ABSTRACT
The bioclimatic architecture can contribute significantly to moderate thermal environment of agricultural installations, reducing the energy input used in the air conditioning. The present article presents the results of a diagnosis made in packing houses of table grapes, located in a semi - arid region in the Brazilian Northeast. The objective was to verify which strategies of the bioclimatic architecture were applied in the buildings, and also, to propose recommendations for future projects. The methodology consisted of the elaboration of a checklist, from the application of the Mahoney Method and the Brazilian Bioclimatic Zoning, considering Petrolina - PE climate. The checklist was applied in twenty-five packing houses, of three different sizes. It was concluded that the bioclimatic architectural strategies were applied in an isolated way in the buildings. Therefore, the bioclimatic architectural strategies were not effective in the thermal efficiency of the buildings, and the packing houses of small rural producers were the most inappropriate.
KEYWORDS
building design; building thermal performance; rural building
