Library | Building America Solution Center

Showing 1 - 50 of 89 results:

2011 EnergyValue Housing Award Report

2012

Del Bianco Marie,

Sagan D,

Wood Amber

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

National Association of Home Builders Research Center,

NAHBRC,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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

A Business Case for Home Performance Contracting

2012

Baechler Michael C,

et al.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,

PNNL

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.

A Realistic Hot Water Draw Specification for Rating Solar Water Heaters

2012

Burch Jay,

Thornton Jeff

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

Thermal Energy System Specialists,

TESS

Document outlining the current and the proposed draws and estimates typical ratings changes from draw specification changes for typical systems in four cities.

Advanced Water Heating Specification

2022

Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance

NEEA

Specifications for water heating systems designed to advance higher performing electric and gas heat pump water heaters.

Analysis of Illinois Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Measure Packages

2013

Baker Julie D,

Brand Larry,

Yee Shannon

Partnership for Advanced Residential Retrofit,

PARR,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,

MEEA

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.

Are Your Multi-Family Buildings Accessible?

2009

Stratton Petter A

Steven Winter Associates,

SWA

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.

Assessing the Energy Savings of Tankless Water Heater Retrofits in Public Housing

2013

Dwiantoro Deny,

Walters R,

Ries R

Building Energy Efficient Homes for America,

BEEHA,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Report describing methodology, analysis, and findings from a case study of a 110-unit retrofit of gas tankless water heaters in a hot/humid climate in Alachua County, Florida.

Assessment of the U.S. Department of Energy's Home Energy Scoring Tool

2012

Roberts David,

et al.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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.

Bay Ridge Gardens - Mixed Humid Affordable Multifamily Housing Deep Energy Retrofit

2013

Lyons James,

Moore Mike,

Thompson Margo

Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,

BA-PIRC,

Newport Ventures,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Report summarizing commissioning, short-term testing, utility bill data analysis, and results of on-site monitoring of a deep energy retrofit.

Best Practices Solar Case Study: John Wesley Miller Companies, Armory Park del Sol Tucson Arizona

2009

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

Case study describing solar thermal and photovoltaic systems in new construction.

Builders Challenge Guide to 40% Whole-House Energy Savings in the Hot-Dry and Mixed-Dry Climates Solar Case Study Grupe: Carsten Crossings, Rocklin California

2009

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

Case study describing solar thermal and photovoltaic systems in new construction.

Builders Challenge Quality Criteria Support Document

2010

Baechler Michael C,

et al.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,

PNNL,

Oak Ridge National Laboratory,

ORNL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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

Building America Best Practices Series: Solar Case Study: Pulte Homes, Civano Tucson AZ

2007

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

Case study describing solar thermal and photovoltaic systems in new construction.

Building America Guidance for Identifying and Overcoming Code, Standard, and Rating Method Barriers

2013

Cole Pam C,

Halverson Mark A

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,

PNNL

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.

Building America Program

2021

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

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.

Building Science Corporation (BSC) Building America Quality Control Checklist, GM-0802

2008

Building Science Corporation

BSC

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.

Building Science Education: Heat Pump Water Heater Training Module

2024

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

Training module describing the operation, efficiency, consumer and seller benefits, and cost comparison of Heat Pump Water Heaters (HPWH) against conventional gas, oil, or electric water heaters.

Central Heat Pump Water Heater Design Guide

2023

Ecotope

Energy Trust of Oregon

Design guide providing solutions and tools for designing central heat pump water heater systems in multifamily and other commercial buildings.

Climate-Specific Passive Building Standards

2015

Wright Graham S,

Klingenberg Katrin

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Report on improving passive design adoption rates.

