A novel method to utilize direct electrical space heating for explicit demand response purposes –proof of concept

The potential of demand response (DR) in its various forms has recently been widely investigated. This paper focuses on residential direct electric space heating (DESH) and introduces a novel way to enable DR that deploys the temperature decrease feature available in many thermostats and heating units. This deployment of the temperature decrease function was tested in a small-scale technical proof of concept pilot. It was verified that the concept is technically viable, does not cause significant changes in the indoor temperature, and the achieved controllable capacity can be used as capacity even for primary frequency regulation purposes. An economic analysis revealed that the concept has a positive business case even with a retrofit installation.