Library

Report documenting the results of a NYSERDA-funded research project to demonstrate the costs and benefits of a best practice systems approach to improving exhaust ventilation system performance in five multifamily buildings in New York State.

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.

Fact sheet providing information on how to identify issues and improve performance in central exhaust systems.

Report detailing natural ventilation and passive airflow systems.

Article describing ways home owners can improve ventilation in their kitchens.

Report on whole-house and spot ventilation strategies for improved indoor air quality.

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

If your kitchen has a powerful exhaust fan, it may be pulling air down your chimney or water-heater flue.

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.

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 describing a field study to measure pollutant concentrations in 324 homes in California.

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.

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.

Searchable database of wall cladding and coating products that have undergone solar reflectance and thermal emittance testing.

This study used an advanced airflow, energy and humidity modeling tool to evaluate the potential for residential mechanical pre-scooling strategies to reduce peak electriciy demand.

Report providing information on mechanical air-cleaning devices for ventilation when conventional methods are not warranted.

Standard covering provisions for electrically operated single- and multiple-station carbon monoxide (CO) alarming devices used in various types of residential occupancies to protect against acute effects of exposure to CO. This version of the standard, originally published in 2001 and revised in...

Report describing information from DOE about rules and standards for residential air conditioners and heat pumps.

Webpage describing a DOE Cold Climate Heat Pump Challenge. The challenge engages industry partners and focuses around the Cold Climate Heat Pumps, a more environmental and efficient heating alternative to traditional heating.

Paper covering a parametric study of foundation heat exchanger-based ground source heat pump systems for several house configurations in a range of European locations, with an emphasis on determining feasible combinations.

Report evaluating mechanical AC precooling strategies in homes as a method for improving the load factor by shifting cooling operation from on-peak to off-peak hours.

DOE report characterizing the installed base of windows and window coverings, and how users operate window coverings in order to enable precise quantification of energy savings.

This research paper outlines residential HVAC advanced controls and sensors. It includes a technology review, applications, maintenance and commissioning, occupant behavior and a summary of the state-of-the-art technologies for advanced controls for residential HVAC.

Web page providing an overview of room-level air conditioning systems such as window units and mini-splits.

Webpage discussing the characteristics of sunlight and how cool roofs work to reduce solar heat gain.

Study conducted to help determine cost-effective solutions for heating and cooling houses that are designed to be energy efficient.

Spreadsheet tool that computes solar reflectance index (SRI) and roof surface temperature based on solar reflectance and thermal emittance using ASTM standard E 1980.

Test method that measures the capture efficiency of wall-mounted domestic range hoods under controlled conditions in a test chambers which available for preview and purchase at the link and was published in the year 2018.

Presentation on urban land use and sustainable building design.

The Technician's Guide equips practitioners with the knowledge to properly implement all of the measurement procedures required in the HVAC QI Specification.

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.

Article outlining the importance of keeping dryer exhaust ducts clean.

Article describing a field study that test ventilation performance in nine homes and found current ventilation was inadequate to remove PM2.5 and CO2 levels; however, a directly exhausting range hood can reduce peak PM2.5 concentrations by 75% or more.

Paper describing the effects of shade trees and their location on residential summertime electricity usage.

Article from Purdue University on the potential for white paint technology to lower air conditioning usage requirements.

Webpage from the City of Fresno's Water Conservation Program describing household water conservation recommendations, including tips for maintaining evaporative coolers.

Article describing the impact of increasingly stringent ventilation standards on multifamily buildings, highlighting the inefficiencies and challenges of exhaust-only ventilation in tightly sealed enclosures, the complications of achieving balanced ventilation, and the unintended consequences of...

Users guide to help contractors and homeowners use the Cold Climate Heat Pump Sizing Support Tools developed by NEEP to size and select the best air source heat pumps for their cold climate location.