Combined Space and Water Heating: Next Steps to Improved Performance

2016

Bohac Dave,

Schoenbauer Ben,

Huelman Patrick H

University of Minnesota,

UMN,

NothernSTAR,

NSTAR,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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

Comfort, Indoor Air Quality, and Energy Consumption in Low Energy Homes

2013

Tiefenbeck Verena,

Roth Kurt,

Engelmann P

Fraunhofer CSE,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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

Commissioning of the Fresno, California, Retrofit Unoccupied Test House

2013

Stecher Dave,

Imm C

Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,

IBACOS,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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

Comparison of Advanced Residential Water Heating Technologies in the United States

2013

Fang Xia,

Maguire Jeff,

Wilson Eric

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Research report providing a comparison of the most common residential water heating technologies to determine energy-efficient and cost-effective water heating technologies are when subjected to a variety of typical operating conditions.

Comparison of the ENERGYGAUGE USA and BEopt Building Energy Simulation Programs

2009

Parker Danny S,

Cummings Jamie E

Florida Solar Energy Center,

FSEC,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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.

Condensing Hybrid Water Heater Monitoring Field Evaluation

2011

Maguire Jeff,

et al.

Mountain Energy Partnership,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

Report about a hybrid condensing water heater (thermal efficiency = 0.973, energy factor = 0.95) installed in an occupied home in Sacramento, California, and monitored for one year to determine the actual in situ efficiency.

Cost, Design, and Performance of Solar Hot Water in Cold-Climate Homes

2006

Aldrich Robb,

Vijayakumar Gayathri

Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,

CARB,

Steven Winter Associates,

SWA

Report describing the monitored long-term performance of two solar domestic water heating systems in northern climates.

Deep Energy Retrofits - Lessons learned

2015

Less Brennan,

Walker Iain S

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

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.

Evaluation of Unitary Heat Pump Water Heaters with Load-Shifting Controls in a Shared Multifamily Configuration

2022

Hoeschele Marc,

Haile James,

Grant Peter

Pacific Gas and Electric Company,

PG&E,

Energy Transition Coordinating Council,

ETCC

Report describing the performance, cost, and carbon impacts of unitary heat pump water heaters with load-shifting controls in a shared configuration for a multi-family project, highlighting significant savings in energy usage, CO2 emissions, and utility costs.

Example Procedures for Developing Acceptance-Range Criteria for BESTEST-EX

2010

Judkoff Ron,

et al.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

J. Neymark & Associates

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

Expert Meeting Report: Exploring the Disconnect Between Rated and Field Performance of Water Heating Systems

2013

Hoeschele Marc,

Weitzel Elizabeth

Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,

ARBI,

Davis Energy Group,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

The main objective of this expert meeting was to bring together a group of experts intimately involved with issues related to assessing the performance of residential high efficiency water heating systems.

Expert Meeting Report: Recommendations for Applying Water Heaters in Combination Space and Domestic Water Heating Systems

2012

Rudd Armin,

et al.

Building Science Corporation,

BSC,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Expert meeting describing meeting details for recommendations for applying water heaters in combination space and domestic water heating systems.

Field Assessment of Energy Audit Tools for Retrofit Programs

2013

Bohac Dave,

et al.

NorthernSTAR,

University of Minnesota,

UMN

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

General Solar Thermal Specification

2009

Aldrich Robb

Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,

CARB,

Steven Winter Associates,

SWA

Brochure on specifications for solar thermal systems.

Greenbelt Homes Pilot Energy Efficiency Programs Phase 1 Summary: Existing Conditions and Baseline Energy Use

2013

Wiehagen Joseph,

Del Bianco Marie,

Wood Amber

NAHB Research Center,

Home Innovation Research Labs,

HIRL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

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.

Heat Pump Water Heater Guide - Best Practices and Technical Considerations for Single-Family New Construction

2024

ENERGY STAR,

U.S. Department of Energy,

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

DOE,

EPA

Informational guide describing the design, installation, and maintenance best practices and technical considerations for integrated Heat Pump Water Heaters in single-family and multifamily new construction.

Heat Pump Water Heater Model Validation Study

2015

Ecotope,

Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance

Ecotope,

NEEA

Report describing the significant potential for energy use reductions through heat pump water heaters, which have been a crucial part of Northwest power plans for decades and have recently achieved substantial savings with new integrated models and climate specifications.

