Dwelling temperatures and comfort during the August 2003 heat wave

Abstract

More frequent hot summers in the UK under climate change could lead to increased discomfort in dwellings, but there is little published field data on internal summer temperatures. Temperatures were measured in four dwellings around south Manchester and five dwellings in London during the August 2003 heat wave. Resultant statistics and various comfort metrics indicated a high level of discomfort in most dwellings, particularly in London. Daily internal temperatures were shown to correlate strongly with a time-decaying function of daily outside temperatures. Day and night temperatures were shown to relate to the type of structure. It is concluded that if heat waves become more common, this would lead to increased discomfort, with implications for health, mortality and housing design.