Library

Report providing builders in the hot-dry and mixed-dry climates with guidance for building homes that have whole-house energy savings of 40% over the Building America benchmark with no added overall costs for consumers.

Research study estimating potential energy savings relative to conventional ducted air distribution, and identifying equipment requirements, costs, and barriers.

Report about a project that examines implementation of advanced retrofit measures in the context of a large-scale weatherization program and the archetypal Chicago, Illinois, brick bungalow.

This report outlines research activities that are expected to facilitate the adoption of energy retrofits by remodeling contractors and roofing contractors using retrofit panels which applicable to many existing house designs in most climates and markets.

Brochure intended to provide readers with a working knowledge of residential heating and cooling duct systems.

Brochure with information about ducts in conditioned space.

Information sheet about reservoir claddings.

Information sheet about sealing combustion appliances to ensure good indoor air quality.

Information sheet providing recommendations on the installation of vapor control layers.

Case study about Artistic Homes of Albuquerque, New Mexico, the first home builder in the United States to offer true net zero energy construction to the average home buyer on every home it builds.

Expert meeting focusing on identifying gaps and barriers in combustion safety that need to be addressed by future research, and to develop data-driven technical recommendations for code updates so that a common approach for combustion safety can be adopted by all members of the building energy...

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

Report on a simplified test procedure for combustion safety that is easier to implement and should produce fewer false positives than the previous procedure.

Research report anayzing the results of a large retrofit project, turining an old school into near zero energy consumption apartments in Greenfield MA.

Study describing efforts and outcomes in developing color-pigmented roofing products with coatings to increase solar reflectance.

Report exploring alternative methods to find long-term solutions to energy loss in 1 ½-story homes to save energy, improve comfort, prevent frost buildup on the underside of the roof deck, and reduce the risk of ice dam formation/reformation.

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.

Report describing the evaluation and selection of ventilation systems for homes retrofitted for energy aesthetic and health/safety improvements in Las Vegas.

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.

Case study on exhaust ventilation and corresponding outdoor air intake strategies implemented in high-performance new-construction multifamily buildings.

Research study documenting market-ready energy solutions to improve the efficiency of new affordable housing in the marine climate of Washington State.

Technical report describing the evaluation of four different ventilation strategies for providing make-up air in high-performance, new construction multifamily buildings in the Northeast, emphasizing the challenges posed by increasing airtightness standards and the variability of system performance...

Report describing research that helps inform best practices for air-sealing multifamily buildings in the Northeast.

Report of a field evaluation of four novel roof designs to see how each design would reduce space-conditioned energy use so that the knowledge gained could be applied to the design of new manufactured homes.

Report about field testing that characterizes the uniformity of room-to-room ventilation air distribution under various operating conditions by examining multi-zone tracer gas decay curves and calculating local age-of-air.

Report describing research about a test implementation of an unvented tile roof assembly in a hot-humid climate.

Report to understand the long-term moisture performance of unvented roof assemblies with fibrous insulation.

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...

Research report assessing the moisture and cooling load impacts of airtightness and mechanical ventilation in homes in hot-humid climates.

Research study outlining savings from reducing air infiltration, with and without the addition of mechanical ventilation, using two identical laboratory homes designed to model existing Florida building stock.

Brochure on specifications for PV systems.

Report explaining the issues and concerns with conventional ventilated crawlspaces and to outline prescriptive measures for improvements that will create healthier and more durable spaces.

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

Website providing information on low-energy and standard cooling systems, with a focus on saving energy.

The study described in this white paper is based on building energy modeling with an important focus on the indoor humidity impacts of ventilation.

Fact sheet describing the newly developed Ventilation-Integrated Comfort System (VICS) that reduces space requirements and eliminates costly ductwork for separate heating, cooling, and ventilation systems, all while enhancing performance, addressing the demand for energy-efficient homes, and...

Report targeting the growing number of homes utilizing deep retrofit measures and new construction practices to realize sufficiently lower infiltration levels that require mechanical ventilation as prescribed by ASHRAE Standard 62.2.

Report focusing on managing the driving forces that move air and water vapor across the building envelope.

This Measure Guideline provides design and construction information for a deep energy enclosure retrofit solution of a flat roof assembly.

Report describing the use of passive vents as a source of outdoor air in multifamily buildings.

This document addresses adding—or improving—mechanical ventilation systems to existing homes. The purpose of ventilation is to remove contaminants from homes either directly or by dilution. This report discusses where, when, and how much ventilation is appropriate in a home, including some...

Guide describing proper application, design, and installation of mechanical ventilation cooling systems for homes located in hot-dry and cold-dry climates, as well as a means of understanding the benefits, costs, and tradeoffs of these systems.

Report describing the most cost-effective ventilation and indoor air quality solutions for multifamily homes that meet ASHRAE 62.2-2016.

Report providing extensive guidance on controlling moisture in building envelopes through proper selection and installation on air, water, thermal, and vapor barriers.

Document describing a hygrothermal modeling study, including all of the US climate zones, a range of interior humidity levels and numerous arrangements and types of insulation.

Research study examining the performance of existing multifamily ventilation central systems and explored alternative solutions in retrofit situations.

Information sheet providing guidance about the placement of ventilation approaches.

Report reviewing the design and the first four months of energy performance of a near zero energy project home in Callaway, Florida during the second half of 2008.

Report reviewing the design of a net zero energy home in Gainesville, Florida and then focusing on the first six months of energy performance of the project home during the second half of 2008.

Case study describing the External Thermal and Moisture Management System developed by the NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership for retrofitting roofs with rigid foam over the roof deck, especially on one and a half-story homes.