Library

Standard document establishing construction standards for one- and two-family dwellings constructed in high wind regions.

This Standard provides a consistent, uniform methodology for evaluating the airtightness of building envelopes and heating and cooling air ducts and the air flows of mechanical ventilation systems.

Standard describing methods for testing the airtightness of buildings and HVAC equipment.

Test method that measures the capture efficiency of wall-mounted domestic range hoods under controlled conditions in a test chambers which available for preview and purchase at the link and was published in the year 2018.

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

Report recommending strategies and approaches that the Federal government and other stakeholders may take to encourage and aid States and local communities in the adoption of the most current building codes.

Article describing three ways to strengthen the roof-to-wall connections in an existing home.

Article defining structural design loads and ways to calculate them, including dead loads, live loads, soil lateral loads, wind loads, snow loads, earthquake loads, and other loads.

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.

Article describing suggested food supplies, sanitation, safety, and cooking for during and after an emergency.

Presentation on sustainable development including water conservation, passive solar, daylighting, natural ventilation, and land use.

Presentation by the Washington University in St. Louis Office of Sustainability on saving energy.

A guide for homeowners on determining the risks from tornadoes and hurricanes and selecting a safe room type and location, as well as providing detailed plans for safe room construction.

Report presenting safe room designs and showing the homeowner and builder/contractor or local design professional how to construct a safe room for a home or small business.

Presentation on urban land use and sustainable building design.

Fact sheet providing the wind resistant provisions of the 2015 International Residential Code.

Presentation describing how to make a Corsi-Rosenthal Box for air cleaning.

Projectile missile testing of various wall panel configuration to understand how the different wall constructions would perform when struck with wind driven debris from a hurricane.

Article describing a field study that test ventilation performance in nine homes and found current ventilation was inadequate to remove PM2.5 and CO2 levels; however, a directly exhausting range hood can reduce peak PM2.5 concentrations by 75% or more.

Report illustrating CAD drawings and modeling of bracing layouts for a gable roof truss.

Report descrbing an early study pointing to the significant improvement, >50%, of a hip roof in reducing peak wind-induced pressures.

Manuals describing design, materials, and installation techniques applicable to almost all types of roof systems; four-volume set includes Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems, Membrane Roof Systems, Architectural Metal Flashing and Condensation and Air Leakage Control, and Steep-Slope Roof Systems.

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).

A book describing seismic retrofits to help contractors and engineers understand how to properly retrofit a home in a cost-effective manner.

Article about installing balanced ventilation systems.

Guide describing details that serve as a visual reference for each of the line items in the Thermal Enclosure System Rater Checklist.

Website providing consumer tips for using natural gas safely in the home, including guidance on cooking, fireplaces, ventilation, pilot lights, piping, etc.

Website providing guidance for people to find and use tools, information, and subject matter expertise to build climate resilience.

Information sheet providing definitions, applications, and techniques for applying air barriers.

BSD-102 report providing guidance about whether to construct a vented or unvented attic based on hygro-thermal zone.

Article describing the impact of increasingly stringent ventilation standards on multifamily buildings, highlighting the inefficiencies and challenges of exhaust-only ventilation in tightly sealed enclosures, the complications of achieving balanced ventilation, and the unintended consequences of...

This study uses a computer simulation approach to examine the energy and indoor air quality implications of passive and hybrid ventilation systems.

Article describing how adhesives can be used to make homes in high-wind locations stronger and how adhesives could be too effective resulting in overloading foundation anchors under earthquake loads.

Document presenting analysis results, focusing on relative humidity (RH) excursions, which are defined as unique events of indoor RH above a threshold.

Preliminary results of two monitored lab homes constructed to represent the thermal characteristics of typical existing Florida homes are presented.

Building science report describing issues with vented attics in hot-humid climates and how sealed attic construction may be a solution.

A review on the knowledge about ventilated wall claddings from field performance and hydrothermal modeling.

Report describing the formation of icicles and ice dams along poorly ventilated roofs and how to mitigate ventilation issues with insulation and vents.

Information sheet about proper ventilation and air sealing.

Standard that defines the roles of and minimum requirements for mechanical and natural ventilation systems and the building envelope intended to provide acceptable indoor air quality in low-rise residential buildings. This version of the standard was published in the year 2010, and is available for...

Standard that defines the roles of and minimum requirements for mechanical and natural ventilation systems and the building envelope intended to provide acceptable indoor air quality in low-rise residential buildings. This version of the standard was published in the year 2013, and is available for...

This report examines indoor air quality in post-2013 homes across various climates, focusing on contaminant levels, ventilation equipment usage, and control measure impact, with regional data from Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

ENERGY STAR overview on certified ventilation fans.

Standard that provides procedures and methods for meeting minimum ventilation and indoor air quality requirements to engineers, design professionals, owners, and jurisdictional authorities where model codes have been adopted. This is the current version of the standard, which was published in the...

Report describing the use of attic ventilation to control moisture in cathedral roofs and avoid the formation of ice dams.

Website describing proper methods for installing vinyl siding on homes.

Document describing wall bracing techniques and suggestions for the city of Verona, WI building department.

A guide describing how to do wall bracing calculations and evaluations.

Report describing a field study of 31 homes to test envelope and duct leakage and fan flowrates, and to determine ventilation operation characteristics.

Web page providing statistics on weather related fatalities and injuries.