Library

Article describing ways builders can improve the hurricane resistance of the homes they construct, especially 1) strengthening the continuous load path, 2) upgrading the building envelope, and 3) improving the roof system performance.

Report describing a project whose goal was to determine the prevalence of residential comfort system faults with a focus on air conditioners and heat pumps, and on key faults that can occur during installation: (1) incorrect refrigerant charge level (undercharge or overcharge); (2) indoor coil...

Report describing approaches to using less wood in home building that minimize waste.

Fact sheet describing advanced wall framing.

Report (1) compares existing measurement methods, based on field testing in a wide range of buildings, (2) presents the development of two new methods to directly measure exterior and interior leakage of an attached unit, and compares to existing methods; and (3) experimentally evaluates the...

Article describing recessed lighting, which if installed incorrectly may contribute to air leakage and compromise building envelope efficiency.

Report describing approaches to insulating basements in homes built to meet Energy Star levels of performance of heat loss reduction.

Fact sheet describing basement insulation considerations.

Fact sheet providing background and technical information on Trombe wall design

Information sheet containing images and descriptions of cantilevers.

Study investigating measured cooling energy performance in side-by-side identical homes with varying roof types, including cool roof technologies.

Study reporting the results of comparative testing of the effect of finished and unfinished metal roofing systems on cooling energy performance in a test facility.

This study focuses on the design, construction, and performance of the interior chase approach as implemented by five different builders in Texas, North Carolina, and Florida.

Article from NAHB research center describing home building techniques for homes in hot climate zones.

Webpage showing the minimum efficiency levels and maximum sound levels for ENERGY STAR certified residential ventilating fans.

Report using relative humidity and temperature data from NOAA to measure average equilibrium moisture content for each month of the year in 262 locations in the United States and 122 locations outside the United States.

Report comparing a high-performance house with a code-built control home.

Study reporting the results of comparative testing of the effect of various roof types on cooling energy performance in a test facility.

Fact sheet describing actions homeowners can take to safely cleanup their homes after a flood with links to additional resources from the EPA.

Report discussing the potential energy savings of new high-efficiency downlights, and the results of product testing to date.

Video course by the Lighting Controls Academy presenting an overview of the basic functionality of today’s lighting controls, benefits and the basic questions to ask when identifying an appropriate lighting control strategy

Report describing ways to retrofit a home to make it more hurricane resistant.

Article describing dozens of ideas on how to retrofit a home so it is more earthquake ready.

Study investigating measured cooling energy savings in homes across the U.S. from the installation of roofing with higher solar reflectance.

Information sheet with nail withdrawl capacities in OSB.

Report aiming to "de-mystify" technology and economic considerations of residential PV systems.

Report seeking to teach building contractors and building inspectors the correct methods for doing typical seismic retrofits that have been designed by an engineer or architect or described in a prescriptive standard.

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 documenting the Transformative Efficiency and Automation in Modular Homes (TEAMH) project, which evaluates the integration of advanced building envelope technologies and automation-assisted modular construction to improve residential energy performance and construction efficiency.

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

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

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

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

This guide is intended to provide state, local, and Tribal public health officials with information they need to be prepared for smoke events and, when wildfire smoke is present, to communicate health risks and take measures to protect the public.

Fact sheet describing the moisture properties of wood.

Report detailing passive design strategies used at the Zion National Park Visitor Center, including evaporative cool towers.