Energy Calcs — 9.36 HOT2000 workflow

Upload PDFs

Drop PDFs here

Window quotes, energy checklists, annotated plans

Large drawing sets (many sheets) can take several minutes to scan—keep this tab open until extract finishes. If you see a “not valid JSON” or <!DOCTYPE> error, a timeout likely cut the request off; split the PDF, run extract on fewer pages at a time, or increase your server’s timeout for /extract.

Window quotes: garage overhead / vehicle doors and all windows tagged for the garage are dropped from the table. The door between garage and the house is kept when the location reads like mudroom, kitchen, “garage – house”, common wall, etc. Add anything missing manually.

Main floor annotation format (plans)

Put each storey in one PDF text/markup note. Recommended wording (imperial):

Main Floor | L = 115.94 ft | V = 6,796.68 cu ft | A = 840.13 ft2

L in ft, V in cu ft, A in ft2 (square feet). L = heated floor perimeter → wall perimeter; V = heated volume → Main Floor Heated Volume; A = heated area → Main Floor Area. Duplicate for Second Floor with a second note.

Multi-unit plans: the scanner looks for Unit A / Unit B, Unit 1 / Unit 2, and dwelling unit numbers in the sheet text (e.g. Dwelling 1, Dwelling 2, Dwelling Unit No. 1, Dwelling #2, or row titles like Dwelling 1 – Unit A). After Extract, the count and unit picker appear here so you can re-run extract for the correct suite.

Extracting data from PDFs…
Input Units: Imperial Defaults to imperial; turn off for metric. Lengths ↔ ft/m, areas ↔ ft²/, volumes ↔ ft³/, R ↔ RSI, US gal ↔ L — including walkout calculator and window overhang/header. Generate still sends your unit choice to the server for conversion to HOT2000 metric.

Enter numbers only in measurement fields (no formulas). For insulation type lines, use whole R-values (e.g. R-20), not decimals.

Save inputs for testing

Your entries are auto-saved in this browser (about every 30 seconds and when you change a field), so a normal refresh usually brings them back. Use Save all inputs to download a JSON backup. Clear auto-saved draft starts a fresh form in this browser.

House Specifications

Opens a print-friendly view (new tab or below). In the print dialog, choose Save as PDF or your printer.

Project Information

From the energy checklist PDF, Project Name maps to File ID (job / file number). Client Name is filled only when the PDF has a separate field (e.g. Client, Homeowner, Owner).

Weather & Location

Used for HOT2000 Weather → depth of frost when you generate an .h2k. Auto-fills from the Weather Location when this field is empty (Alberta 4 ft; Saskatchewan 6.85 ft except Saskatoon 8 ft). Clear the field to refresh. Enter a value to override (e.g. AHJ requirement). Defaults if left blank: 4 ft (Alberta); 6.85 ft (Regina station); 8 ft (Saskatoon station). For other Saskatchewan cities, enter the depth from the authority having jurisdiction (we use 6.85 ft only as a fallback when this field is empty). You can also use this field to override any station default.

Building Type

Dimensions & Volumes

Highest ceiling in the exported file uses the largest Wall 1–8 height you enter (no separate ceiling-height boxes here). Plans PDF extract can still set legacy ceiling fields in the background if present.

Above-grade by storey

Above-grade & below-grade totals

Multi-unit building volume

Only needed when units share corridors or mechanical systems and the entire building exceeds 300 m³. Leave blank for detached houses and row/duplex units with their own HVAC + DHW.

Above Grade Envelope

Ceiling 1

Ceilings always use an explicit Codes/Ceiling assembly and CeilingType idref (Volta SNAP–style). Nominal / effective RSI on the form still set the instance values on that ceiling in HOT2000. For SPF roofs, set Type to Cathedral or Flat as you would in HOT2000.

Above-grade walls

Wall 1 (primary)

Energy checklist framing (16″/24″) fills this when present. Tall wall rows (label contains Tall wall or TW) use one step tighter spacing in the model: 24″→16″ or 16″→12″ effective assembly (slightly lower RSI vs Wall 1 when TW matches main-wall RSI).

