Factors Involved in Overheating
1 Metabolic Heat
Heat generated from occupant due to their physical activities i.e. sports (Lapinskienė et al., 2017) (Arowoiya et al., 2024)
2 Insulation
High level of Insulation can trap heat indoors leading to overheating (Mulville et al., 2025)
3 Occupant Activity
Occupant activities such as cooking can contribute to heat gain within the dwelling (Lapinskienė et al., 2017)
4 Lighting
Lighting is yet another internal factor that causes the building to overheat. (Lapinskienė et al., 2017) (Arowoiya et al., 2024)
Limiting Overheating
NZEBs will have to deploy passive cooling techniques to reduce overheating, employing shading devices (Albatayneh, 2018),(Sorooshnia et al., 2023), optimising building orientation (Albatayneh, 2018), and incorporating thermal mass (Tripathi & Shukla, 2024) to normalise indoor temperatures. By providing proper ventilation through means of wind catchers (Jomehzadeh et al., 2020) or Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) systems (BEAM, 2024) effective air circulation can be achieved, while dissipating moisture and excess heat to maintain comfort without compromising energy efficiency.
Additionally, anticipating climate scenarios (Mulville et al., 2025), (UCAR, 2024)and utilizing dynamic shading solutions (Sorooshnia et al., 2023)would allow buildings to adapt to increased temperatures, thereby generating healthy and robust thermal environments even
International Guidance
Different international standards provide frameworks for evaluating and mitigating overheating in buildings. ASHRAE Standard 55 is a standard that defines criteria for thermal comfort by setting acceptable temperature ranges for different indoor environments and defining the necessary ventilation requirements to keep a building comfortable regardless of the outside weather. Likewise, CIBSE TM59 establish overheating thresholds by limiting the sum of hours that temperatures exceed defined comfort thresholds in both residential and non-residential buildings.
Simulation tools, such as EnergyPlus (Neu et al., 2014), and IES VE (Integrated Environmental Solutions Virtual) (Mulville et al., 2025), are employed to help ensure compliance with these guidelines by estimating risks of overheating in future climates and optimizing passive and active cooling strategies (Neu et al., 2014).
By integrating these standards and tools, designers can create NZEBs that minimise overheating while maintaining occupant comfort.