Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document providing supplemental information for code enforcement professionals about header hangers in bearing walls.
This library contains research reports produced by the Building America program and other building science resources used to support this Solution Center. The materials cover both new construction and existing homes. Use the search box and/or the filters to explore hundreds of residential building resources. Access to some references not produced by Building America may require purchase from the publisher. Documents are listed alphabetically. While we continually update our database, links may have changed since posting. Please contact our webmaster if you find broken links.
Showing results 51 - 100 of 104
Organization(s)
CDC,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Division of Emergency and Environmental Health Services,
National Center for Environmental Health
Publication Date
Organization(s)
Energy Vanguard
Publication Date
Description
Article discussing the advantages of using heat pumps and/or hydronic forced air heat instead of furnaces in high-performance homes.
Organization(s)
Green Building Advisor
Publication Date
Description
Information sheet presenting the correct methods for building an insulated cathedral ceiling.
Organization(s)
Green Building Advisor,
GBA
Publication Date
Description
Information sheet presenting techniques for installing cellulose insulation.
Organization(s)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory,
PNNL,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory,
ORNL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report providing information about energy-efficient heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) equipment options to help homeowners cut their energy use, reduce their carbon footprint, and increase their homes comfort, health, and safety.
Organization(s)
Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Publication Date
Description
Central return designs require an open pathway between the room and the heart of the house where the return grill is located.
Organization(s)
Home Energy Magazine
Publication Date
Description
Article describing how insulated siding can save homeowners energy by providing continuous exterior insulation.
Organization(s)
BSC,
Building Science Corporation
Publication Date
Description
Article describing air leakage in buildings.
Organization(s)
Energy Vanguard
Publication Date
Description
Article discussing the downside to recessed can lights.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Report presenting lab evaluation of five heat pump water heaters available in the US market today.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report proposing mini-split heat pumps as a new retrofit option to replace resistance heating in the Pacific Northwest.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Report documenting the measured performance of six residential ENERGY STAR vapor compression dehumidifiers.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC
Publication Date
Description
Report on whole-house and spot ventilation strategies for improved indoor air quality.
Organization(s)
Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings,
CARB,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Steven Winter Associates,
SWA
Publication Date
Description
Report describing the sealing and insulating of HVAC duct systems in existing homes.
Organization(s)
Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction,
BA-PIRC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document illustrating guidelines for efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report covering the fundamental waterproofing strategies for tub and shower assemblies.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Report describing an analysis method for determining optimal residential energy efficiency retrofit packages and applies the analysis method to a 1960s-era home in eight U.S. cities.
Organization(s)
FEMA
Publication Date
Description
Glossary of terms used by the National Flood Insurance Program
Organization(s)
California Public Utilities Commission,
CPUC
Publication Date
Description
Document describing recommended modeling rules, potential compliance credits, and eligibility criteria for residential night ventilation cooling systems for California’s Title 24 energy efficiency standards.
Organization(s)
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document providing supplemental information for code enforcement professionals about headers in nonbearing walls.
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report providing information about improving the energy efficiency and long-term durability of the buildings that are being reconstructed post Katrina in New Orleans.
Organization(s)
American Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers,
ASHRAE
Publication Date
Description
Article investigating how a linear input/output relationship can be used as a simple model of the performance of a combination hydronic heating system over heating only, DHW only, and combined loads.
Organization(s)
UMass Amherst Department of Environmental Conservation
Publication Date
Description
Article describing how ice dams form on residential roofs, how they damage homes, and solutions to prevent future dams.
Organization(s)
ORNL
Publication Date
Description
Website providing an online calculator for determining energy and cost savings from installing radiant barriers in attics.
Organization(s)
APA
Publication Date
Description
Information sheet with the definition and uses for a raised truss.
Organization(s)
CPSC
Publication Date
Description
Illustrations of range tip-over outcomes with and without door locking mechanism.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Research study about two test homes that are examined with the goal of providing case studies that could be applied to other similar New England homes.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
The RERH specifications and checklists take a builder and a project design team through the steps of assessing a home’s solar resource potential and defining the minimum structural and system components needed to support a solar energy system.
Organization(s)
CRI
Publication Date
Description
Webpage containing downloadable fact sheets covering carpet-related topics including Indoor Air Quality, Asthma and Allergy, Cleaning Products, and Environmental Sustainability.
Organization(s)
Journal of Light Construction,
JLC
Publication Date
Description
Q&A article discussing how to address moisture issues in an attic in a wet and humid coastal climate.
Organization(s)
Tobacco Free NYS
Publication Date
Description
Initiatives of smoke-free housing policies in New York State.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
Guidelines to assist builders in designing and constructing homes equipped with a set of features that make the installation of solar energy systems after the completion of the home’s construction easier and less expensive.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
The RERH specifications and checklists take a builder and a project design team through the steps of assessing a home’s solar resource potential and defining the minimum structural and system components needed to support a solar energy system.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
Specifications to assist builders in designing and constructing homes equipped with a set of features that make the installation of solar energy systems after the completion of the home’s construction easier and less expensive.
Organization(s)
Fire Protection Research Foundation,
FPRF,
National Fire Protection Association,
NFPA
Publication Date
Description
Literature review from NFPA on the use of insulation to protect the piping in home fire sprinkler systems from freezing conditions.
Organization(s)
ASTM
Publication Date
Description
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...
Organization(s)
Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Publication Date
Description
Article describing ways to protect roofs from water infiltration by using self-adhering underlayment in vulnerable locations such as roof valleys, eave edges (to help deal with ice dams), rake edges, roofs to vertical walls (such as dormers), sidewall protection, the bottom of dormer valleys, and...
Organization(s)
Integrated Building and Construction Solutions,
IBACOS,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Report about the impact on the loads when common safety factors are applied to the load calculation process using two houses that meet the 2009 IECC prescriptive path modeled as the accurate baseline.
Organization(s)
Building Science Corporation,
BSC,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Document identifying differences between the requirements for construction documents for high performance housing and the documents that are typically produced for conventional housing.
Organization(s)
NAHB Research Center,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL,
U.S. Department of Energy,
DOE
Publication Date
Description
Research study providing a comparison of selected retrofit activity typically done, versus that same retrofit activity approached from an integrated high performance remodeling and quality management perspective.
Organization(s)
Green Building Advisor,
GBA
Publication Date
Description
Question and Answer article in Energy Design Update describing the cost and savings benefits of electronically commutated motors (ECMs) for HVAC equipment.
Organization(s)
Bay Area Retrofit
Publication Date
Description
A book describing seismic retrofits to help contractors and engineers understand how to properly retrofit a home in a cost-effective manner.
Organization(s)
Home Energy Magazine
Publication Date
Description
Article describing the risks associated with vented and unvented crawlspaces in different climate zones.
Organization(s)
EPA
Publication Date
Description
Guide describing details that serve as a visual reference for each of the line items in the Thermal Enclosure System Rater Checklist.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Research study investigating the thermal efficiency of fasteners, namely drywall screws and siding nails, in high-performance wood-framed walls.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Research study describing a detailed 3D computational fluid dynamics model that evaluates the thermal performance of uninsulated wall assemblies.
Organization(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory,
NREL
Publication Date
Description
Document presenting analysis results, focusing on relative humidity (RH) excursions, which are defined as unique events of indoor RH above a threshold.
Organization(s)
EPA,
ENERGY STAR
Publication Date
Description
A builder checklist guide for the water management of properties with appropriately-designed building technologies.
Organization(s)
EPA,
ENERGY STAR
Publication Date
Description
Guide describing details that serve as a visual reference for each of the line items in the Water Management System Builder Checklist.