Library

Resource that explains how water softeners work to reduce scale.

Report about measurements of three recent vintage dishwashers of very different efficiencies showing that while they are substantially more efficient than older dishwashers.

Installation tips and product suggestions for mounting hardware.

Article describing considerations for choosing a room-level air cleaner to improve indoor air quality.

Article from The Earthbound Report on passive cooling design strategies for homes located in hot climates.

FTC website explaining the usefulness of the EnergyGuide label when shopping for home appliances.

Includes several good how-to videos for anchoring furniture to different wall types

Factsheet describing the advantages and disadvantages of induction cooktops and the role they play in energy efficiency.

Wildfire guidance for homes located in the wildland urban interface, focused on site design and individual pieces of the home.

Ignition resistant residential construction and landscaping guidelines from FireSafe Montana.

Article describing the correct installation of clothes dryer exhaust ducts.

PDF detailing the inspection and verification guidance for WaterSense labeled new homes including indoor and outdoor efficiency requirements, and homeowner and building management education.

Article discussing indoor water management.

Article from University of Arizona on keeping homes cool during extreme heat, both personal and system changes.

Guide describing landscaping tips for healthy and regionally-based gardens, including maintenance, mulching, water efficiency, and plant resources.

Paper describing vegetation impacts on cooling load for buildings.

Guide for homeowners describing actions they can take to modify their home and the surrounding site to create a survivable space to reduce the amount of damage a home would likely experience during a wildfire.

A webpage outlining CAL FIRE’s recommendations for creating defensible space.

Factsheet with information on energy efficient pool pumps.

If your kitchen has a powerful exhaust fan, it may be pulling air down your chimney or water-heater flue.

Measure Guideline describing how to assess and carry out the isolation of natural draft combustion appliances from the conditioned spaces of low-rise residential buildings.

This measure guideline provides guidance on combustion safety inspection procedures for appliances and heating equipment that use indoor air for combustion and dilution of flue gases in low-rise residential buildings.

Paper describing energy savings in space cooling from shading condenser units.

Repor ourlining testing results from a 53 home monitored sample, long-term energy use of electric resistance clothes dryers.

Report describing a lighting and smart power strip retrofit evaluation that was conducted on 56 all-electric, existing Florida homes to see how lighting and miscellaneous electric loads might be reduced.

Webpage for the CEC’s Modern Appliance Efficiency Database System

List of appliance brands and models, showing their performance and efficiency as tested by the appropriate standard.

Article describing mulch requirements and benefits.

Article describing mulching with lawn clippings.

Pamphlet describing different types of mulches and their benefits.

Online geospatial map with interactive viewer showing flood risk areas and base flood elevations

Report for local governments, planners, emergency managers, developers, insurers, and property owners describing ways to improve the wildfire resistance of buildings, infrastructure and communities in the wildland urban interface.

An NFPA Standard that identifies a method for determining the minimum water supply necessary for structural fire-fighting purposes in areas where it has been determined that there is no water or inadequate water for fire fighting.

Link to the NFPA standards collection; NFPA 211 provides guidelines for construction projects involving chimneys, fireplaces, venting systems, and solid fuel-burning appliances.

An NFPA standards document that provides minimum requirements for the design, construction, installation, and maintenance of tanks and accessory equipment that supply water for private fire protection.

Paper describing a study on savings in peak power and cooling energy for homes with shade trees.

Brochure describing what permeable pavement is, where to install it, and how to maintain it.

Table of criteria for pool pumps to achieve ENERGY STAR certification.

This CASE report proposes updates and revisions to the standards for residential swimming pool filtration pumps, new and replacement single phase pump motors under 5 horsepower (HP), controllers, portable electric spas as well as expanding the scope of the current standards to include light emitting...

Report containing data on injuries and fatalities associated with television, furniture, and appliance product instability, or tip-over incidents.

Pamphlet describing proper mulching around trees and problems and benefits associated with mulching.

Report providing wildfire protection guidance for homeowners in California.

Webpage describing how to elevate major appliances in case of a flood.

Illustrations of range tip-over outcomes with and without door locking mechanism.

Research project aimed to verify whether homes in the New Jersey HPwES program achieved 30% source energy savings, and if so, what measures were implemented to achieve them.

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

Webpage by the Department of Energy describing how to adjust refrigerator temperature settings to store food and drinks safely, keep food from spoiling, prevent illness from the growth of bacteria, and reduce food waste.

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.

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