Library

Program criteria for central air conditioner and heat pump equipment.

DOE-sponsored report describing a study investigating condensation buildup on windows when using insulating shades.

Report describing the performance, cost, and carbon impacts of unitary heat pump water heaters with load-shifting controls in a shared configuration for a multi-family project, highlighting significant savings in energy usage, CO2 emissions, and utility costs.

A webpage by the DOE on tips for saving energy with an evaporative cooler.

Article describing how evaporative coolers work and how to maintain them.

Image of design wet bulb temperatures in the U.S. and where evaporative cooling is most appropriate.

Web article describing the evolution of evaporative coolers, water usage of evaporative coolers, and links to information on selecting an evaporative cooler.

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

Website describing and providing links to FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center, which home owners and builders can use to determine the flood risk of their location.

Website describing and providing a map showing the tsunami risk index for the United States, which home owners and builders can use to determine the tsunami risk of their location.

Report providing guidelines and procedures to determine whether damaged or potentially damaged buildings are safe for use after wind storms or floods, or if entry should be restricted or prohibited.

This document includes tips for safely and effectively cleaning up a home after a flood. It is available in several languages.

Website providing information to the public about preparing for floods and floods related to fires.

Article describing the effective R-values of various subslab insulation products, including foil bubble pack.

Checklist providing information about the specific requirements of FORTIFIED Roof™ design and construction standard for re-roofing specific for high wind resistance.

Checklist providing information about the specific requirements of FORTIFIED Roof™ design and construction standard for re-roofing specific for hurricane resistance.

Article describing what the building codes say about frost-protected shallow foundations as a cost-saving alternative to conventional concrete foundations.

Results from a research program testing airtightness, implications of air leakage and contaminant reduction over the garage-to-house interface.

Commercial website providing images to subscribers.

Guidance from HUD for volunteer team leaders, project managers and supervisors who work in recovery and rebuilding after natural disasters.

Report about opportunities for ventilation when traditional methods are limited by weather conditions or by contaminants in the outdoor air.

Report identifying Building America and 2021 International Energy Conservation Code climate zone designations for every county in the United States; where a county's climate zone designation has changed since the 2018 IECC, that change is indicated as well.

Report describing a laboratory assessment that provides insights into space requirements and venting strategies for heat pump water heaters (HPWH) to enhance retrofit installations and provide actionable guidance for manufacturers, designers, engineers, installers, and owners.

Federal webpage providing information regarding extreme heat and health for the United States.

Report providing information for HVAC designers, installers, and consumers about air source heat pumps.

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

An article and video of a breakdown on the preparation and installation of basement insulation.

A report describing the development of a methodology to properly size heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment for concrete homes in the US and Canada.

Software tool available free online that can help calculate heating and cooling requirements to accurately size HVAC equipment in as little as 15 minutes.

Report presenting system design packages for cold and mixed-humid climates.

Article describing the effect metal roofs have on thermal performance in hot-humid climates.

Study using simulations to understand the impact that shading and natural ventilation would have had on the survivability of non-air-conditioned buildings during the 2021 heat wave in the Pacific Northwest.

Factsheet describing techniques for installing ductless heat pumps in cold climate locations.

Report showing installers how to attach ducts, pipes, and associated equipment to buildings to minimize earthquake damage.

Report that describes BSC's Houses That Work II (HTWII) climate-specific technical resource, beginning with an overall HTWII introduction and four sections explaining the four most important hygro-thermal climate regions: Hot-Humid, Mixed-Humid, Cold, and Hot-Dry/Mixed-Dry.

Website providing a probabilistic map of the expected number of damaging earthquakes around the U.S.

Website providing a probabilistic map of the expected number of damaging earthquakes around the U.S.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Regulation 16 CFR Part 460: Federal regulation on labeling of home insulation products.

Report describing the costs of electric vehicle charging stations in the United States.

Standard using performance-based principles to determine dead, live, soil, flood, tsunami, snow, rain, atmospheric ice, earthquake, wind, and fire loads, and their combinations for general structural design. This version of the standard was published in the year 2016 and is available in both digital...

Standard using performance-based principles to determine dead, live, soil, flood, tsunami, snow, rain, atmospheric ice, seismic, and wind loads, and their combinations for general structural design. The current version of this standard was published in the year 2022 and is available in both digital...

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.

Database from the National Fenestration Rating Council providing a directory of NFRC-certified window products searchable by manufacturer, product type, CPD number, or various NFRC label specifications.

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

Resources describing the National Flood Insurance Program's technical bulletins for flood zone construction, including foundation walls, corrosion protection, floodproofing, and breakaway walls among other topics.

DOE Energy Saver webpage providing a brief summary of natural ventilation for houses.