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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 1 - 50 of 55

2011 EnergyValue Housing Award Report

Author(s)
Del Bianco Marie,
Sagan D,
Wood Amber
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
National Association of Home Builders Research Center,
NAHBRC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report assessing the energy performance of the 2011 EVHA winners and to align the EVHA program with the BA program.

Achieving Very High Efficiency and Net Zero Energy in an Existing Home in a Hot-Humid Climate: Long-Term Utility and Monitoring Data

Author(s)
Parker Danny S,
Sherwin John S
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study describing how envelope modifications in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, and domestic hot water and renewable resources can result in considerable energy reductions, using the first full year of detailed data collected about a single-family home that experienced a series...

Advanced Extended Plate and Beam Wall System in a Cold-Climate House

Author(s)
Wiehagen Joseph,
Kochkin Vladimir,
Mallay David
Organization(s)
Home Innovation Research Labs,
HIRL,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report on the design and evaluation of extended plate and beam.

Air Distribution Retrofit Strategies for Affordable Housing

Author(s)
Dentz Jordan,
Conlin Francis,
Holloway Parker,
Podorson David,
Varshney Kapil
Organization(s)
Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions,
ARIES,
Levy Partnership,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report describing two retrofit duct sealing techniques - manually-applied sealants and injecting a spray sealant, that were implemented in several low-rise multi-unit buildings in North Carolina.

Analysis of Illinois Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Measure Packages

Author(s)
Baker Julie D,
Brand Larry,
Yee Shannon
Organization(s)
Partnership for Advanced Residential Retrofit,
PARR,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,
MEEA
Publication Date
Report that collected field data from a whole-home program in Illinois are utilized to compare marketplace-installed measures to the energy saving optimal packages previously developed for 15 housing types.

Assessing the Energy Savings of Tankless Water Heater Retrofits in Public Housing

Author(s)
Dwiantoro Deny,
Walters R,
Ries R
Organization(s)
Building Energy Efficient Homes for America,
BEEHA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report describing methodology, analysis, and findings from a case study of a 110-unit retrofit of gas tankless water heaters in a hot/humid climate in Alachua County, Florida.

Assessment of the U.S. Department of Energy's Home Energy Scoring Tool

Author(s)
Roberts David,
Merket Noel,
Heaney Mike,
Casey Sean,
Robertson Joseph,
Polly Benjamin
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report assessing the accuracy of HEST as it was being developed and to provide information useful to DOE program managers and HEST development team at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

BSC Information - Pan Flashing for Exterior Wall Openings for All Climates, Sheet 302

Author(s)
Burkett Lena,
Cole Pam C,
Kaiser David,
Rosemiller Gil
Organization(s)
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL,
Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs,
CRA,
Colorado Code Consulting,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Webinar answering code-related questions on duct leakage tests, moisture levels in attics and crawlspaces, combustion equipment in conditioned attics, ventilation in multifamily buildings, and continuous insulation in residential construction.

Building America House Simulation Protocols - Revised October 2010

Author(s)
Hendron Robert,
Engebrecht Cheryn
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report summarizing the guidelines for developing and reporting analytical results in a consistent and meaningful manner for all home energy uses.

Building America Performance Analysis Procedures, Revision 1

Author(s)
Hendron Robert,
Anderson Ren,
Judkoff Ron,
Christensen Craig B,
Eastment Mark,
Norton Paul,
Reeves Paul,
Hancock Ed
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Partnership for Resource Conservation,
Mountain Energy Partnership,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document illustrating some analysis concepts that are proven to be effective and reliable in analyzing the transient energy usage of advanced energy systems as well as of entire houses.

Cold Climate Building Enclosure Solutions

Author(s)
Fallahi Ali,
Shukla Nitin,
Kosny Jan
Organization(s)
Fraunhofer CSE,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study investigating the energy performance and cost effectiveness of several state-of-the-art retrofit strategies that could be used in residential houses in the Boston and New England area.

