Library

Report assessing the energy performance of the 2011 EVHA winners and to align the EVHA program with the BA program.

Report discussing opportunities and trends in the U.S. home performance contracting industry, along with market drivers such as consumer demand; federal, state, and local programs; and utility and non-governmental programs.

Report about two test home evaluations that provided valuable data about the true in-field performance of various building mechanical systems and LAMELs.

Report that collected field data from a whole-home program in Illinois are utilized to compare marketplace-installed measures to the energy saving optimal packages previously developed for 15 housing types.

Report about a building project in the marine climate.

Document highlighting federal accessibility laws which may apply to a housing development, and common mistakes made in the field which, if avoided, will help to ensure compliance.

Report assessing the accuracy of HEST as it was being developed and to provide information useful to DOE program managers and HEST development team at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Information sheet offering general recommendations on supplemental humidity control and outlines viable system configurations.

Report describing the recommended best practices to achieve energy savings without compromising health or safety.

Document providing guidance to U.S. home builders who want to accept the challenge.

Guidance document providing BA research teams and partners with specific information and approaches to identifying and overcoming potential barriers to Building America (BA) innovations arising in and/or stemming from codes, standards, and rating methods.

A website providing information on the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America Solution Center, a source for innovations in residential building energy performance, energy efficiency, quality, affordability and comfort for more than 20 years.

Document describing the Building America research benchmark for the residential building program.

Web report explaining how correct filter sizing is an issue that applies to all new and existing homes that use ducted HVAC systems.

Document with the Quality Control Checklist developed as both a guide to assist in the transition to high performance home building, and as a simplified tool to be used as part of any builder's on-site quality control procedures.

Report describing ventilation system design, including a central fan integrated supply (CFIS) system, made up of a 6-inch outdoor air intake duct connected to the return side of the air handler with a fan cycling control to make sure the fan runs a programmed minimum amount of time.

Report on improving passive design adoption rates.

Report describing combined space- and water-heating (combi) systems using a high-efficiency direct-vent burner.

Report documenting the results of an in-depth evaluation of thermal comfort for two potential net zero-energy homes (NZEHs) in Massachusetts.

Report about instrumentation and limited short-term testing completed on a retrofit unoccupied test house in Fresno, California.

Report on heating and cooling air-distribution ducts that are insulated, installed close to the ceiling in a vented attic and covered with attic insulation to minimize energy loss.

Two hourly energy simulation software, BEopt and Energy Gauge USA, were compared to ensure accuracy and evaluate agreement on the impact of various energy efficiency improvements.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Lessons Learned chapter focuses on successful deep energy retrofit projects throughout the U.S.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Source Energy and Carbon Decisions chapter helps users carefully assess the impacts of switching from gas to electricity for heating end-uses, using source energy and/or carbon emissions...

Report examining the use of smart thermostat data to detect performance degradation and optimize comfort control in home AC systems.

Research report with results from field tests in two homes in Austin, Texas, from October 2011 to June 2012 to evaluate the comfort performance of ductless mini-split heat pumps

Report demonstrating how the initiative achieves Building America (BA) goals of 30%-50% energy savings in multifamily dwellings in the hot-humid climate zone.

Report investigating performance and energy savings potential of heat pump water heaters.

Report using pre- and post-system upgrade data to analyze the energy savings associated with Iowa's HVAC SAVE program for space heating.

This report evaluates the performance of variable-capacity comfort systems, with a focus on inverter-driven, variable-capacity systems, as well as proposed system enhancements.

Document reviewing four cold-climate northern Illinois energy efficiency retrofit programs to identify practices, tools, and approaches to streamline and reduce costs of comprehensive retrofits, and to improve the consistency of audit and retrofit delivery practices across different programs.

Document providing an example procedure for establishing acceptance-range criteria to assess results from software undergoing BESTEST-EX.

Expert meeting identifying installation practices that provide the best installed efficiency for residential gas furnaces, explain how AFUE and field efficiency can differ, and investigate the impact of installation practices on the efficiency and long-term durability of the furnace.

Expert meeting held to discuss simplified space conditioning systems in low load homes, including the relationship between advanced thermal enclosures, space conditioning systems and comfort.

Expert meeting held to review and discuss results and future plans for research to improve the performance of hydronic heating systems using condensing boilers and baseboard convectors.

Report describing a project focused on the use of home energy ratings as a tool to promote energy retrofits in existing homes.

Information sheet with an analysis of mini split heat pump systems.

Report on field monitoring of inverter-driven ASHPs in cold-climate homes.

Technical report on a field validation study that utilizes low-cost indoor air quality sensors to assess a smart ventilation system's effectiveness in maintaining acceptable indoor humidity in low-load homes in humid environments, revealing that while the smart ventilation algorithm demonstrated...

Report detailing field walk-through evaluations, energy simulations for projected savings with exterior insulation upgrades, building envelope energy improvement cost estimates, and installation and maintenance of monitoring equipment and data.

Report presenting a cold climate project examining and alternative approach to ground source heat pump ground loop design.

Report describing the various heat pump retrofit options for multifamily buildings in the U.S., segmented by building typology and heating system, to support better environmental, economic, and health outcomes.

Presentation about heat pump water heater modeling using EnergyPlus.

Website for consumers describing heat pump water heater technology and linking to retailers and installers.

Report detailing an evaluation of Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) residential energy efficiency demand side management (DSM) programs to assess their impacts and relative measures of energy and economic performance.

Report providing the results of an analysis of humidity control and variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system efficiency in three new multifamily buildings in New York, NY.

Report providing information about energy-efficient heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) equipment options to help homeowners cut their energy use, reduce their carbon footprint, and increase their homes comfort, health, and safety.

Report evaluating the relative effectiveness of various control and distribution strategies to improve hydronic space heating performance in existing low-rise multifamily buildings

Report on on lessons learned from building one multifamily home to the Zero Energy Ready Home program requirements.

Report presenting improved air conditioner (AC) and heat pump (HP) modeling methods in the context of whole-building simulation tools.