High Performance Builder Spotlight: NextGen Home, Las Vegas, Nevada

2009

U.S. Department of Energy

DOE

Case study of new home construction in the hot-dry and mixed-dry climate zones.

High-Performance Home Technologies: Solar Thermal & Photovoltaic Systems, Volume 6 Building America Best Practices Series

2007

Baechler Michael C,

et al.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,

PNNL,

Oak Ridge National Laboratory,

ORNL

Best Practices document providing an introduction to current photovoltaic and solar thermal building practices.

Hot Water Distribution System Model Enhancements

2012

Hoeschele Marc,

Weitzel Elizabeth

Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,

ARBI,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

Davis Energy Group

Report on a project that enhanced the HWSIM distribution system model to more accurately model pipe heat transfer.

Housing Stock Characterization Study: An Innovative Approach to Measuring Retrofit Impact

2012

Kipp Jennison M,

Taylor Nicholas W,

Jones Pierce H

Building Energy Efficient Housing for America,

BEEHA,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

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.

Impact of Pilot Light Modeling on the Predicted Annual Performance of Residential Gas Water Heaters

2013

Maguire Jeff,

Burch Jay

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

Journal article presenting modeling of residential gas water heaters via dynamic simulation models to determine the effect of the pilot light on their annual energy consumption.

Implementing a Zero Energy Ready Home Multifamily Project

2015

Springer David,

German Alea

Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,

ARBI,

Davis Energy Group

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

Interaction between Heat Pump Water Heaters or Other Internal Point Source Loads and a Central Heating System

2017

Widder Sarah H,

et al.

Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,

NEEA,

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,

PNNL

Report describing the objective evaluation of space conditioning interactions between heat pump water heaters and home heating systems during winter 2016-2017, revealing a smaller than anticipated impact on space conditioning loads.

Laboratory Evaluation of Gas-Fired Tankless and Storage Water Heater Approaches to Combination Water and Space Heating

2013

Kingston T,

Scott S

Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,

BA-PIRC,

Gas Technology Institute,

GTI Energy

Report summarizing results of testing emerging combo water heating technologies under controlled laboratory operations, that differentiate the performance of the various packaged equipment configurations being offered.

Low-Cost Solar Water Heating Research and Development Roadmap

2012

Hudon Kate,

et al.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

Report identifying the target market for solar water heaters and potential pathways and cost/performance targets that must be met for these systems to realize large energy savings.

Measure Guideline: Combination Forced-Air Space and Tankless Domestic Hot Water Heating Systems

2012

Rudd Armin

Building Science Corporation,

BSC,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL

Document pertaining to design and application guidance for combination space and tankless domestic hot water heating systems used in residential buildings, based on field evaluation, testing, and industry meetings.

Measure Guideline: Combined Space and Water Heating Installation and Optimization

2017

Bohac Dave,

Schoenbauer Ben,

Huelman Patrick H

NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership,

NorthernSTAR,

University of Minnesota,

UMN

Report describing the installation and operation of forced-air heating and domestic hot water combi systems in residential homes.

Measure Guideline: Transitioning to a Tankless Water Heater

2012

Brozyna Kevin,

Rapport Ari

Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,

IBACOS,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory,

NREL,

U.S. Department of Energy,

DOE

Document developed to help residential builders and retrofitters transition from tank-type water heaters to tankless water heaters.

Multifamily Heat Pump Water Heater Evaluation

2017

Alliance for Residential Building Innovation,

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

ARBI,

NREL

Study in which a central heat pump water heater system was monitored in detail and used to create a model for assessing similar systems in various climates.

National Green Building Standard Analysis

2012

National Association of Home Builders Research Center,

U.S. Department of Energy

NAHB Research Center,

DOE

Report detailing the proposed point structure for the prescriptive approach of the energy efficiency chapter of the NGBS update.