Library

Website article discussing the economics of ground source heat pumps.

Document that gives a step-by-step approach for designing attachments for cladding materials through foam sheathing.

Guide describing refrigeration leaks, including common leak points, how to fix them, and how to prevent them.

Factsheet describing how to install air source heat pumps for residential heating and cooling in cold climates.

Factsheet describing how to install air source heat pumps for residential heating and cooling in cold climates.

A ENERGY STAR guide on efficient heating, ventilation and cooling systems in residential homes.

EPA webpage explaining the heat island effect and providing links to related content.

LBNL webpage providing resources and tools related to cool technologies, including the SRI calculator and the DOE Cool Roof Calculator.

Webpage providing basic information on various types of heat pumps and their applications in Massachusetts.

Factsheet profiling a simple modification that can be made to window air-conditioners to improve their energy efficiency.

Article from RMI on how climate change is leading to an increase in critical extreme heat hours and what smart building strategies can be taken to mitigate some of these effects including paint color and insulation.

Article from The Earthbound Report on passive cooling design strategies for homes located in hot climates.

Article summarizing for potential homeowners items to check or demand from the builder in designing a home for a cold climate.

Factsheet describing the importance of building enclosures and their impact on energy efficiency.

Factsheet outlining the advantages of using heat pumps, which are an efficient way to heat and cool a home.

Factsheet outlining how window attachments like cellular shades, roller shades, storm windows with low-emissivity coatings, and solar screens are low-cost steps that can be implemented to keep homes cool in the summer.

Webpage providing curriculum with links to presentations and problem sets for teaching an understanding of sizing cold climate heat pumps.

Paper providing a comprehensive overview of HVAC system design considerations and challenges specific to multifamily residential buildings, focusing on optimizing performance and addressing common issues.

Correcting pressure imbalances in your HVAC system can result in a healthier, more efficient home.

Article outlining the casuses and solutions for ice dam problems.

Study evaluating opportunities for reducing cooling energy use in a hot dry climate through the use of shading and window options.

Article describing how air speed affects thermal comfort and how fans can provide energy savings.

Study using simulations to understand the impact that shading and natural ventilation would have had on the survivability of non-air-conditioned buildings during the 2021 heat wave in the Pacific Northwest.

Report detailing natural ventilation and passive airflow systems.

Research study describing field testing performed in 32 two-story Florida homes to characterize wind washing failures of the house air and thermal boundary.

Technical report assessing the market for Low-e storm windows based on market data, case studies, and recent experience with weatherization deployment programs.

News article describing the state of the residential battery storage market.

Guidebook providing useful examples of high performance retrofit techniques for the building enclosure of wood frame residential construction in a cold and somewhat wet climate.

Siding installation guide for Ply Gem Siding Group products.

Study investigating measured cooling energy savings in homes across the U.S. from the installation of roofing with higher solar reflectance.

Study investigating measured cooling energy savings from the installation of wall finishes with higher solar reflectance.

This report investigates whether mini-split heat pumps can live up to their potential for one market segment: multifamily retrofits.

Report providing extensive guidance on controlling moisture in building envelopes through proper selection and installation on air, water, thermal, and vapor barriers.

Conference paper making the case that moving ducts to conditioned space saves energy, is practical for production builders (when accompanied by careful pre-planning), and creates significant andmarketable energy savings for homebuyers.

DOE Energy Saver webpage providing a brief summary of natural ventilation for houses.

Database compiling extended capacity data for numerous cold climate heat pump manufacturers and models.

Report discussing the benefits of modern evaporative cooling systems for use in hot dry climate zones.

Document describing recommended modeling rules, potential compliance credits, and eligibility criteria for residential night ventilation cooling systems for California’s Title 24 energy efficiency standards.

Report describing the experimentally evaluated potential of a novel residential night cooling concept.

Report presenting the results of a study evaluating retrofit solutions for addressing the effects of wind washing on homes.

Book describing passive cooling techniques from a technical and academic perspective.

This study evaluated 11 measures for passive cooling using four heat resilience metrics with and without grid power in Fresno CA and found the two most effective measures were installing solar-control window films and adding roof insulation; natural ventilation also helped reduce overheating in...

Website providing guidance on passive heating, cooling, and lighting methods.

Paper summarizing passive and low-energy cooling systems for buildings.

Blog article describing considerations for how to use trees for shading to reduce cooling energy demand.

Manual describing design, detailing, material selection and troubleshooting for plaster, IEFs, and drywall, with information on continuous insulation, air barriers, rain screens, and ratings for fire and sound.

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.

Searchable database of over 3,000 roofing products that have undergone solar reflectance and thermal emittance testing.