user wishes for the simulation engine to size the water flow using its design procedures, input a "0" for loop pump flow. Boiler Size/Efficiency. Boiler size defaults using simple rules of thumb (btu/sqft based on climate zone). If the user wishes for the simulation engine to size the boiler using its design procedures, input a “0” for boiler size. Efficiency defaults based on boiler type Check boiler efficiency Check default electric demand for mechanical draft boilers

Specify Utility Rates The Electric Utility Charges dialog is displayed only if a Electric Utility Rate was selected as “Custom” on “General Information” screen Enter Type Uniform Time of Use Up to five time periods selected by clicking check boxes Set time periods in “Electric Time of Use Periods” screen Block Block Type. Two selections are available. "Incremental Blocks" mean that the size of each successive block is stated in terms of the SIZE of the block, i.e., how many kWh are in each block, e.g., “the first x,xxx kWh’s …, the next y,yyy kWh’s … . "Cumulative Blocks" mean that the size of each successive block is stated in terms of the UPPER LIMIT of the blocks, i.e., the upper boundary of each block, e.g., “the first x,xxx kWh’s …, up to y,yyy kWh’s … . Energy Blocks. Two selections are available. "kWh Block": where energy block sizes (or upper limits) are pre-defined based on the units of energy consumed. For example, $0.07 for the first 10,000 kWh, $0.05 for the remainder. "kWh/kW Block": where energy block sizes (or upper limits) are based on a multiplier on peak electric demand. For example, $xxxx for the first kWh block, where the size of the first kWh block is determined by using a predefined multiplier times the peak electrical demand for each month. This type of block will tend to vary in size from one month to the next. Second Season. A second season can be selected for Time of Use and Block

Create Wizard Utility Rates Enter “Detailed Edit” mode Save your file. Within your project folder (c:\Program Files\eQUEST 3\Project\your project name), locate and open the project INP file (project file with INP file extension) using any text editor (e.g., Windows Note Pad or WordPad). In the INP file, find the BLOCK-CHARGE and UTILTY-RATE commands (always near the bottom of the INP file) and copy these into a separate text file. Be sure to include the command terminators (double periods “..”). See a file named “DOE2-BDL Utility Rate Documentation.pdf” found in the eQUEST 3\Rates folder for a detailed description of these DOE-2 BDL commands. If your rates included schedules (e.g., for seasonal or time-of-use periods), you will need to find and copy all DAY-SCHEDULE-PD, WEEKSCHEDULE-PD, and SCHEDULE-PD commands for all utility rate-related schedules. Place these at the top of the separate text file (i.e., before the BLOCK-CHARGE and UTILTY-RATE commands). Name separate text files (containing your utility rate-specific DOE-2 BDL commands) any thing you wish and use “ERT” as a file extension for the electric rates. Use “GRT” for gas rates. Select your file names to clearly identify the utility company and tariff name. Place these ERT and GRT files in the eQUEST 3\Rates folder. See the “Readme.txt” file in the eQUEST 3\Rates folder for more information. The next time you start eQUEST, these ERT and GRT files will be selectable from within the Wizard (screen #1). Select Utility Electric or Utility Gas = “-file-” to see a listing of all the ERT and GRT files you’ve stored in the eQUEST 3\Rates folder .

Add Building Schematic Design Wizard DOE-2 BDL requires that every object within an INP file be uniquely named. Use the Prefix/Suffix fields on the Project Information screen (last screen in the schematic wizard), to avoid redundant default component names by adding your unique characters as a prefix and/or suffix to the name of every component in the BDL input (INP) file. Save the project Start new wizard, with different Prefix/Suffix entered in Project Information Screen Save second project Enter Detailed Mode Locate the second building relative to the first building Under “Building Shell” component tree select “Building Data” and enter relative “x” and “y” positions Under top pull-down menu, click “File” then select “Import File” Import first building file Design Development Create new floor plan Position new floor relative to original Creating a partial upper floor does require detailed data edit of lower roof

Detailed Mode Enter detailed mode by clicking “Mode” on top pull-down menu then clicking “Detailed Data Edit”. Any changes you make in detailed mode will be lost if you return to wizard mode. Enter detailed mode for the following: Assign custom curves to equipment Create equipment, systems, and controls not available in wizard mode Cogeneration equipment PV Ground Source Heat Pump System Exhaust air heat recovery Desiccant dehumidification Demand ventilation Central plant equipment controls and load management Variables in detailed mode Green – eQUEST default Red – user entered Blue – User default Right click on entry Click “Edit/ View User Default Select “User Default Value” and enter a value Magenta – Assigned Parameter (see “Assign Parameter”)

Navigating in Detailed Mode Component tree Double click on a component to pull up a properties screen Spreadsheet Click a component on the component tree, then click on spreadsheet tab Select property from display mode pull down menu Spreadsheet cells can only be changed one at a time – can not copy and paste sections Graphic Screen Click on component and it will highlighted in pull-down menu

Create Global Parameters Right click on the “Global Parameter” folder on the component tree (from within any eQUEST program module). Select “Create Global Parameter”. At the Create Parameter dialog, name the global parameter as preferred (32 characters max). Select Parameter Type = “Numeric Value”. After you press “OK” on the Create Parameter dialog, the Global Parameters dialog is displayed and the parameter is added to the Component Tree (below right). Edit any global parameter by double clicking the component tree. To assign the parameter to a keyword, right click on the input field to display the “Quick Menu”, and select the bottom item, “Edit/View User Expression”. This displays the User Input Expression dialog below (initially blank). Type in the word “parameter”, followed by an open and close parenthesis surrounding two double quotes. Place the curser between the double quotes and type in the parameter name (alternatively, copy the parameter name from the parameter dialog box and paste the name between the double quotes).

Parametric Runs Use to create custom energy efficiency measures Enter detailed Mode On top pull-down menu click on “Tools” Select “Parametric Runs” Create and name parametric run Parametric run can be evaluated against base model or previous parametric run Create parametric component Select component type from pull-down menu Check components you want to be part of this measure Select BDL keyword from pull down menu Keyword can be referenced from wizard screens or from DOE2 documents

Review Results Click on the the Results Review mode button to view graphic simulation output reports. From the bottom of the results tree diagram (left side of the Results View screen) select the tab, then select one or more projects for which you wish to view results. Also from the bottom of the results tree diagram, select the tab, then select single run or comparison reports, as preferred. Important Note: To successfully view eQUEST reports, the computer you are using to view results must have a printer driver installed. Access the Report Tree by clicking the tab at the bottom left area of the screen. Note that half of the available reports are designed to display results for single runs. The other half of the available reports are designed to compare several runs (i.e., EEM's). Whether single-run or comparison reports are selected, you must also select the run (single-run report) or runs (comparison report) to be displayed from the project tree (accessed by clicking the tab at the bottom left area of the screen). In the case of comparison reports, the project tree includes a "plot order" designation Clicking on the plot order designation acts as a toggle to include or exclude the selected run from the currently selected comparison report. Double click on a .sim file for detailed DOE2 standard reports. The reports are brought up in a viewer that simplifies navigating the voluminous reports. See DOE2 Volume 4-Libraries manual for description of standard reports. .cvs files are created for data that is presented in the eQUEST reports. These can be opened in Excel to extract this data.

eQUEST Cookbook

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eQUEST Cookbook