A Comparative Study for the Traditional and Modern Houses in Terms of Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Umm Qais city, Jordan

This research presents a comparison study between the vernacular architecture represented by the heritage houses (Fallahy Houses) and the typical contemporary houses in Umm Qais city in the northern part of Jordan, in terms of thermal performance. It analyzes the parameters of the heritage houses to explore the impact on the human thermal comfort and energy consumption compared with the typical modern houses. The study investigates the performance of the vernacular houses and how they respond to the physical and climatic conditions. It also shows how these houses depend on passive design to control solar gains, and decrease heating and cooling loads keeping a good level of thermal comfort inside. The study compares these vernacular houses with the traditional contemporary house in Umm Qais. The selected samples from each type of houses were taken to evaluate the impact of the vernacular principles of design, building construction and materials on the thermal performance and the thermal comfort inside the houses. Computer simulation, accompanied with measuring tools and thermal cameras, was used for thermal analysis in the selected houses. Revit software was also used for this purpose to validate the results and compare it with the real field results. The results show that the passive design strategy in the vernacular houses is substantial and more effective than the techniques used in the modern houses.