Evaluation of the Indoor Thermal Comfort of Selected Residents in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract:

This study evaluated the thermal responses of residents of naturally ventilated buildings in Ibadan, Nigeria. 93 buildings were systematically selected in the Olubadan estate, Ibadan and questionnaire was administered to an adult resident in each of the selected buildings. Respondents assessed their respective living rooms at different periods of the day using a seven-point thermal comfort scale. The Mean Votes for the different periods of the day were: morning - cool, afternoon "“warm, evening -cool and night-cool. The indoor thermal comfort level of the naturally ventilated buildings was acceptable to the residents. The results of linear regression showed that the thermal response (y) had strong linear relationship with air temperature (x) with these equations: y = 9.7-0.24x for morning (with R²= 0.025 and p= 0.132) and

y= -7.1+0.37x for afternoon (with R² =0.047 and p= 0.038). The study concluded that the acceptable limits of comfort expressed by the residents were between 22.6⁰C and 25.6⁰C. The value of the neutral temperature was determined to be 24.6⁰C.