The Improvements screen lives in the Evaluated Options section and allows the user to create, edit or delete proposed improvements, calculate energy and dollar savings from improvements, and edit financial information. The screen displays the list of improvements created by the user.

Adding new Improvements are aided by the use of the Improvement Wizard:

Wizard Step 1

Wizard Step 2

Calculate Improvement:

This button is used to calculate the savings for a selected improvement, follow the steps above to build and design improvements.

Calculate All Improvements:

This button will run the calculations for all improvements on the screen for those calculations that have not yet been performed.

Edit Financial Information:

This button opens a window that allows the user to modify the values that are used to calculate SIR (Savings to Investment Ratio) and cash flow.

Lifestyle Savings:

This button opens the Lifestyle Savings screen described separately.


Note: You need to remove an improvement from all the packages that include it before you can delete the improvement on this screen.


Improvement Wizard Step 1 –Improvement Types 

Clicking the Add Improvement button to create a new improvement and open the Improvement Wizard Step 1.

The wizard presents the list of the improvement types that may be modeled in TREAT and guides you through the data input screens that need to be filled out. The following types of improvements are available:

Appliance Replacement:

Remove existing appliance(s) and/or add new one(s).

Cooling System Improvement:

Replace existing cooling system.

Distribution System:

Improve existing heating or central cooling distribution.

Domestic Hot Water Improvement:

  • Water Heater Replacement
  • Water Heater Insulation
  • Water Heater Set point Adjustment
  • Hot Water Piping Insulation
  • Low Flow Device Installation
  • DHW Storage Tank Improvement
  • Recirculation Control Improvement

Door Replacement:

Replace existing doors.

Fan Improvement:

  • Modify existing mechanical ventilation fan(s).
  • Add new fan(s).
  • Remove the fan(s) identified in the Base Building model.

Heating Control Improvement:

Add a reset control to the existing boiler.

Heating Plant Improvement:

Replace the existing primary or back-up heat plant.

Indoor Temperature Control:

Install a programmable thermostat or change thermostat settings.

Infiltration Improvement:

  • Reduce total infiltration of heated spaces.
  • Reduce wall leakage specified in Holes in the Building section of Infiltration screen.
  • Reduce infiltration of unheated spaces defined on Spaces screen.

Lighting Replacement:

Replace the lighting specified on the Lighting screen.

Measurements:

Improve the measurements described on the Measurements screen.

Surface Insulation:

Change insulation and construction of surfaces described on the Walls/Surfaces screen.

Visual Inspection:

Improve problems described on the Visual Inspection screen.

Window Replacement:

Replace existing windows entered on the Windows screen.

Improvement types are listed in alphabetical order.

Use the mouse to select an improvement type and click Next to open the Improvement Wizard Step 2 window. Click Cancel to close the Improvement Wizard window and return to the Improvements screen.


Improvement Wizard Step 2 – Detail Entry

The interface of Improvement Wizard Steps 2 and 3 depends on the improvement type that you have selected. Generally, you will need to enter the following information:

Enter the information required for each improvement type in the white boxes. Most screens also display the relevant information for the Base Building against a gray background. This information may be edited on Building Model screens where it was entered.

Improvement Name:

Generated by TREAT and may be edited by user.

Improvement Life:

This value is set to a default value typical for the selected improvement type. The input is used in SIR calculations and may be adjusted by the user as necessary.

Improvement Cost:

This value may be entered as total cost or unit cost.

  • Total cost input is available for all improvement types.
  • In addition to that, for some improvements the user may choose to enter unit cost instead of total cost by making appropriate selection in Improvement Cost Methods combo box. If unit cost method is selected, then entered unit cost will be automatically adjusted as quantity of improved components (e.g. replaced windows) is changed. Total cost is independent of other improvement inputs.

Edit Workscope: 

This button allows selecting a workscope from the library or entering a custom workscope. Workscopes may be saved for future use by adding new Workscopes to their appropriate category in the Libraries dropdown menu. Be sure that your editable libraries are set to upgrade.

Done:

Clicking this button saves the inputs and closes the Improvement Wizard.

Cancel: 

Clicking this button closes the Improvement Wizard without saving any information.

Appliance Improvement:

This section is used to add or remove appliances. If you want to remove existing appliances, move them from left to right in the top panel. The lower panel allows the user to specify new appliances. The interface is similar to the Appliances screen of the Building Model section.

Cooling System Improvement: 

This screen may be used to specify a new cooling system.

  • Total output capacity, average SEER/EER, type and design supply temperature inputs are used in energy calculations.
  • Number of New Units installed is used with the specified cost of a new unit to calculate the total improvement cost.

The rest of the cooling system inputs are for record keeping and reports. For a central cooling system you may edit distribution system defaults generated by TREAT. If the existing heating or cooling system has forced air distribution, then this distribution system may be reused for the new cooling system.


