Library

Fact sheet describing the importance of proper roof and deck flashing, and typical and enhanced flashing techniques for coastal homes; also published in FEMA P-499 “Home Builder’s Guide to Coastal Construction: Technical Fact Sheet Series.”

Guidance from HUD on how to restore homes following natural disasters in Puerto Rico.

Guidance from HUD on how to restore homes following natural disasters in Puerto Rico.

Report from FEMA describing techniques for floodproofing structures.

Report describing construction of test homes in Atlanta, GA meeting Building America savings targets and serving as a basis of design for other homes Martin Dodson plans to build within the Serenbe community.

Report summarizing commissioning, short-term testing, and analysis that occurred before, during, and just after the actual retrofit of the Bay Ridge project.

Report evaluating the renovation of a 5,800-ft2, multiuse facility located in St. Petersburg, on the west coast of central Florida, in the hot-humid climate.

Study conducted to help determine cost-effective solutions for heating and cooling houses that are designed to be energy efficient.

Website providing information about INSULSPAN structurally insulated panels.

Fact sheet describing building envelope performance measures applicable to residential and small commercial construction.

Paper describing the development and testing of an affordable net-zero energy house in Lenoir City, Tennessee.

Fact sheet outlining the research behind how smart ventilation controls boost energy efficiency and indoor air quality, including research findings from seasonal temperature, timer, and real-time weather-based controls showing that all three systems showed potential for energy savings while...

California Energy Commission report presenting the concept of cool walls and providing guidelines for their building- and climate-appropriate use to conserve energy and reduce emissions.

Research study presenting a unique opportunity to both identify and evaluate deep retrofit measures that are practical and potentially cost effective for the retrofit market, as well as review the cost effectiveness of the Passive House design approach for achieving energy savings in deep retrofits.

Job Process sheet for the manufactured housing industry showing how to split and notch insulation batts to fit around electrical boxes and wiring in a factory production environment.

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; published in the year 2019, and is available for preview and purchase at the...

Standard that describes the minimum requirements for residential buildings to achieve acceptable indoor air quality via dwelling-unit ventilation, local mechanical exhaust, and source control. This version of the standard was published in the year 2022, and is available for preview and purchase at...

Guide describing the installation of windows in walls that have foam plastic insulating; guide provides several methods for attaching, supporting, and flashing windows in walls with rigid foam sheathing. (Note: The link only goes to the table of contents for the guide, the full guide can be...

Standard that covers the minimum performance and acceptance criteria for an air barrier (AB) material or system for framed walls of low-rise buildings with the service life of the building wall in mind. This link directs to a preview of the current version of the standard, published in the year 2019...

Standard that covers the minimum performance and acceptance criteria for an air barrier (AB) material or system for framed walls of low-rise buildings with the service life of the building wall in mind. This link directs to a preview of the version of the standard that was published in the year 2011...

Specification covering the standard requirements for application of full thickness Portland cement-based plaster for exterior (stucco) and interior work. This standard was produced in the year 2022, and is available for preview and purchase at the reference link. There are also other versions of...

Specification covering the standard requirements for application of full thickness Portland cement-based plaster for exterior (stucco) and interior work. This standard was produced in the year 2023, and is available for preview and purchase at the reference link. There are also other versions of...

A specification covering the application of Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) that act as permanent formwork for cast-in-place reinforced concrete beams & walls which was published in the year 2022 and is available for preview and purchase at the reference link.

Specification describing criteria for manufactured polymeric materials used to provide a rainscreen function, a means for the drainage of liquid moisture and the ventilation of vapor moisture that enters an above-grade exterior wall assembly which was published in the year 2019, and is available for...

Document identifying differences between the requirements for construction documents for high performance housing and the documents that are typically produced for conventional housing.

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.

Report intending to provide useful information as the DOE/BA develops and implements comprehensive communications and outreach strategies for demonstration homes.

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

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).

Document serving as a starting point that features initial tools and resources for teams to start collaborating to continually improve the energy efficiency and durability of new houses.

Report covering coating and back venting wood based claddings and trim.

Conference paper describing testing of the performance of fasteners used to attach rigid foam insulation to the exterior of walls.

Information sheet describing correct application of stucco.

A report describing methods for constructing homes and treating soils to reduce the risk of termites in buildings.

Document describing issues of wind pressure resistance in walls with exterior rigid foam sheathing installed directly over framing members.

Report evaluating a test home built in Atlanta, GA in the mixed-humid climate zone. The report outlines the features of the house, discusses the implementation of the energy efficient design, and presents the results of short-term characterization testing.

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.

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

A story about bees building a hive in the drainage plane behind the brick veneer siding. The bees entered the wall through unprotected drainage holes.

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

Image depicting damage from termites in weatherboard cladding.

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

Report outlining a case study about a building project in the hot-humid climate zone.

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 from Texas A&M University and the University of Maryland analyzing why and how urban flooding happens and what can be done to mitigate damage.

Fact sheet poster describing a series of fact sheets and checklists for homeowners to share with contractors to help achieve cost-effective, energy-efficient retrofits for dozens of common home renovation projects.

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

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.

Article describing the perfect wall and and in what order to control rain, air, vapor, and heat.

Report about seeking a 30% source energy savings targets over a comparable 2009 International Energy Conservation Code-built home in the cold climate zone, using simple measures.