Each click adds the next wall (Wall 2, then 3, … up to Wall 8). Remove a wall to hide that block and free a slot.

Below Grade

Add only what exists on the job. Use + Add basement, + Add crawlspace, and + Add slab-on-grade for each foundation type you need — you can combine them (for example basement plus heated crawl). Rim joist blocks stay hidden until you add them (no default R-value).

Other Envelope

Mechanical Systems

Heating System

Natural gas: furnace or boiler. Electric: heat pump, electric baseboards, or electric boiler. If the primary system is a heat pump, specify the secondary (backup) heating system.

Heated floors — Rough-in / Proposed / N/A

On Extract, this dropdown is filled from the energy checklist Radiant Heat / Rough In row when the PDF includes it. If it stays on No but the checklist showed rough-in or radiant, use Apply from checklist (uses the last extract). You can always set the value manually.

Proposed — model hydronic / radiant per design. Roughed-in — tubing only, future load. N/A — not in permit scope. No — no radiant.

Ventilation

Fan power at 0 °C can track the larger of supply vs exhaust using the Energy Calcs curve (20 L/s→46 W … 38 L/s→86 W, with interpolation).

Domestic Hot Water

Used for the 9.36 report row Hot Water Recirculation and a small tag on the DHW model in the generated .h2k so the Excel report shows R/I and Rough In when you choose Roughed-in.

Output

Proposed .h2k downloads use Street Address - Builder Name - Proposed, with unsafe filename characters removed. If address or builder is blank, the name uses what is available, then Proposed.h2k.

Window & Door Inputs (Quote Data)

These feed into the H2K file. You can populate them from PDF extraction (Tab 1) or enter manually. PDF extract: for each quoted Door that is not treated as a garage/overhead/slider door, a matching Door lite row is added automatically (rough opening 26 × 30 in, U 1.6 / SHGC 0.25, Picture, nested under that door label). Remove or edit if the door has no lite or sizes differ. Opening: use Door for opaque doors (rough opening in inches) — Door RSI only; no glazing U-value. For glass in a door, use Window or Door lite and under Location choose a wall or an entry under Glazing in door (each labelled door is listed). That nests the glazing in the door in HOT2000 only once (not on the wall). Or drag ⋮⋮ onto a Door row. U-value / SHGC for glazing; door lites default to Picture type unless you change it. RO dimensions are inches; U-value is metric (W/m²K). Overhang defaults to 2 ft and header height to 0.5 ft when left blank (converted to metres for HOT2000). Values follow your unit toggle (ft vs m). Generated .h2k adds UserDefined window codes: each label is U-value, then SHGC (solar gain), then pane count (2, 3, or 4 for quad-pane wording) and Type (one letter), all within 12 characters. Windows link with idref so HOT2000 v11.x can run. For triple or quad wording, use the row label / notes or the hidden glazing field from quote extract (HOT2000 still uses a triple-type stack for quad; the code Description says quad-pane).

#Label / Location Opening Door RSI Location RO WidthRO Height Overhang W (m)Header H (m) Orientation U-ValueSHGC Type

Window QA — Plans vs. Quote Cross-Check

Enter the window schedule from the architectural plans. Then run the QA check to compare against the quote data above. Dimensions within 5% tolerance pass. Mismatches on doors are warnings; on independent windows they are errors.

#Label Qty Plans RO W (in)Plans RO H (in) Type

Download proposed .h2k

Builds the proposed house HOT2000 file from your house inputs and windows, then downloads it. For the NBC 9.36.5 reference house .h2k, use 5. Reference Generator (upload this proposed file or any proposed .h2k).

Each click regenerates from the current form and downloads again. HOT2000 on Windows expects UTF-8 with CRLF line endings (handled automatically).

Fan Power Calculator (forced air)

Calculates furnace blower high/low speed power from output capacity. Coefficient: Proposed 0.0251, Reference 0.0194 (heat pump: 0.0604). Fan efficiency: 2.30 W/(L/s). Low speed = fan power ÷ 3. AUX applies to combustion systems only — use PE (watts) from AHRI certificate if available; otherwise 208 W is the defensible fallback per NBC 9.36.5.11(20). Document as adaptation in Section 7 compliance report if manufacturer value is unavailable.

