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Library

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 51 - 100 of 107

Introduction to Buildings Systems Performance: Houses that Work II

Author(s)
Building Science Corporation
Organization(s)
BSC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Report that describes BSC's Houses That Work II (HTWII) climate-specific technical resource, beginning with an overall HTWII introduction and four sections explaining the four most important hygro-thermal climate regions: Hot-Humid, Mixed-Humid, Cold, and Hot-Dry/Mixed-Dry.

Is battery storage right for you?

Author(s)
Sacramento Municipal Utility District
Organization(s)
SMUD
Publication Date
Webpage describing benefits of adding battery storage to homes and an estimation tool.

Measured and Simulated Performance of Reflective Roofing Systems in Residential Buildings

Author(s)
Parker Danny,
Huang Yu Joe,
Konopacki Steven,
Gartland Lisa,
Sherwin John,
Gu Lixing
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Study investigating measured cooling energy savings in homes across the U.S. from the installation of roofing with higher solar reflectance.

NABCEP Photovoltaic (PV) Installer Resource Guide

Author(s)
Brooks William,
Dunlop James
Organization(s)
North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners,
NABCEP
Publication Date
This Photovoltaic (PV) Installer Resource Guide is an informational resource covering basic requirements for PV installations intended for individuals pursuing the Photovoltaic Installer Certification credential offered by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP).

Off-Grid Inverter Comparison Chart

Author(s)
Clean Energy Reviews
Organization(s)
CER
Publication Date
Website providing comparison charts and reviews of off-grid inverters for solar power systems.

Potential benefits of cool walls on residential and commercial buildings across California and the United States: Conserving energy, saving money, and reducing emission of greenhouse gases and air pollutants

Author(s)
Rosado Pablo,
Levinson Ronnen
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Large scale simulation study investigating the effects of cool roofs and walls on buildings of various vintages across the U.S., with special attention given to California.

PV Primer, BA-0212

Author(s)
Building Science Corporation
Organization(s)
BSC
Publication Date
Report aiming to "de-mystify" technology and economic considerations of residential PV systems.

PVWatts Calculator

Author(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Organization(s)
NREL
Publication Date
Website estimating energy production and cost of energy of grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) energy systems throughout the world.

Rated Roof Products Directory

Author(s)
Cool Roof Rating Council
Organization(s)
CRRC
Publication Date
Searchable database of over 3,000 roofing products that have undergone solar reflectance and thermal emittance testing.

Rated Wall Products Directory

Author(s)
Cool Roof Rating Council
Organization(s)
CRRC
Publication Date
Searchable database of wall cladding and coating products that have undergone solar reflectance and thermal emittance testing.

Renewable Energy Annual

Author(s)
Energy Information Administration
Organization(s)
EIA
Publication Date
Data tables on U.S. renewable energy consumption and general trends in the market for renewable energy.

Renewable Energy Ready Home Solar Photovoltaic Specification Guide

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
The RERH specifications and checklists take a builder and a project design team through the steps of assessing a home’s solar resource potential and defining the minimum structural and system components needed to support a solar energy system.

Renewable Energy Ready Home Solar Site Assessment Tool

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Website tool intended to guide home builders in assessing whether a new home has the proper physical orientation to support a future installation of a solar energy system.

Renewable Energy Ready Home Solar Water Heating Specification Guide

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
The RERH specifications and checklists take a builder and a project design team through the steps of assessing a home’s solar resource potential and defining the minimum structural and system components needed to support a solar energy system.

Residential Solar Hot Water Systems

Author(s)
North Carolina Solar Center
Organization(s)
North Carolina Solar Center
Publication Date
Brochure with information on residential solar hot water systems.

Residential Solar System Guidelines

Author(s)
City of Burnsville
Organization(s)
City of Burnsville
Publication Date
Brochure detailing the guidelines, recommendations, and preferences of the City of Burnsville for citizens installing solar photovoltaics.

ReVision Home: On-Site Renewable Energy

Author(s)
Steven Winter Associates
Organization(s)
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Information sheet describing solar PV upgrade for an existing homes.

Revisions to the SRCC Rating Process for Solar Water Heaters

Author(s)
Burch Jay,
Huggins Jim,
Long Steven,
Thornton Jeff
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Solar Rating & Certification Corporation,
SRCC,
Thermal Energy System Specialists,
TESS
Publication Date
Document discussing changes in testing the annual performance ratings for solar water heaters.

Rooftop Solar Panel Attachment: Design, Installation, and Maintenance

Author(s)
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Recovery advisory guide providing guidance on existing code requirements as well as recommend best practices for attachment design, installation, and maintenance of rooftop solar panels to increase panel wind resistance in the U.S. Virgin Islands after Hurricane Maria.

Science of Cool Roofs

Author(s)
CoolCalifornia.org
Organization(s)
CoolCalifornia.org
Publication Date
Webpage discussing the characteristics of sunlight and how cool roofs work to reduce solar heat gain.

Sizing and Building a Battery Bank

Author(s)
Global Technology and Information Services
Organization(s)
SIL International
Publication Date
Web page describing the basics of how to size and build a battery bank for electricity storage.

