Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Description
Fact sheet providing an overview of the FEMA document Wind Retrofit Guide for Residential Buildings.
This library contains research reports produced by the Building America program and other building science resources used to support this Solution Center. The materials cover both new construction and existing homes. Use the search box and/or the filters to explore hundreds of residential building resources. Access to some references not produced by Building America may require purchase from the publisher. Documents are listed alphabetically. While we continually update our database, links may have changed since posting. Please contact our webmaster if you find broken links.
Showing results 1 - 50 of 193
Organization(s)
IBHS
Publication Date
Description
Report summarizing the requirements to strenghthen new homes against property damage caused by high wind occurrences per the IBHS Fortified Homes High Wind Standard for New Homes.
Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Description
Fact sheet summarizing the changes to the flood provisions in the 2012 I-Codes that appear in the 2015 edition.
Organization(s)
ICC,
FBC
Publication Date
Description
Florida building code including all the amendments and additions by Florida for the wind-borne debris regions and the high-velocity hurricane zone.
Organization(s)
IBHS
Publication Date
Description
Report summarizing the requirements for strenghtening and protecting the roof, openings in the house, and creating a continuous load path to strengthen walls and foundation per the IBHS Fortified Homes Hurricane Standard for New Homes.
Organization(s)
IBHS
Publication Date
Description
Guide describing the requirements by FORTIFIED Home™ for improving the home's resistance in severe thunderstorms, straight-line wind events, and high winds at the outer edges of tornadoes.
Organization(s)
IBHS
Publication Date
Description
Guide describing the requirements by FORTIFIED Home™ for improving the home's resistance in severe thunderstorms, straight-line wind events, and high winds at the outer edges of tornadoes.
Organization(s)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory,
ORNL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report providing builders in the hot-dry and mixed-dry climates with guidance for building homes that have whole-house energy savings of 40% over the Building America benchmark with no added overall costs for consumers.
Organization(s)
Sierra Club
Publication Date
Description
Article from the Sierra Club explaining 5 steps to take to ensure your home's resistance to wildfires, including site maintenance and roof construction guidelines.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Article describing methods for venting a vented attic and a roof assembly over an unvented attic.
Organization(s)
GCCA,
R20
Publication Date
Description
Guide developed to help contractors, building operators, and city officials successfully adopt cool roof and pavement technology.
Organization(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
EPA,
ENERGY STAR
Publication Date
Description
Energy Star web page providing guidance on attic ventilation.
Organization(s)
University of Alaska,
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation
Publication Date
Description
Manual describing best practices or home construction in Alaska and northern climates.
Organization(s)
American Plywood Association,
APA
Publication Date
Description
A publication highlighting recommendations that contribute to improved overall performance in the structural shell and focus on good connection details to tie together exterior walls, roofs and floors.
Organization(s)
Medeek Design
Publication Date
Description
Webpage providing mapping tool for obtaining ground snow load, based on ASCE 7-10, for any location in the contiguous United States, with the exception of locations requiring a case study due to extreme local variations in ground snow loads. Fee required for some data.
Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Description
Technical fact sheet describing ways to construct asphalt shingle roofs to be more resistant to high winds and hurricanes; also published in FEMA P-499 “Home Builder’s Guide to Coastal Construction: Technical Fact Sheet Series.”
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Report about a project that examines implementation of advanced retrofit measures in the context of a large-scale weatherization program and the archetypal Chicago, Illinois, brick bungalow.
Organization(s)
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
Home Innovation Research Labs,
HIRL
Publication Date
Description
This report outlines research activities that are expected to facilitate the adoption of energy retrofits by remodeling contractors and roofing contractors using retrofit panels which applicable to many existing house designs in most climates and markets.
Organization(s)
National Association for State Community Services Programs,
NASCSP,
Weatherization Training Center at Penn College,
Pennsylvania College of Technology,
PCT
Publication Date
Description
Technical article describing issues and moisture concerns related to weatherization efforts.
Organization(s)
SPFA
Publication Date
Description
SPFA website signup page to access SPFA documents.
Organization(s)
CEA
Publication Date
Description
Article from California Earthquake Authority on the benefits of retrofitting homes to withstand earthquake forces, with a focus on foundations, walls, and chimneys.
