ENERGY STAR New Homes: Single-Family

Guide describing how to correctly install flex ducts without kinks or sharp bends.

Guide describing how to correctly install flex ducts without excessive coils or loops.

Guide describing how and where to install ducts, to ensure enough cavity space to avoid compression of the flex ducts or duct insulation.

Guide describing the use of ducted returns to return stale air from bedrooms and bathrooms to a central heating system.

Guide describing how to install transfer grilles in bedroom walls to balance air pressures between rooms and to enable stale air to return to a central heating system.

Guide describing how to install jump ducts in bedroom walls to balance air pressures between rooms, enabling stale air to return of the central air handler, even when room doors are closed.

Guide describing how to undercut the doors in bedroom walls to balance air pressures between rooms and to enable stale air to return to a central heating system.

Guide describing how to air seal and insulate flex ducts.

Guide describing how to air seal and insulate fiber board ducts.

Guide that illustrates how and when to encapsulate ductwork in unconditioned attics, increasing the R-value of duct insulation, mitigating condensation issues, and reducing air leakage.

Guide describing the practice of burying HVAC ducts in loose-fill insulation on the attic floor.

Guide describing approaches to burying and encapsulating ducts in unconditioned attics to increase the overall R-value of duct insulation.

Guide describing methods for insulating an unvented attic along the roof line.

Guide describing method for insulating an unvented crawlspace or conditioned basement with rigid foam on the interior side of the walls.

Guide describing a method for insulating an unvented attic by spraying foam insulation along the underside of the roof deck.

Guide describing method for installing ducts in a duct chase in a dropped ceiling.

Guide describing method for designing and installing ducts in a raised ceiling chase.

Guide describing how to design HVAC systems to be located within the conditioned space of the home, either in a utility closet or in an attic, basement, or crawl space.

Guide for designing and installing interior ducts in an interstitial floor cavity in new and existing homes.

Guide describing how to conduct HVAC duct leakage tests for total system duct leakage per RESNET protocols.

Guide describing how to conduct duct leakage tests on all components of the HVAC system (including the air handler, ductwork, register boxes/boots, and all air devices such as diffusers, registers, or grilles).