Facade Refurbishment – Improving the Energy Performance of the Existing Building Stock in Belgrade
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Facade Refurbishment – Improving the Energy Performance of the Existing Building Stock in Belgrade Natasa Cukovic-Ignjatovic and Dusan Ignjatovic Faculty of Architecture, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia and Montenegro ABSTRACT: Urban tissue of Belgrade comprises rather large building stock, mainly dwellings with poor performance regarding energy and some aspects of human comfort. This paper is trying to identify the most efficient strategy for improving the energy balance citywise by focusing on specific building types that are the most suitable for energy rehabilitation. Certain interventions that are most likely to occur in present conditions are analysed and compared. Conference Topic: 6 Recycled architecture (re-use, upgrading and rehabilitation of buildings) Keywords: facade, energy, modification INTRODUCTION erection and milestone years that significantly influenced the building practice in Belgrade. Urban tissue of Belgrade comprises rather large 2.1 Buildings Dated Before 1941. building stock, mainly dwellings with poor Some 15% of present building stock1 was performance regarding energy and some aspects of constructed before World War II and it could not be human comfort. Throughout last 50-60 years, the considered as representative for numerous reasons permanent migrations caused constant demand for such as: housing that has significantly shaped the present rather modest number of apartments image of the city. This paper tends to identify the great variety of building types most commonly encountered problems that can be many of these buildings are important part of solved, emphasizing the building types that were architectural and cultural heritage and their repeatedly used. The idea is to propose some refurbishment demands specific and more guidelines for interventions on the envelopes of these complex approach buildings. 2.2 Post-war construction: 1946-1965 The building activity After the World War II, due to 2. CHRONOLOGY AND BUILDING TYPES the physical destruction (result of the war) and mass migration to the city (greatly result of political need to Table 1 presents the distribution of gross built create the “working class”) was quite intense and surface allocated for housing regarding the year of some 35% of present residential buildings were built in this period. Table 1: Overview of Belgrade's Building Stock At first, the residential buildings were raised within their best, the buildings were complied to official the existing urban matrix, mainly substituting the standards that were rather up-to date at the time demolished ones. The next phase was formation of (revised U values and obligatory calculations of linear new blocks, so-called “pavilions” where several heat losses). buildings with mainly same design were forming the new urban entity: it started in existing urban tissue of 2.5 New Migrations: 1990's the city but soon it has stretched to New Belgrade2 Wars storming the former Yugoslavia and chaotic where extremely intense building activity took place. political situation were fatal for all urban and civic This period is very interesting because more or elements. Thousands of new immigrants fled to less same architecture, building design, technology, Belgrade, and the easiest way to "deal" with new materials, and spatial organisation was implemented. housing problems was to tolerate illegal construction. It would be further elaborated in this paper because it It is estimated that more than 100 0003 buildings were provides wide potential for future interventions. The constructed illegally, mainly in Belgrade and other main characteristics that distinguish this portion of urban areas. Built with no technical documentation Belgrade’s building stock are: and without building permissions, the vast majority of no thermal insulation - the first regulations this built corpus shows poor energy performance4. regarding building physics were introduced in Since all of these houses are to be submitted to 1967 technical and legislative evaluation, converting them long life span of primary construction – to higher standards concerning energy performance although built with rather limited resources, they could produce result equal to optimising the city of are made of solid, traditional materials (mainly population of 200 000 - 300 000. However, the first brickwork and concrete) phase of "legalisation" revealed a serious problem of limited architectural value – providing space (im)possibility to process such huge number of for interventions regarding appearance and applications. The ecological impact of this part of the identity building stock is significant, but still hard to estimate, repeated use of same model – this means that let alone regulate and will surely be subject of future the same guidelines could be applied on a large research. Being so, it is not further referred to in this number of buildings paper. 2.3 Directed housing strategy: 1966-1980 2.6 Entering the 21st century Overall progress during the late 60's and Higher energy prices that came with transition throughout the 70's reflected on architecture and processes resulted in somewhat changed approach building industry. Prefabrication was dominant, "new to the energy use in housing. Still far from general housing" was encouraged, the production was up to awareness for environmental issues, but with certain 14000 flats per year, technical and architectural economical motives, the attitude of investors and standards were significantly improved compared to users is changing. the previous two decades. Many options for If we treat the existing building stock as a modernisation and improving energy efficiency resource, it is important to identify segments that remain open, but several key issues make facade would be the most suitable to start with. Taking into interventions less likely to occur in recent future: the consideration the building types presented in this existence of thermal protection - multy-layered chapter, the two periods seem to have high capacity walls with thermal insulation and double-glazed for energy-efficient adaptation: windows make their energy performance post-war production - buildings constructed acceptable at the time after World War II, until late 1960's; architectural values and diversity - this period illegal housing – mostly constructed during is also characterised by numerous and fruitful 1990's, but still extremely difficult to handle research in apartment design and experiments in architectural form of prefabricated buildings. As the result of such tendencies, many housing 3. SAMPLE FACADES blocks contain certain architectural, sometimes even sculptural value and require specific In previous chapter, we have identified the approach regarding intervention in their buildings of co-called post-war production as the most appearance. suitable sample of Belgrade's building stock that could be revaluated and refurbished. 2.4 Early Market: 1980-1990 As the SFR Yugoslavia was getting weaker, so 3.1 Appearance and Orientation did the giant state-owned construction companies. Uniform approach to housing in this period The production was being reduced year after year; resulted in uniform appearance of buildings. Figures 1 data shown on Table 1 are based on the date of to 3 show "different" examples. completion and many houses numbered in this section are in fact representatives of previously described directed housing policy. Despite general stagnation, some form of rudimental real-estate market is emerging, and though neither quality of materials nor architectural value of the design were at 3.2 Structure The absence of diversity is also notable in materials and techniques used. The materials used for external walls, finishing and windows are almost completely the same on numerous buildings and blocks, built all over the city. Table 2 presents the most common elements of external walls Table 2: Structure - the Most Common Elements walls masonry concrete 38cm 25cm finishing decorative Figure 1: Building as a part of a traditional city block mortar rendering windows double sash single sash Presence more less 4. INTERVENTIONS 4.1 The Guidelines In order to improve the overall energy performance of certain building, the interventions on its external walls are usually concentrated on three aspects: the use of materials, modifications in layers Figure 2: Stand-alone building within the city block openings - “perforation” adding new volumes, application of double skin facades 4.2 New Layers Most buildings from the "post-war production" have external walls made of brick or of concrete (Table 2), in both cases with no cavities. Positioning of thermal insulation is therefore limited to either side of the facade. Although there are numerous technical solutions available, our goal was to identify the ones that are the most likely to occur. Internal insulation is generally less efficient but in certain circumstances it could be a first choice. The strongest reasons that lead to this solution are: Individual owners: The apartments are privatized, but the ownership of the building itself is unclear. That complicates the decision-making process since the tenants are never unanimous, Figure 3: New Belgrade - "The Pavilions" some not willing to participate, some not able to finance the modernisation etc... The fact that the Apparently, answer was the same regardless of internal insulation can be done individually makes it the situation. Refurbishment of these buildings opens quite convenient in such situations. The