Organization(s)
American Plywood Association,
APA
Publication Date
Description
Report providing water management details for roof assemblies.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Presentation describing details for installing structural insulated panels (SIPs).
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Report comparing a variety of roof insulating strategies to present their advantages and disadvantages according to several comparison criteria.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Article describing the control layers (air, thermal, and vapor barriers) needed to build homes successfully in very cold locations.
Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Description
Document containing recommendations on how to brace roofs and gable end walls based on lessons learned from analyzing the destruction from hurricane Andrew.
Organization(s)
National Roofing Contractors Association,
NRCA
Publication Date
Description
An article discussing how different metal roof materials and attachment methods affect the ability of the roof to thermally expand and contract and the durability of different solutions.
Organization(s)
SFGate
Publication Date
Description
News article from SFGate explaining and giving figures on how chimney failure is the most common type of damage to homes during an earthquake.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Study investigating measured cooling energy performance in side-by-side identical homes with varying roof types, including cool roof technologies.
Organization(s)
Tile Roofing Institute,
TRI,
Western States Roofing Contractors Association,
WSRCA
Publication Date
Description
Manual assisting architects, engineers, owners and roofing contractors for designing, specifying and installing roof tiles in areas of snow and ice.
Organization(s)
TRI
Publication Date
Description
Installation manual describing proper installation practices, industry standards and the code requirements of roofing tiles.
Organization(s)
TRI,
WSRCA
Publication Date
Description
Installation manual outlining proper installation practices, industry standards and the code requirements of roofing tiles.
Organization(s)
California Energy Commission,
CEC,
Public Interest Energy Research Program,
PIER,
Laboratory Directed Research and Development,
LDRD,
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Description
Study describing efforts and outcomes in developing color-pigmented roofing products with coatings to increase solar reflectance.
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Webpage from U.S. Department of Energy describing 'cool roofs' and their usage for passive home cooling.
Organization(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
EPA,
ENERGY STAR
Publication Date
Description
ENERGY STAR webpage discussing the costs and benefits of cool roofs.
Organization(s)
ENERGY STAR,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
EPA
Publication Date
Description
Web page providing information on the types of cool roofs and their benefits to consumers.
Organization(s)
LBNL
Publication Date
Description
Tool developed by LBNL to calculate potential savings from increasing wall and roof solar reflectance.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
Study reporting the results of comparative testing of the effect of finished and unfinished metal roofing systems on cooling energy performance in a test facility.
Organization(s)
University of Minnesota,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
NothernSTAR
Publication Date
Description
Report exploring alternative methods to find long-term solutions to energy loss in 1 ½-story homes to save energy, improve comfort, prevent frost buildup on the underside of the roof deck, and reduce the risk of ice dam formation/reformation.
Organization(s)
NSTAR,
UMN
Publication Date
Description
This case study describes costs associated with the External Thermal and Moisture Management System developed by the NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership for retrofitting roofs with rigid foam over the roof deck, especially on one and a half-story homes.
Organization(s)
CRRC
Publication Date
Description
Website providing information about the Cool Roof Rating Council including programs, membership, and resources for the construction industry.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Article describing strategies for reducing the risk of ice dam formation on roofs in winter.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Article describing the importance of air sealing, insulation, and roof ventilation in reducing the likelihood of ice dam formation on roofs in cold snowy climates.
Organization(s)
University of Minnesota
Publication Date
Description
Webpage explaining what causes the formation of ice dams on roofs and steps to take to prevent them.
Organization(s)
Green Building Advisor
Publication Date
Description
Article from Green Building Advisor on strategies to take when building homes to reduce the need for air conditioning, including insulation, windows, site selection, and roofing.
Organization(s)
MARC
Publication Date
Description
A guide on the use of rain barrels for greater water efficiency and use in gardens and lawns.
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC
Publication Date
Description
A research paper exploring the installation and mounting of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on rooftops and the challenges faced by system designers and installers.
Organization(s)
ORNL,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Simple web-based tool allowing homeowners to calculate the potential savings from installing a cool roof.
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Description
A PDF containing the SERC Solar PV System Field-Inspection Checklist.
Organization(s)
International Journal of Advanced Structural Engineering
Publication Date
Description
Computer simulations comparing International Journal of Advanced Structural Engineering wind pressure differences between a gable-ended roof versus a hip roof versus a pyramidal-shaped roof.