Library

Report designed to help a builder understand quality management and its role in transitioning from conventional to HPH building and remodeling.

Website with information about radon-resistant construction techniques and other radon resources for builders, contractors and homebuyers.

Report showing how to identify, inventory, and screen buildings that are potentially hazardous because of seismic hazards.

Data tables on U.S. renewable energy consumption and general trends in the market for renewable energy.

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.

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.

Website providing data on household energy usage collected from the Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), a nationally representative sample of more than 18,000 housing units, representing the 123.5 million housing units occupied as primary residences in the U.S.

IECC code note explaining new fan efficacy requirements, along with how to determine which fans are affected by the new fan requirements.

A fact sheet educating homeowners on the importance of residential safe rooms, including their cost and how to register a safe room with local officials.

Homepage for ENERGY STAR’s windows, skylights, and doors program providing information for consumers and links to product directories.

Website describing the USRC, which "brings an unparalleled level of capability to the mission of improving community resilience in the built environment."

Resource to help builders better understand the WaterSense requirements for labeled homes and assist them in meeting the criteria so they can receive the label for their new construction.

Report about a deep energy retrofit Cool Energy House.

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.

Information sheet describing solar PV upgrade for an existing homes.

Report summarizing commissioning, short-term testing, and analysis that occurred before, during, and just after the actual retrofit of the Bay Ridge project.

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.

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.

Research study presenting a unique opportunity to both identify and evaluate deep retrofit measures that are practical and potentially cost effective for the retrofit market, as well as review the cost effectiveness of the Passive House design approach for achieving energy savings in deep retrofits.

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.

ENERGY STAR webpage describing the benefits of storm windows and a link to a product list.

Webpage providing an ENERGY STAR climate zone map and criteria for ENERGY STAR storm windows per climate zone.

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.

Research study determining how well high performance envelope and innovative cooling system interact to cost effectively reduce cooling energy use in this hot-dry climate.

Research study making several recommendations to whole-home program designers and implementers for improving the cost effectiveness and reach of whole-home programs.

Question and Answer article in Energy Design Update describing the cost and savings benefits of electronically commutated motors (ECMs) for HVAC equipment.

Resource manual for builders, designers, architects, plumbers, and others interested in the WaterSense Labeled Homes Program providing an overview of the program, explains how to meet the program requirements, gives descriptions of water-saving technologies, and provides links to further resources.

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.

Report developed for Habitat for Humanity about lessons learned from demonstration retrofit projects undertaken by Habitat for Humanity affiliates in New York, Maryland, and Pennsylvania; with building systems consulting and technical assistance provided by Steven Winter Associates.

Even as the worst housing market correction in more than 60 years appeared to turn a corner in 2009, the fallout from sharply lower home prices and high unemployment continued.

Report presenting results from whole-house monitoring efforts in hope that they may be useful for others moving towards zero energy homes.

Document providing an overview of the Thermal Bypass Checklist for the ENERGY STAR Qualified Homes program.

Guide describing details that serve as a visual reference for each of the line items in the Thermal Enclosure System Rater Checklist.

Report discussing Building America whole house systems research within the broad effort to reduce or eliminate the environmental impact of building and provides specific recommendations for future Building America research based on Building Science Corporations experience with several recent...

Report documenting the process and outcomes involved in achieving the U.S. Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Home (ZERH) program certification standards while helping homebuilders in Climate Zones 5 and 6 in the Upper Midwest achieve ZERH certification.

Preliminary results of two monitored lab homes constructed to represent the thermal characteristics of typical existing Florida homes are presented.

Standard that defines the roles of and minimum requirements for mechanical and natural ventilation systems and the building envelope intended to provide acceptable indoor air quality in low-rise residential buildings. This version of the standard was published in the year 2010, and is available for...

Standard that defines the roles of and minimum requirements for mechanical and natural ventilation systems and the building envelope intended to provide acceptable indoor air quality in low-rise residential buildings. This version of the standard was published in the year 2013, and is available for...

ENERGY STAR overview on certified ventilation fans.

This report describes how twenty homes were tested and monitored in the Zone 2 climate of Houston, Texas, U.S.A., to evaluate the humidity control performance and operating cost of six different integrated dehumidification and ventilation systems that could be applied by production homebuilders.

Information sheet with the Waste Reduction Model (WARM), designed to help solid waste planners and organizations track and voluntarily report greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions from several different waste management practices.

Guide describing details that serve as a visual reference for each of the line items in the Water Management System Builder Checklist.

Specification of criteria for lavatory faucets and faucet accessories under the U.S. EPA WaterSense Program.

Article describing the EPA WaterSense program, process, and benefits.

Web page providing links or specifications for homes to be labeled through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense program.

Fact sheet outlining requirements for WaterSense labeled bathroom sink faucets, detailing their water-efficient features, compliance with flow rate standards, testing, construction, and verification.

Fact sheet describing the requirements for EPA WaterSense certified clothes washers that highlights the integrated water factor, integrated modified energy factor, top-loading vs. front-loading specifications, efficiency code standards, local requirements, faucet types and regulations for building...

Fact sheet describing the requirements for EPA WaterSense certified dishwashers that highlights water cycle specifications, efficiency code standards, water consumption level relation to criteria, the advantages of ENERGY STAR dishwashers, and the regulations for building and verifying a labeled...

Fact sheet describing protocols for detecting, addressing, and preventing water leaks in homes, covering pressure-loss testing, visual inspections, and specific leak tests for fixtures and appliances.