AUX power applies only to combustion systems. Electric systems: AUX = 0.

Heat pump uses coefficient 0.0604; furnace uses 0.0251 (proposed) / 0.0194 (reference).

Enter output capacity in the box at left (AUX and calculated powers stay here).

Building proposed .h2k…

Proposed vs NBC 9.36 prescriptive (HDD: )

Right column is table minima for your HDD zone (not a generated .h2k). Reference file generation is on tab 5.

Your Proposed House

Ceiling RSI:
Wall RSI:
Basement Wall RSI:
Slab RSI:
ACH @ 50 Pa:
Window U-Value:
Heating eff.:

NBC 9.36 Reference House

Ceiling RSI:
Wall RSI:
Basement Wall RSI:
Slab RSI:
ACH @ 50 Pa:
Window U-Value:
Heating eff. (ref.):

Download again

Same file as last successful build (no server round-trip). To rebuild from edited inputs, use Download proposed .h2k above.

Generate Reference House from Existing H2K

Upload a proposed .h2k file (from HOT2000 or Volta Snap) and automatically generate the NBC 9.36.5 Reference House. The reference is built per NRCan guidelines using Tables 9.36.2.6–8, 9.36.3.10, 9.36.4.2, and 9.36.5.16.

Drop a proposed .h2k file here

XML-based HOT2000 / Volta Snap file

Generating reference house…
Reference Fan Power Calculator

Reference house fan power per NBC 9.36.5 Section 6.6.2. Coefficient: 0.0194 L/s/W (furnace) or 0.0604 (heat pump). Fan efficiency: 2.30 W/(L/s). AUX = 208 W fixed per combustion system per NBC 9.36.5.15(16). Low speed = fan power ÷ 3.

Reference AUX = 208 W fixed for combustion systems. Electric: AUX = 0.

Heat pump uses coefficient 0.0604; furnace uses 0.0194 (reference).

Enter output capacity in the box at left. Enter these fan power results in HOT2000 after opening the reference .h2k, or verify they match the reference generator’s transformation log above.

Read Simulation Results

After running your files in HOT2000, click the dashed area below or drop the simulated .h2k files here to pull energy results into this tab (for the 9.36 Report workflow). You do not need to generate the reference again to use this.

Proposed Results

Simulated proposed .h2k

Click or drop — must include AllResults

Annual Energy: GJ
Gross Heat Loss: MJ
Peak Cooling: W

Reference Results

Simulated reference .h2k

Click or drop — must include AllResults

Annual Energy: GJ
Gross Heat Loss: MJ
Peak Cooling: W

9.36 Report (.xlsx) from HOT2000

Preview export styling — colours & borders before you download (no file needed).

Upload simulated .h2k files (with AllResults / energy data) in the two zones below — proposed (left) and optional reference (right). The app loads the 9.36 Report template, fills the Single Unit sheet like the Windows h2k_filler.py script, then applies the built-in grey / mauve theme. Openpyxl on the server may look slightly different than Excel COM saves. Reference mechanical efficiencies (C44–C46) use NBC minima (Tables 9.36.3.10 / 9.36.4.2 / 9.36.5.16) from the proposed .h2k, or from an optional reference .h2k when you add one.

Optional reference file: simulated reference run. If omitted, C44–C46 are filled from NBC prescriptive minima using the proposed file. When you include a reference file, the workbook adds a QC - 9.36 sheet: NBC checks (proposed vs reference) and a comparison of your reference to the reference this tool would regenerate from the proposed file.

Proposed .h2k

Simulated — drop or click

Reference .h2k (optional)

C44–C46 — drop or click

Row/duplex units with own HVAC + DHW: leave blank. Shared corridors/systems: enter entire building volume.

RSI Calculator

Build wall, roof, floor, and slab assemblies using NRCan-published thermal resistance values. The calculator uses the Isothermal Planes (Series-Parallel) method and generates a clean .xlsx report for Calgary or any jurisdiction requiring prescriptive RSI documentation.

NRCan Material Reference (CM-1)