Library

Website providing information about how to keep the properties rat-free and address conditions that can lead to rats.

Technical report describing the Re-Side Right initiative by the New Jersey Institute of Technology's Building America research team that proposes enhancing home efficiency during the re-siding process by incorporating an insulating layer that acts as both an air barrier and water resistive barrier...

Research study about two test homes that are examined with the goal of providing case studies that could be applied to other similar New England homes.

Report describing steps homeowners can take to improve the indoor air quality in their home, including ventilating, preventing pests, and reducing pollutants in the home.

Information sheet designed for the residential construction and remodeling industries, as well as owners and managers working in affordable housing. This sheet presents building guidance for both new construction and rehabilitation, as well as practices that can be used by property maintenance...

Report providing strategies to support occupant behavior changes for enhancing resilience, and to reduce a building's vulnerability to extreme weather, climate change, and loss of power.

Website serving as a national public service campaign designed to educate and empower the American people to prepare for, respond to and mitigate emergencies, including natural and man-made disasters.

A fact sheet providing tips on how to assemble a kit of food, water and other disaster supplies in the event of an emergency.

Article describing key takeaways from two symposia held during Building Innovation 2016: The National Institute of Building Sciences Fourth Annual Conference and Expo, including that resilience can be affordable and cost-effective.

Guide addressing immediate responses for cleaning up after natural disasters, including a list of construction retrofit guidance for natural disasters.

App developed by HUD to assist homeowners with lead paint and other hazards common to older homes.

Fact sheet describing conditions for wildfire, how a home catches fire, how to create a survivable space, the ideal fire resistant home.

Report covering the reconstruction of flood damaged homes.

Report providing recommended designs and guidance for rebuilding homes destroyed by hurricanes in the Gulf Coast.

Information about recycling CFL lightbulbs.

Report describing the REDi™ Rating System, which is a framework for implementing “resilience-based earthquake design,” a holistic “beyond-code” design, planning and assessment approach for achieving earthquake resilience.

Website describing wildfire related research conducted by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety at the IBHS Research Center.

Webpage explaining how to mitigate heat loss through roofs for ice dam prevention.

Guide describing ways builders can block off entry points and otherwise make homes inhospitable to all manner of pests.

Report from FEMA on how to reduce damage from localized flooding including planning, drainage, building codes and retrofits, and regulations.

Guide discussing ways that homeowners in ground-secured houses can reduce the risks and damage caused by floods upon residential buildings.

This study used an advanced airflow, energy and humidity modeling tool to evaluate the potential for residential mechanical pre-scooling strategies to reduce peak electriciy demand.

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

Field manual describing measures to reduce potential hazards and damages caused by and to nonstructural components of a building such as HVAC, appliances, lighting, windows, and furniture during an earthquake.

Report including an overview of the buried duct research and information the retrofit methodology used to install and test the three existing duct systems, including short- and long-term data collection.

An EPA guide describing the causes and impacts of summertime urban heat islands, promoting strategies for lowering temperatures in U.S. communities.

Guidance document describing urban heat islands, what they are, how they form, why we care, and including some strategies to reduce them.

Free Online Training in Reducing Wildfire Risks to People and Property for Home and Business Owners.

Information sheet describing refrigerant line installation and system startup procedures.

When it comes to protecting yourself and your family from foodborne illness, one of your most effective tools is the kitchen refrigerator.

The ENERGY STAR criteria for refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers.

Guide providing information for professional builders and contractors rehabbing flooded single-family houses with emphasis on safe practices and the most important activities in the rehab process.

A user forum discussing ways to reinforce a gable overhand that was framed using the ladder method by Mike Mahan.

Website describing the RELi rating system and leadership standard that takes a holistic approach to resilient design.

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.

Webpage from FEMA describing how to properly reconstruct masonry fireplace chimneys damages by earthquakes.

Fact sheet describing NFIP requirements for repairs, remodeling, and additions, and discussing opportunities for retrofitting in coastal flood hazard areas with recommendations for exceeding the minimum NFIP requirements; also published in FEMA P-499 “Home Builder’s Guide to Coastal Construction...

Report researching cost- effective solution packages for significant energy efficiency and indoor air quality improvements masonry multifamily urban buildings.

Technical bulletin describing National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) requirements for flood openings in foundation walls and walls of enclosures below elevated buildings.

Webpage containing downloadable fact sheets covering carpet-related topics including Indoor Air Quality, Asthma and Allergy, Cleaning Products, and Environmental Sustainability.

Document presenting results from testing prototype HVAC duct system designs that would locate the entire length of duct work within the air and thermal barriers of the building envelope. These include one that incorporated a high-side supply register, one that utilized a single soffit located within...

Report providing information on mechanical air-cleaning devices for ventilation when conventional methods are not warranted.

Document containing some of the basic characteristics for energy performance, durability, thermal comfort, and indoor air quality that should be met in all high performance homes.

Standard covering provisions for electrically operated single- and multiple-station carbon monoxide (CO) alarming devices used in various types of residential occupancies to protect against acute effects of exposure to CO. This version of the standard, originally published in 2017 and revised in...

Report describing information from DOE about rules and standards for residential air conditioners and heat pumps.

Research study identifying the best performing, most energy-efficient and cost- effective techniques to provide controlled mechanical ventilation and humidity control in hot- humid climates with thermally efficient building envelopes.

Presentation providing information about correctly installing ductwork in new and existing homes.

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

Report aimed at gaining a better understanding about benefits, challenges and technologies associated with natural gas feedback systems.

Report identifying efficient, connected, smart, and flexible GEB technologies and their future potential, including barriers and opportunities, recommendations for policymakers, and research needs.