Library

ENERGY STAR webpage describing the benefits of storm windows and a link to a product list.

Webpage providing an ENERGY STAR climate zone map and criteria for ENERGY STAR storm windows per climate zone.

Report providing information based on research and case studies, to remodelers and consumers about opportunities to increase home energy performance.

Report about the impact on the loads when common safety factors are applied to the load calculation process using two houses that meet the 2009 IECC prescriptive path modeled as the accurate baseline.

Report following the evolution of the construction quality process from its development for new homes to its application construction of a HPH with enhanced specifications, and its application in a crawlspace renovation.

Document explaining the benefits of evaluating and identifying energy efficiency retrofit measures that could be made during renovation and maintenance of multifamily buildings.

Document offering methods to greatly reduce lighting energy use through the application of high quality fluorescent and light emitting diode (LED) technologies.

Report describing the equipment selection of a split system air conditioner and furnace for an example house in Chicago, Illinois, as well as a heat pump system for an example house in Orlando, Florida.

Document targeting retrofit program managers, retrofit contractors, policy makers, academic researchers, and non-governmental organizations that work to realize energy savings from home energy upgrades (HEUs).

Report about proper water heater selection developed to provide step-by-step procedures for evaluating preferred cost-effective options for energy efficient water heater alternatives based on local utility rates, climate, and anticipated loads.

Research study providing a comparison of selected retrofit activity typically done, versus that same retrofit activity approached from an integrated high performance remodeling and quality management perspective.

Report describing findings from research related to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) companies that have made the decision to transition to whole house performance contracting (WHPC).

Information sheet describing correct application of stucco.

Recovery advisory presenting key wind retrofit guidelines for buildings located in hurricane-prone regions. These retrofit guidelines are intended to help building owners and designers prevent or limit wind damage and water infiltration during high-wind events.

Research project evaluating the pre-and post-retrofit energy consumption of a marine climate retrofit, compare actual energy use to original predictions, and identify opportunities for cost savings in other similar retrofits in this climate.

This document covers a description of the need and applied solutions for supplemental dehumidification in warm-humid climates, especially for energy efficient homes where the sensible cooling load has been dramatically reduced.

Research study making several recommendations to whole-home program designers and implementers for improving the cost effectiveness and reach of whole-home programs.

Question and Answer article in Energy Design Update describing the cost and savings benefits of electronically commutated motors (ECMs) for HVAC equipment.

Web page providing information about water use in pools and spas and tips for how to increase water efficiency.

Report providing performance results of a home's heat pump water heater and whole-house dehumidifier over a six-month period.

Information for properly sizing gas lines for use with tankless water heaters and other gas appliances.

Document about laboratory testing of five integrated heat pump water heaters (HPWH).

Document about NREL's repository of residential building characteristics and historical energy use data, used to improve accuracy of residential energy analysis tools.

Standard covering minimum required health and safety diagnostics and specifications for BPI's Building Analyst Professional certification.

The Technician's Guide equips practitioners with the knowledge to properly implement all of the measurement procedures required in the HVAC QI Specification.

Brochure describing insulation approaches for homes with slab-on-grade floors.

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.

Research study exploring retrofit procedures and simulated post-occupancy data for three homes in an effort to determine the effectiveness of retrofit packages.

Report using data from various sources to characterize the impact on human health and property damage from indoor environmental quality and other hazards.

Webpage describing the standards, seminars, exams, etc regarding testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB).

Article describing a research study exploring how effective interior insulation systems are at keeping basements dry and warm.

Article outlining the importance of keeping dryer exhaust ducts clean.

A field guide with residential construction best practices.

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.

Report providing a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis inherent to different models as a way of thinking about the transition from traditional business models into a viable model for delivering deep energy retrofits.

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).

Report developed for Habitat for Humanity about lessons learned from demonstration retrofit projects undertaken by Habitat for Humanity affiliates in New York, Maryland, and Pennsylvania; with building systems consulting and technical assistance provided by Steven Winter Associates.

Fact sheet poster describing a DOE tool that walks homeowners through a series of simple questions to produce a list of retrofit recommendations to improve the energy efficiency, indoor air quality, and durability of the homeowners’ home, while also lowering their carbon footprint.

Research study identifying barriers, industry status, critical obstacles to documenting added value from energy efficiency improvements, current opportunities to support reporting about energy efficiency, and next steps toward enabling energy efficiency financing market transformation.

Even as the worst housing market correction in more than 60 years appeared to turn a corner in 2009, the fallout from sharply lower home prices and high unemployment continued.

Article about installing balanced ventilation systems.

Article describing thermal bridging, construction practices that encourage thermal bridging, and solving thermal bridging through continuous exterior insulation.

Document providing an overview of the Thermal Bypass Checklist for the ENERGY STAR Qualified Homes program.

Report proposing a procedure for estimating the whole opaque wall R-value (whole-wall R-value), independent of system type and construction materials.

Article on thermal protectors in recessed light fixtures.

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...

Research study describing a detailed 3D computational fluid dynamics model that evaluates the thermal performance of uninsulated wall assemblies.

Brochure describing HVAC filter options for efficiency and IAQ.