ENERGY-EFFICIENT RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS: THE ROLES OF NATURAL VENTILATION AND DAYLIGHTING

Residential buildings represent one of the largest energy consumers, highlighting the need for improved energy efficiency in the housing sector. This paper investigates how natural ventilation and daylighting can improve energy efficiency in homes through passive design strategies. A literature-based methodology is adopted, including a comparative review of case studies, simulation results and statistical data. Key findings show that optimizing natural ventilation can significantly reduce cooling energy demand (with case studies showing up to 71% annual energy savings in warm climates), while efficient daylighting design can reduce lighting energy consumption by as much as 75%. However, the benefits of these strategies depend on climatic conditions and design methods, and excessive glazing without appropriate control can increase heat loads. The discussion addresses how integrating ventilation and daylight into design, through measures such as building orientation, window placement and shading, results in comfortable homes with low energy consumption. In conclusion, the use of natural ventilation and daylight is a cost-effective path towards sustainable residential architecture, and recommendations are made for urban planners and architects to incorporate these passive strategies into future housing projects.