Ideal Loads - unexpected results from setpoint changes

edit

Hi everyone,

I wanted to simulate how changes in thermostats setpoint affect energy consumption in a simple building, this in order to study possible energy savings. In order to achieve so I modelled a simple building made up of 4 rooms with every room set on the same thermostat schedule. The simulation is set for a whole year.

Since a detailed simulation of the equipment it's too much right now I simulated the energy consumption via an ZoneHVAC:IdealLoad in every room, reading as output the "Sensible Heating/Cooling energy" (depending on what period I set as winter and what as summer).

The issue is that someway while making temperature adjustments in order to save energy (for example lowering the thermostat from 21 to 19°C during the winter instead of a constant 21°C) I often have higher sensible energy needed respect to the "flat setpoint" schedule.

Is this phisically possible? the only explanation I came up with is in some kind of efficiency curve for the load, but from what I read in the documentation such thing does not exist with the Ideal Loads Object.

Did anyone try to do the same things? feel free to ask more informations if I have not explained myself.

Cheers!