Library

A guide for homeowners on determining the risks from tornadoes and hurricanes and selecting a safe room type and location, as well as providing detailed plans for safe room construction.

Report presenting safe room designs and showing the homeowner and builder/contractor or local design professional how to construct a safe room for a home or small business.

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.

This guide and workbook offers practitioners with the knowledge to properly implement the measurement and documentation procedures required in the ANSI/ACCA 5.

Report providing a selected compilation of seismic rehabilitation techniques and guidance on which techniques are commonly used to mitigate specific seismic deficiencies in various model building types.

Brochure with information about how to select and install house wrap and other weather-resistive barriers.

This TechNote provides an overview of building code requirements and best practices for flashing at window and door frames.

A story about bees building a hive in the drainage plane behind the brick veneer siding. The bees entered the wall through unprotected drainage holes.

Article describing identification of termite infestations in homes and treatment options.

An introduction to the insect termites.

Fact sheet providing the wind resistant provisions of the 2015 International Residential Code.

Study on the effects of wind, radiation, and pressure on apparent temperature.

Article describing a DIY air cleaning system for filtering smoke and viruses.

Projectile missile testing of various wall panel configuration to understand how the different wall constructions would perform when struck with wind driven debris from a hurricane.

Article from Texas A&M University and the University of Maryland analyzing why and how urban flooding happens and what can be done to mitigate damage.

Study comparing the thermal performance of phase change materials to concrete construction during heat waves.

Document describing the impacts of tree cover on property values.

Fact sheet describing building codes, seismic codes, and code enforcement.

Report illustrating CAD drawings and modeling of bracing layouts for a gable roof truss.

Article from Green Building Advisor on the importance of window selection in hot climates, with an emphasis on window glazing.

Report descrbing an early study pointing to the significant improvement, >50%, of a hip roof in reducing peak wind-induced pressures.

Standard providing industry-backed information for assessing new and existing HVAC systems, evaluating and verifying the cleanliness of HVAC system components, preventing job related hazards and guiding the cleaning and restoration of HVAC systems to a specific level of cleanliness.

Manuals describing design, materials, and installation techniques applicable to almost all types of roof systems; four-volume set includes Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems, Membrane Roof Systems, Architectural Metal Flashing and Condensation and Air Leakage Control, and Steep-Slope Roof Systems.

Paper that illustrates a performance check between the thermal performance of a Massive Insulating Concrete Form (ICF) wall system mocked up and Whole Building Performance criteria such as total space heating and cooling loads (thermal comfort).

A book describing seismic retrofits to help contractors and engineers understand how to properly retrofit a home in a cost-effective manner.

Report describing seismic retrofit of historical buildings.

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

Article about installing balanced ventilation systems.

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

Standard 55 specifies conditions for acceptable thermal environments and is intended for use in design, operation, and commissioning of buildings and other occupied spaces; is the current version of the standard, which was published in the year 2021, and is available for preview and purchase at the...

Webpage providing guidance on the use of thermal mass with passive heating and cooling strategies.

Technical research paper explaining how thermal mass influences heating and cooling energy needs.

Design guide providing technical information regarding building with thermal mass.

Article detailing a case study in which thermal mass was used as part of an overall Net Zero solution for a university building.

Conference paper describing a proof of concept trial that demonstrated that external roller blinds can reduce heating loads in a room by 20%.

Guide from Energy Star on smart thermostats and offering some guidance for choosing one.

This report describes the results of a multiyear research project that investigated the energy savings attributable to thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs) installed on one-pipe steam distribution systems.

Report on a project conducted to better understand the current usage of thermostatic radiator valves by key market players in steam and hot water heating and to conduct limited experiments on the effectiveness of new and old thermostatic radiator valves as a means of controlling space temperatures...

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

Factsheet providing design guidance for engineers describing how to characterize snow drifts on roofs in three dimensions rather than two, as anticipated in the 2022 edition of the standards, ASCE 7 - Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures.

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

Website providing consumer tips for using natural gas safely in the home, including guidance on cooking, fireplaces, ventilation, pilot lights, piping, etc.

Webpage describing methods to save energy at home, including turning down your water heater set point, scheduling your HVAC system, adding or fixing weatherstripping, and changing HVAC system filters, among other tips.

Webpage with data on the 20 largest wildfires in California that occurred between the year 1932 and present day.

Brochure describing HVAC filter options for efficiency and IAQ.

Report presenting information that aids qualified architects and engineers in the identification of the best available refuge areas in existing buildings for sheltering in place during a tornado.

Online course describing the behavior of wildfires for firefighters.

Information sheet describing transfer ducts and grilles for HVAC.

Report about partnership to build three communities of net zero houses.