National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Net-Zero Energy Test House is Inhabited by a Virtual Family

The <a href="http://www.nist.gov/index.html" target="_blank">National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)</a>, a government science lab that is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, recently unveiled its <a href="http://www.nist.gov/el/nzertf/" target="_blank">Net-Zero Energy Residential Test Facility</a>. But like a real-life version of the Sims, the house is inhabited not by real people, but by a virtual family. Built at a cost of <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/17/us-netzero-lab-idUSBRE88G0W220120917?feedType=RSS&amp;feedName=domesticNews" target="_blank">$2.5 million</a> in Gaithersburg, Md., near Washington, D.C., the test house includes extensive monitoring devices and computer equipment that will simulate the presence and activities of a family of four. A <a href="http://www.nist.gov/el/nzertf/net_zero_91212.cfm" target="_blank">NIST announcement</a> says that “No actual humans will be allowed to enter the house during this [first year] so that researchers can monitor how the house performs, but lights will turn on and off at specified times, hot water and appliances will run – and small devices will emit heat and humidity just as people would.”

Researchers will use the house to test energy-efficiency technologies and alternative energy systems.

NIST Director Patrick Gallagher believes that the facility will “allow development of new design standards and test methods for emerging <a href="http://inhabitat.com/energy-efficiency">energy-efficient</a> technologies and, we hope, speed their adoption.”

The exterior sheathing includes self-healing vapor barrier. Up to now, some net-zero homes have tended to skimp on size and amenities. But the NIST test facility is designed as a full-size 4,000-square-foot suburban home with four bedrooms and three baths.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels generate electricity

Computerized monitoring systems requiring extensive electrical circuits

Geothermal systems provide heat for the home.

Electrical switching gear is installed outside in the back of the home.

Solar hot water systems provide further energy efficiency.

The house is built to LEED Platinum standards.

NIST Net-Zero Energy Residential Test Facility