Small House with Construction Cost of $100K, Total Energy Cost of $0.88 a Day

Author(s)
Christian Jeffrey E,
Childs Phillip W,
Pate Paige,
Atchley Jerald A
Organization(s)
American Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers,
ASHRAE
Publication Date
Paper describing the development and testing of an affordable net-zero energy house in Lenoir City, Tennessee.

Solar Battery System Types - AC Vs DC Coupled

Author(s)
Svarc
Organization(s)
Svarc
Publication Date
Website article describing the way solar panels are coupled to AC and DC battery energy storage systems.

Solar Domestic Water Heating: a Roof-Integrated Evaluation

Author(s)
Aldrich Robb
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Report providing a synopsis of a project to evaluate the performance of a roof-integrated solar water heating system.

Solar Hot Water for Homes

Author(s)
FSEC
Organization(s)
FSEC
Publication Date
Website with information for consumers about solar thermal systems for homes.

Solar on Sips

Author(s)
Sughrue
Organization(s)
Home Power
Publication Date
A structural insulated panel (SIP) roof has no embedded lumber in the structure, and therefore nothing substantial for attaching PV array and solar hot water mounts. Single or double lumber splines could be put into the panels, or I-joists at 4-foot intervals could be added.

Solar Pathfinder

Author(s)
Solar Pathfinder
Organization(s)
Solar Pathfinder
Publication Date
Tool determining the most economical and efficient photovoltaic array location and position.

Solar Photovoltaic Specification, Checklist and Guide

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Guidelines to assist builders in designing and constructing homes equipped with a set of features that make the installation of solar energy systems after the completion of the home’s construction easier and less expensive.

Solar Rating & Certification Corporation (SRCC)

Author(s)
Solar Rating & Certification Corporation
Organization(s)
Solar Rating & Certification Corporation
Publication Date
The Solar Rating & Certification Corporation is the leading solar heating and cooling product certification program in North America, certifying to the requirements of International and Uniform Codes and Standards

Solar Ready Buildings Planning Guide

Author(s)
Lisell,
Tetreault,
Watson
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Publication Date
Report identifying the important aspects of building design and construction to enable installation of solar photovoltaic and heating systems at some time after the building is constructed.

Solar Site Assessment

Author(s)
Sanchez
Organization(s)
Home Power
Publication Date
Web article about solar site assessment.

Solar Water Heaters

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Website describing how solar water heaters -- also called solar domestic hot water systems -- can be a cost-effective way to generate hot water for your home.

Solar Water Heating Specification, Checklist and Guide

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Specifications to assist builders in designing and constructing homes equipped with a set of features that make the installation of solar energy systems after the completion of the home’s construction easier and less expensive.

Solar-Plus-Storage 101

Author(s)
Solar Energy Technologies Office
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Webpage describing the basics of solar plus storage operations on homes.

Solar-Reflective "Cool" Walls: Benefits, Technologies, and Implementation

Author(s)
Levinson Ronnen,
Ban-Weiss George,
Berdahl Paul,
Chen Sharon,
Destaillats Hugo,
Dumas Nathalie,
Gilbert Haley,
Goudey Howdy,
Houze de l'Aulnoit Sebastien,
Kleissl Jan,
Kurtz Benjamin,
Li Yun,
Long Yan,
Mohegh Arash,
Nazarian Negin,
Pizzicotti Matteo,
Rosado Pablo,
Russell Marion,
Slack Jonathan,
Tang Xiaochen,
Zhang Jiachen,
Zhang Weilong
Organization(s)
California Energy Commission,
CEC,
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL,
University of Southern California,
USC,
University of California San Diego,
UC San Diego
Publication Date
California Energy Commission report presenting the concept of cool walls and providing guidelines for their building- and climate-appropriate use to conserve energy and reduce emissions.

Solmetric SunEye

Author(s)
Solmetric Inc.
Organization(s)
Solmetric Inc.
Publication Date
Handheld solar site analysis tool capturing whole-horizon images for a site and generating shading analysis reports.

Testing the Performance and Dynamic Control of Energy-Efficient Cellular Shades in the PNNL Lab Homes

Author(s)
Cort Katherine A,
McIntosh Joshua A,
Sullivan Greg P,
Ashley Travis A,
Metzger Cheryn E,
Fernandez Nicholas
Organization(s)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL,
Efficiency Solutions
Publication Date
DOE-sponsored report describing the experimental design and results of testing the energy performance of Hunter Douglas double-cell cellular shades under various control schemes in the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Lab Homes.

The Energy In Modular (EMOD) Buildings Method, A Guide To Energy-Efficient Design For Industrialized Construction Of Modular Buildings

Author(s)
Pless Shanti,
Podder Ankur,
Kaufman Zoe,
Klammer Noah,
Dennehy Conor,
Muthumanickam Naveen Kumar,
Rothgeb Stacey,
Louis Joseph,
Swanson Colby,
Wallace Heather,
Blazek Cedar
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Oregon State University,
Momentum Innovation Group,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report describing use of the Energy in Modular (EMOD) method to design, produce, and deliver affordable, net-zero energy, low-carbon, and healthier buildings through industrialized (factory) construction of modular buildings; modeling of whole buildings and subassemblies of components, pods, panels...