Comparison of Advanced Residential Water Heating Technologies in the United States

Author(s)
Fang Xia,
Maguire Jeff,
Wilson Eric
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research report providing a comparison of the most common residential water heating technologies to determine energy-efficient and cost-effective water heating technologies are when subjected to a variety of typical operating conditions.

Cost Effectiveness of Home Energy Retrofits in Pre-Code Vintage Homes in the United States

Author(s)
Fairey Philip W,
Parker Danny S
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study examining the opportunities for cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy retrofits in residential archetypes constructed before 1980 (Pre-Code) in 14 U.S. cities.

Cost Effectiveness of Home Energy Retrofits in Pre-Code Vintage Homes in the United States

Author(s)
Fairey Philip W,
Parker Danny S
Organization(s)
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Report describing the analytical study of renewable energy retrofits to homes built before 1980 and whether it is cost efficient or not.

Developing an Energy Performance Modeling Startup Kit

Author(s)
Wood Amber
Organization(s)
NAHB Research Center,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report identifying business models for the remodeling industry that foster remodelers adoption of energy efficiency services.

Energy Impacts of Nonlinear Behavior of PCM When Applied into Building Envelope

Author(s)
Tabares-Velasco Paulo Cesar
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study analyzing the effects a nonlinear enthalpy profile has on thermal performance and expected energy benefits for PCM-enhanced insulation.

Energy Savings Measure Packages: Existing Homes

Author(s)
Casey Sean,
Booten Chuck
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document presenting a simple starting point to determine the most cost-effective Energy Savings Measure Packages (ESMP) for existing homes to achieve 15% and 30% savings in 37 locations across the United States.

Evaluation of Boulder, CO, SmartRegs Ordinance and Better Buildings Programs

Author(s)
Arena Lois,
Vijayakumar Gayathri
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report summarizing CARB's analysis of Boulder, Colorado's SmartRegs ordinance in the existing home market.

Expert Meeting Report: Simplified Space Conditioning Strategies for Energy Efficient Houses

Author(s)
Stecher Dave
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Expert meeting held to discuss simplified space conditioning systems in low load homes, including the relationship between advanced thermal enclosures, space conditioning systems and comfort.

Field Evaluation of Programmable Thermostats

Author(s)
Sachs Olga,
Tiefenbeck Verena,
Duvier Caroline,
Qin Angela,
Cheney Kate,
Akers Craig,
Roth Kurt
Organization(s)
Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems,
Fraunhofer CSE,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study evaluating a low-cost and scalable way to reduce heating energy consumption using the energy-saving features of programmable thermostats (i.e., automatic daytime and nighttime setbacks).

Field Monitoring Protocol: Mini-Split Heat Pumps

Author(s)
Christensen Dane,
Tomerlin Jeff,
Winkler Jon,
Hancock Ed,
Fang Xia
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Mountain Energy Partnership,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Information sheet with an analysis of mini split heat pump systems.

Field Test Protocol: Standard Internal Load Generation for Unoccupied Test Homes

Author(s)
Christensen Dane,
Barker Greg M,
Hancock Ed,
Fang Xia
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Mountain Energy Partnership,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report describing a simple and general way to generate House Simulation Protocol (HSP)-consistent internal sensible and latent loads in unoccupied homes.

Laboratory Testing of Aerosol for Enclosure Air Sealing

Author(s)
Modera Mark,
Harrington Curtis
Organization(s)
Western Cooling Efficiency Center - UC Davis,
Building Industry Research Alliance,
BIRA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Research study to help development of an application protocol for aerosol sealing of building shells that will eventually be demonstrated on buildings in retrofit and new construction.

Measure Guideline: Summary of Interior Ducts in New Construction, Including an Efficient, Affordable Method to Install Fur-Down Interior Ducts

Author(s)
Beal David,
McIlvaine Janet E R,
Fonorow Ken,
Martin Eric
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document illustrating guidelines for efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing.

Measure Guideline: Transitioning From Three-Coat Stucco to One-Coat Stucco With EPS

Author(s)
Brozyna Kevin,
Rapport Ari,
Davis Graham
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document developed to help residential new construction builders transition from using a three-coat stucco system to a one-coat stucco system installed over 1 in. of expanded polystyrene (EPS) insulation.

