Library

Federal statistics about national energy consumption in residential homes.

Technical report describing the SPS (Structural Panel System), an innovative implementation of the "perfect wall" concept, situating environmental control layers on the exterior side of structural components for improved constructability, cost-effectiveness, and performance, validated through the...

Article by the Canadian Government on attic ventilation and considerations for moisture and ice dams.

Report covering interior energy retrofits of masonry buildings.

Document focusing on the design and wall components that contribute to a pressure equalized rain screen wall, including the frequency of the weep holes and other brick masonry rain screen wall requirements.

Web based tool providing decision-making guidance for selecting wall assembly components.

Article describing the principle of capillarity in construction materials.

Report assessing the science of climate change with a focus on the U.S.

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.

Technical report detailing a study in which actual cooling loads are compared to modeled cooling loads.

Guidance from Zero Energy Project on construction techniques for warmer climates, such as home orientation, and insulation requirements.

Article about how mortar droppings during the installation of a brick veneer can clog the weep holes in the wall assembly causing moisture damage. The article also illustrates products that can be installed in the ventilated cavity to mitigate this problem.

Report covering exterior energy retrofits of masonry buildings.

Website helping communities address coastal issues with data, tools, and training resources.

Report that demonstrates the durability, constructability, and cost-effectiveness of the extended plate and beam (EP&B) wall system for new construction housing projects in compliance with the International Energy Conservation Code, addressing moisture risk management and high-performance envelope...

Study characterizing how foundation heat exchangers (FHXs) used in residential ground source heat pump systems represent a potential cost savings due to their lesser first cost over other types of heat exchangers.

Article describing five fundamental changes to building construction from the last 50 years and their modern construction consequences.

Calculator determining the appropriate design pressures for steep-slope roof coverings for roofers and evlauators.

Report analyzing the effect of global climate change on national interests, and providing climate predictions.

Website with prepopulated information about the United States renewable resources.

A starting point for ballparking and comparing the cost of different siding materials and a brief overview of the pros and cons of different siding materials.

Report sumarizing results of an ICF investigation of side-by-side houses in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Article describing how omission of two small but critical wall details, a kick-out flashing and a weep screed, lead to extensive water damage to a wall.

Guide detailing best practices on how to build wall assemblies with absorptive claddings such as brick, stone that drain and dry well.

Article describing walls and moisture development on them.

Webpage featuring hundreds of illustrations of masonry construction details for brick, congrete, stone, tile, stucco, etc.

Siding installation guide for Ply Gem Siding Group products.

Article describing how moisture accumulates inside of structures and issues that result.

Website providing guidance about mold and moisture for homes, schools, multifamily and commercial buildings.

Online course providing an overview of mold prevention and mold remediation.

Article describing mulch requirements and benefits.

A website issuing watches, warnings, forecasts, and analyses of hazardous tropical weather and increasing the understanding of hazards.

The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane's sustained wind speed.

Building science insight into crawlspaces.

The Enhanced F-scale is a set of wind estimates (not measurements) based on damage which uses three-second gusts estimated at the point of damage based on a judgment of 8 levels of damage to the 28 indicators listed.

Paper examining the monitored performance of four newly constructed near zero energy homes in Florida.

Fact sheet from Wisconsin Focus on Energy explaining how to prevent future ice dams on homes by learning about their formation and mitigation of contributing factors.

List of recommendations from IBHS on how to protect homes from ice dam formation.

An example of a form a building codes department created to ensure builders are fully aware and have taken steps to provide drainage so that water doesn’t accumulate behind siding. This example is from the city of Newberg, Oregon.

A report presenting alternative approaches for reducing the costs of roof-mounted, grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) systems.

Article describing moisture and ice dam issues in attics and how to air seal the attic floor.

Fact sheet describing methods for flashing and air-sealing windows and doors.

Report from FEMA describing techniques for floodproofing structures.

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

Standard describing a simple, relatively cost-effective approach to evaluating the ability of a variety of materials to support microbial growth using a small chamber method. A preview of the standard is available at the link, with the full version available for purchase.

Specification describing criteria for manufactured polymeric materials used to provide a rainscreen function, a means for the drainage of liquid moisture and the ventilation of vapor moisture that enters an above-grade exterior wall assembly which was published in the year 2019, and is available for...

A website providing timely and accurate forecasts and watches for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes over the contiguous United States.

Fact sheet describing water management in a residential building.