Library

Article describing thermal bridging, construction practices that encourage thermal bridging, and solutions.

Report providing guidance on wet floodproofing crawlspaces, unfinished basements, and garages.

Report providing guidance to homeowners and business owners on protecting crawlspaces from flood damage.

Manual describing best practices or home construction in Alaska and northern climates.

A publication highlighting recommendations that contribute to improved overall performance in the structural shell and focus on good connection details to tie together exterior walls, roofs and floors.

Technical report describing the thermal performance of 40 common building envelope details for mid- and high-rise buildings, including analyses to optimize energy efficiency and reduce thermal bridging.

Information sheet about insulating slabs.

Guide describing methodologies for assessing and mitigating thermal bridging in building envelopes, featuring detailed performance data, interface solutions, and assembly-specific strategies for energy-efficient construction.

Information sheet containing images and descriptions of cantilevers.

Carpet and Rug Institute website homepage.

Report aimed to quantify the impact of closed crawlspaces in new homes, and investigate modeling software to ensure accuracy of energy consumption predictions in these homes.

Guide about designing and installing closed crawlspaces in the Southeast.

Article describing how closed crawlspaces can do "double duty" by controlling moisture and providing energy savings.

Website discussing building foundation problems caused by settling soil in Colorado.

Information guide describing issues with concrete floors, in multiple climate zones.

Document discussing moisture considerations and testing techniques for concrete floors.

Information sheet discussing the properties and benefits of insulating concrete forms.

Report outlining how conditioned crawlspaces perform better than vented crawlspaces in terms of safety, health, comfort, durability and energy consumption.

Information sheet about crawlspace insulation, including installation details.

Article discussing whether or not to seal and insulate crawlspaces.

Information sheet providing information about investigating the thermal effect of staggering the inner and outer wall studs on double walls in new construction.

Guide provides homeowners ways to prepare for an earthquake and protect a home against earthquake damage.

Report analyzing results in crawlspace retrofits in multifamily buildings.

Report about an experimental evaluation conducted on a night sky cooling system designed to substantially reduce space cooling needs in homes in North American climates.

Information sheet about what length screws should be used, and how closely to space the screws when fastening furring strips to a foam-sheathed wall.

Article explaining what a continuous load path is and the key connection points that make it up.

Article describing methods to manage moisture, rainwater, and vapor in basements and crawlspaces.

Link to all versions of ASCE/SEI 24, a standard describing the minimum requirements and expected performance for the siting and design and construction of buildings and structures in flood hazard areas that are subject to building code requirements.

Handbook providing guidance on the design and construction of foundations for homes, including insulation, air sealing, and water management details for basements, crawlspaces, and slabs.

Article describing what the building codes say about frost-protected shallow foundations as a cost-saving alternative to conventional concrete foundations.

Guides describing frost-protected shallow foundations as an alternative method for building an energy-efficient foundation for a house in a cold climate that uses less concrete and saves on labor.

Article describing frost-protected shallow foundations with construction drawing details.

Document describing the emissions criteria for carpets, cushions, and adhesives to qualify as those with low volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions under the Carpet and Rug Institute's Green Label Plus Indoor Air Quality Testing Program.

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

Report outlining results from a 2005 hygrothermal pilot study in the South.

Video describing how a frost-protected shallow foundation (FPSF) is constructed and including use of a stay-in-place EPS (expanded polystyrene) footing form that provides insulation and simplifies the installation of frost-protected monolithic concrete slab foundations.

Video describing how a frost-protected shallow foundation (FPSF) is constructed and including use of a stay-in-place EPS (expanded polystyrene) footing form that provides insulation and simplifies the installation of frost-protected monolithic concrete slab foundations.

Information sheet providing links and resources for insulating basements in cold climates.

Fact sheet defining “lowest floor,” identifying common construction practices that are violations of NFIP regulations, and discussing benefits of exceeding the NFIP minimum building elevation requirements; also published in FEMA P-499 “Home Builder’s Guide to Coastal Construction: Technical Fact...

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.

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

Glossary of terms used by the National Flood Insurance Program

Building science insight into crawlspaces.

Document describing guidance and requirements for flood openings in walls at and below grade.

Report about an experimental evaluation has been conducted on a night sky cooling system designed to substantially reduce space cooling needs in homes in North American climates.

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

Report providing guidance on protecting foundation walls and enclosures from flood damage.

Report highlighting the evaluation methods used and extent of wind washing found in a study analyzing wind washing in thirty-two two-story homes.

Report documenting actual energy savings of a retrofit project in Boulder, CO.

Information sheet including a checklist of steps to follow for pouring concrete.