Note: TREAT does not allow combining cooling and distribution improvements in one package. If you plan to seal or insulate existing ductwork and replace the cooling system, you need to select the New Distribution radio button and enter the new distribution system parameters on this screen.


Distribution Improvement:

Select the existing distribution system that you want to improve on the Improvement Wizard Step 2 screen. As noted above, you will not be able to combine in one package a distribution improvement and a heating or cooling system improvement. Use a Distribution Improvement only if you need to evaluate the effect of improving a distribution system without making any upgrades to existing heating plant or AC system. The screen allows the user to specify new values for all the parameters of the existing distribution system. See the Heating/Cooling screen section for more details on distribution system inputs.

Domestic Hot Water: 

This improvement screen is only available if an existing DHW system was entered on the Hot Water screen, in this screen you are presented with several options.

  • Water Heater Replacement: this improvement allows you to specify a new water heater. Inputs are the same as on the Hot Water screen of the Building Model section.
  • Hot Water Heater Insulation: this improvement screen allows you to model the effect of wrapping an existing hot water heater with an insulating blanket.
  • Water Heater Set point: this improvement adjustment screen allows you to model turning down the water heater temperature.
  • Hot Water Pipe Insulation: this improvement screen allows you to model the savings associated with losses from domestic hot water piping.
  • The Low Flow Device Installation: this improvement screen allows you to model the savings associated with reduction in hot water flow rate due to installation of new plumbing fixtures. Savings from reducing waste in overall water usage is not included in this improvement.

Door Replacement: 

This improvement allows you to model replacing any number of doors in the model. The left side of the screen contains the list of doors entered on the Exterior Doors screen. If you have multiple doors in the project you may filter them using the search criteria at the top of the left panel. You may replace existing doors of different construction with the new doors that have the same construction as one improvement. Create a separate improvement for each unique door type that you plan to install. TREAT does not allow adding or removing doors or changing door dimensions. Savings are calculated only based on specified new door U-value.


Note: To model the savings from reduced air leakage after the new doors are installed you need to create an Infiltration Improvement.


Fan Improvement: 

This improvement allows you to modify an existing fan by adjusting its ventilation rate, schedule and heating recovery efficiency, removing an existing fan, or adding a new fan.

Heating Control Improvement: 

This improvement allows the user to model savings from installing a Reset Control on the existing boiler.

Heating Plant Improvement:

This improvement allows the user to model installation of a new primary or secondary heat plant. The new heat plant may share distribution with existing heating or cooling or have a new distribution system. If a new distribution system option is selected, you may edit the default distribution settings by clicking the Edit Distribution button.

A Heating Plant Improvement should be used if a modification or maintenance work is proposed for an existing system that will change the vital system parameters.

 

Indoor Temperature Control Improvement: 

This improvement allows the user to modify the set points and schedule of thermostats specified on the Thermostats screen. The most common improvement of this type is programmable thermostat installation. You may also use this improvement to model overheating in the building due to unbalanced distribution. Modeling of overheating due to distribution loss, high base/occupant internal gains and domestic heater stand by loss does not require creating zones with artificially high thermostat set point – it is automatically calculated by TREAT.

Infiltration Reduction:

This improvement allows the user to specify reduction of the total infiltration of heated or unheated space and/or wall leakage entered on the Infiltration screen. This improvement type should be used to model weather-stripping, sealing of the building envelope and infiltration reduction due to door and window replacement.

Lighting Replacement: 

This improvement allows the user to replace various existing lighting fixtures with new fixtures of the same type.

Measurement: 

This improvement helps to specify the work that needs to be done to improve the problems that were uncovered through various measurements taken during the site visit. You need to have the measurement entered on the Measurements screen in order to be able to specify it as an improvement. TREAT does not calculate the energy savings associated with the measurement improvement. It assumes that the improvement is done to improve indoor air quality and/or occupant safety and comfort.

Surface Insulation: 

This improvement allows the user to model any upgrades to existing walls, floors, ceilings or roofs. Use the filter in the left portion of the screen to find the existing surfaces that you would like to improve. You may then move the surfaces to the right panel and specify the single new construction of the improved surface. The current version of TREAT does not allow adding insulation to the existing surface. However, you may easily model it by specifying the proposed surface description that reflects the insulation level of the wall after improvement. Note that you may not change surface size or orientation as part of the improvement.

Visual Inspection: 

This improvement may only be created for inspections entered on the Visual Inspection screen. Similar to the measurement improvement, there are no energy savings associated with this improvement type. The non-energy benefits of this improvement will be shown in the reports for the package that contains this improvement.

Window Replacement: 

This improvement allows the user to model replacement of existing windows. You may change multiple windows to the new window type (frame and glazing) in a single improvement. Note that any infiltration reduction associated with window replacement should be entered separately as an infiltration improvement. If you have the NFRC ratings for U-Value and SHGC for a particular window, then you may enter these values in the Custom Window Properties dialog. Be aware that the Glazing and Framing type still play a factor in the calculations and must be entered appropriately.