Library

Fact sheet describing what builders need to know about designing a structure for flood loads.

Report on a simplified test procedure for combustion safety that is easier to implement and should produce fewer false positives than the previous procedure.

An article illustrating common errors found in fiber cement siding installations. Many of these errors and poor flashing examples apply to siding materials beyond fiber cement siding.

Manual assisting architects, engineers, owners and roofing contractors for designing, specifying and installing roof tiles in areas of snow and ice.

Installation manual outlining proper installation practices, industry standards and the code requirements of roofing tiles.

Article describing the process of constructing concrete walls

Guidance from Zero Energy Project on construction techniques for warmer climates, such as home orientation, and insulation requirements.

Article describing construction best practices to help reduce the wind-induced pressure loads on a low-rise building during a hurricane.

Brochure helping homeowners identify hazards, work with contractors to remove the hazards, help ensure the work is done properly, and educate when they can return safely to the home.

Article describing the difference between conditioned or unvented attics and unconditioned or vented attics.

Webpage from U.S. Department of Energy describing 'cool roofs' and their usage for passive home cooling.

Report on experiments comparing the cooling and heating seasonal and peak demand performance of different variable-capacity air conditioning and heat pump units.

DOE Energy Saver webpage summarizing the use of whole-house fans for cooling.

Report describing costs associated with non-residential electric vehicle charging, including multifamily properties.

Guidance document on deep energy retrofits.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Design and Construction Process chapter provides detailed guidance for each process phase: pre-planning, planning, construction, test-out and post-occupancy.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Lessons Learned chapter focuses on successful deep energy retrofit projects throughout the U.S.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Occupant Behavior chapter discusses how to assess homeowner behavior patterns and use these patterns to enhance overall energy savings.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Over Time, Phased Guidance chapter presents a phased approach to deep energy retrofits.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Reducing costs and Increasing Cost-Effectiveness chapter provides suggestions for controlling deep retrofit costs, including both 'do's' and 'don'ts'.

Part of a larger LBNL report (Deep Energy Retrofit Guidance for the Building America Solutions Center), the Source Energy and Carbon Decisions chapter helps users carefully assess the impacts of switching from gas to electricity for heating end-uses, using source energy and/or carbon emissions...

Report providing guidance on designing buildings to be flood resistant.

Report providing information on ways to incentivize funding of hazard mitigation programs.

Technical report describing algorithms that use communicating thermostat heating data and that were developed to optimize customer adoption of energy conservation measures, enhancing the identification of retrofit opportunities, estimating post-retrofit energy savings, and enabling home-specific...

Website providing lists of WaterSense-qualified products for home plumbing and irrigation equipment that meet the requirements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense program.

Website listing implementation timelines and links to various versions of the DOE Zero Energy Ready Home national program requirements.

Article describing the difference between swales and hugels (berms used to create soil from woody debris).

Designer checklist covering hazards involving ground and surface water, rain and water vapor, HVAC and plumbing, sunlight, insects, decay, and natural hazards, and builder checklist covering all disaster resistance, sorted by building component.

Report on how airtighness changes as houses age.

Case study describing foundation wall moisture studies at a research facility in Minnesota run by Building America team NorthernSTAR.

Webpage providing details of an experimental earth tube installation at the Clean Energy Exhibition in Georgia.

Webpage providing earthquake safety tips including proactive home structure and utility action items.

Factsheet describing methods for securing HVAC units to avoid damage during an earthquake.

Article describing quality of life and economic benefit from trees.

Article presenting a numerical study of wind pressure on the low-rise hip-roof building by varying the roof pitch using computational fluid dynamics computer modeling and wind tunnel testing of hip roofs with different roof pitches: 15°, 20°, 30° and 40°.

Webpage from U.S. Department of Energy describing using Earth-Sheltered home building techniques in hot climate zones.

A website with resources for emergency preparedness including videos, guides, and webinars.

Web page providing an overview of window coverings such as blinds, shades, shutters, films, and storm windows.

Technical report evaluating the energy savings potential of radiative cooling technologies, particularly photonic 'selective emittance' materials.

Program criteria for central air conditioner and heat pump equipment.

Report describing the research gap in the connection between resilience and energy efficiency.

Report describing the methods and results of a field evaluation of the energy performance of cellular shade window coverings.

Report describing a research study of the performance of interior low-E storm windows in two test houses at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, WA.

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.

Report on high-R wall design called extended plate and beam that uses foam sheathing insulation with wall framing.