Library | Building America Solution Center

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 - 12 of 12

ACCA Manual RS - Comfort, Air Quality, and Efficiency by Design

Author(s)

Rutkowski

Organization(s)

Air Conditioning Contractors of America

Publication Date

December, 2015

The manual covers residential zoning issues - multiple, single-zone, and central multi-zone systems - and includes advice on working with homeowners to adapt the heating or cooling system design to meet modern home design features.

Analyzing Design Heating Loads in Superinsulated Buildings

Author(s)

Arena Lois

Organization(s)

Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,

CARB,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

Publication Date

June, 2015

Report analyzing design heating load sizing methods for superinsulated homes in cold climates and comparing them to the actual energy usage to determine if the building load calculation methodology should be changed for calculating the design heating load of these homes.

Clanging Pipes and Open Windows: Upgrading NYC Steam Heating Systems for the 21st Century

Author(s)

Flothow

Organization(s)

Energy Efficiency for All,

Steven Winter Associates

Publication Date

November, 2015

Report describing strategies to improve the aging steam heating systems in New York City to improve energy efficiency, reduce oil and gas usage, and cut maintenance costs.

Cooling and Heating Season Impacts of Right-Sizing of Fixed- and Variable-Capacity Heat Pumps With Attic and Indoor Ductwork

Author(s)

Cummings James B,

Withers Charles R,

Kono Jamie E

Organization(s)

Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,

BA-PIRC,

Florida Solar Energy Center,

FSEC

Publication Date

June, 2015

Report on experiments comparing the cooling and heating seasonal and peak demand performance of different variable-capacity air conditioning and heat pump units.

Deep Energy Retrofits - Source Energy and Carbon Decisions

Author(s)

Less,

Walker

Organization(s)

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Publication Date

January, 2015

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Source Energy and Carbon Decisions chapter helps users carefully assess the impacts of switching from gas to electricity for heating end-uses, using source energy and/or carbon emissions...

ENERGY STAR HVAC Design Report

Author(s)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Organization(s)

EPA

Publication Date

November, 2015

This report is designed to meet ASHRAE 62.2-2010/2013 and ANSI/ACCA’s 5 QI-2015 protocol, thereby improving the performance of HVAC equipment in new homes when compared to homes built to minimum code.

Exterior Insulation Implications on Heating and Cooling in Cold Climates

Author(s)

Herk,

Poerschke

Organization(s)

IBACOS

Publication Date

April, 2015

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) is interested in finding cost-effective solutions for deep energy retrofits (DERs) related to exterior wall insulation in a cold climate, with targets of 50% peak load reduction and 50% space conditioning energy savings.

Field Performance of Inverter-Driven Heat Pumps in Cold Climates

Author(s)

Williamson Jim,

Aldrich Robb

Organization(s)

Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,

CARB,

Steven Winter Associates,

SWA

Publication Date

August, 2015

Report on field monitoring of inverter-driven ASHPs in cold-climate homes.

Improving Gas Furnace Performance: A Field and Laboratory Study at End of Life

Author(s)

Brand Larry,

Yee S,

Baker J

Organization(s)

Partnership for Advanced Residential Retrofit,

PARR

Publication Date

February, 2015

Report examining the impacts that common installation practices and age- induced equipment degradation may have on the installed performance of natural gas furnaces, as measured by steady-state efficiency and AFUE.

Investigation of the Effectiveness and Failure Rates of Whole-house Mechanical Ventilation Systems in Florida

Author(s)

Sonne,

Withers,

Vieira

Organization(s)

FSEC

Publication Date

June, 2015

Report describing the results of a 21-home field study investigating the effectiveness and failure rates of whole-house mechanical ventilation systems installed in Florida homes over the last 15 years.

Strategy Guideline: Proper Water Heater Selection

Author(s)

Hoeschele,

Springer,

German,

Staller,

Zhang

Organization(s)

ARBI,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

Davis Energy Group

Publication Date

April, 2015

Report about proper water heater selection developed to provide step-by-step procedures for evaluating preferred cost-effective options for energy efficient water heater alternatives based on local utility rates, climate, and anticipated loads.

Thermostatic Radiator Valve Evaluation

Author(s)

Dentz Jordan,

Ansanelli Eric

Organization(s)

Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions Collaborative,

ARIES,

Levy Partnership

Publication Date

January, 2015

Report on a project conducted to better understand the current usage of thermostatic radiator valves by key market players in steam and hot water heating and to conduct limited experiments on the effectiveness of new and old thermostatic radiator valves as a means of controlling space temperatures...