Measure Guideline: Transitioning to a Tankless Water Heater

Author(s)
Brozyna Kevin,
Rapport Ari
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document developed to help residential builders and retrofitters transition from tank-type water heaters to tankless water heaters.

Measure Guideline: Wood Window Repair, Rehabilitation, and Replacement

Author(s)
Baker Peter
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document providing information and guidance about rehabilitating, retrofitting, and replacing wood window assemblies in residential construction.

Mini-Split Heat Pumps Multifamily Retrofit Feasibility Study

Author(s)
Dentz Jordan,
Henderson Hugh,
Podorson David
Organization(s)
Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions,
ARIES,
Levy Partnership,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
This report investigates whether mini-split heat pumps can live up to their potential for one market segment: multifamily retrofits.

Needs of Non Energy-Focused Contractors

Author(s)
Liaukus Christine
Organization(s)
Building America Retrofit Alliance,
BARA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report investigating what motivates remodelers to become energy-focused and what technical knowledge that need to be energy-focused.

NREL Evaluates the Thermal Performance of Uninsulated Walls to Improve the Accuracy of Building Energy Simulation Tools

Author(s)
Ridouane El Hassan
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document about development of models for evaluating thermal performance of walls in existing homes that will improve the accuracy of building energy simulation tools when predicting potential energy savings of existing homes.

NREL Provides Guidance to Improve Thermal Comfort in High-Performance Homes

Author(s)
Ridouane El Hassan
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document about development of recommendations to help residential HVAC designers select optimal supply inlet size and system operating conditions to maintain good thermal comfort in low heating and cooling load homes.

Overheating in Hot-Water and Steam-Heated Multifamily Buildings

Author(s)
Dentz Jordan,
Henderson Hugh,
Podorson David
Organization(s)
Advanced Residential Integrated Energy Solutions,
ARIES,
Levy Partnership,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report providing information to researchers, utility program managers, and building owners interested in controlling heating energy waste and improving resident comfort.

Performance of Windows in Walls With Continuous Insulation

Author(s)
Peavey John,
Shah Nay B
Organization(s)
Home Innovation Research Labs,
HIRL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Technical report describing research aimed to provide window manufacturers with foundational guidance for installing windows in walls with continuous insulation (CI), addressing critical aspects such as evaluating common installation methods, establishing acceptance criteria for window performance...

Strategy Guideline: Accurate Heating and Cooling Load Calculations

Author(s)
Burdick Arlan
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report about the impact on the loads when common safety factors are applied to the load calculation process using two houses that meet the 2009 IECC prescriptive path modeled as the accurate baseline.

Strategy Guideline: Demonstration Home

Author(s)
Savage C,
Hunt A
Organization(s)
Building America Retrofit Alliance,
BARA,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report intending to provide useful information as the DOE/BA develops and implements comprehensive communications and outreach strategies for demonstration homes.

Strategy Guideline: High Performance Residential Lighting

Author(s)
Holton James
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document offering methods to greatly reduce lighting energy use through the application of high quality fluorescent and light emitting diode (LED) technologies.

Strategy Guideline: HVAC Equipment Sizing

Author(s)
Burdick Arlan
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Report describing the equipment selection of a split system air conditioner and furnace for an example house in Chicago, Illinois, as well as a heat pump system for an example house in Orlando, Florida.

Strategy Guideline: Mitigation of Retrofit Risk Factors

Author(s)
Berman Mark,
Smith Pepper,
Porse Erik
Organization(s)
Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,
ARBI,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Davis Energy Group,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document targeting retrofit program managers, retrofit contractors, policy makers, academic researchers, and non-governmental organizations that work to realize energy savings from home energy upgrades (HEUs).

Strategy Guideline: Partnering for High Performance Homes

Author(s)
Prahl Duncan
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Document serving as a starting point that features initial tools and resources for teams to start collaborating to continually improve the energy efficiency and durability of new houses.