ENERGY STAR Single-Family New Homes, Version 3/3.1 (Rev. 11)

National Rater Field Checklist

2. Fully-Aligned Air Barriers ⁷ - At each insulated location below, a complete air barrier is provided that is fully aligned as follows:
Walls: At exterior vertical surface of wall insulation in all climate zones; also at interior vertical surface of wall insulation in Climate Zones 4-8.⁹
2.4 Walls adjoining porch roofs or garages.
Floors: At exterior vertical surface of floor insulation in all climate zones and, if over unconditioned space, also at interior horizontal surface including supports to ensure alignment. Alternatives in Footnotes 12 & 13.^{11, 12, 13}
2.6 Floors above garages, floors above unconditioned basements or crawlspaces, and cantilevered floors.

4. Air Sealing (Unless otherwise noted below, “sealed” indicates the use of caulk, foam, or equivalent material).
4.7 Walls that separate attached garages from occupiable space sealed and, also, an air barrier installed and sealed at floor cavities aligned with these walls.
4.9 Doors adjacent to unconditioned space (e.g., attics, garages, basements) or ambient conditions made substantially air-tight with weather-stripping or equivalent gasket.

HVAC System.
7. Dwelling Unit Mechanical Ventilation Systems (“Vent System”) ⁴⁵ & Inlets In Return Duct ⁴⁶
7.7.1 Inlet pulls ventilation air directly from outdoors and not from attic, crawlspace, garage, or adjacent dwelling unit.

Footnote 7) For purposes of this Checklist, an air barrier is defined as any durable solid material that blocks air flow between conditioned space and unconditioned space, including necessary sealing to block excessive air flow at edges and seams and adequate support to resist positive and negative pressures without displacement or damage. EPA recommends, but does not require, rigid air barriers. Open-cell or closed-cell foam shall have a finished thickness ≥ 5.5 in. or 1.5 in., respectively, to qualify as an air barrier unless the manufacturer indicates otherwise. If flexible air barriers such as house wrap are used, they shall be fully sealed at all seams and edges and supported using fasteners with caps or heads ≥ 1 in. diameter unless otherwise indicated by the manufacturer. Flexible air barriers shall not be made of kraft paper, paper-based products, or other materials that are easily torn. If polyethylene is used, its thickness shall be ≥ 6 mil.

Footnote 9) All insulated vertical surfaces are considered walls (e.g., above and below grade exterior walls, knee walls) and must meet the air barrier requirements for walls. The following exceptions apply: air barriers recommended, but not required, in adiabatic walls in multifamily dwellings; and, in Climate Zones 4 through 8, an air barrier at the interior vertical surface of insulation is recommended but not required in basement walls or crawlspace walls. For the purpose of these exceptions, a basement or crawlspace is a space for which ≥ 40% of the total gross wall area is below-grade.

Footnote 11) EPA highly recommends, but does not require, an air barrier at the interior vertical surface of floor insulation in Climate Zones 4-8.

Footnote 12) Examples of supports necessary for permanent contact include staves for batt insulation or netting for blown-in insulation. Alternatively, supports are not required if batts fill the full depth of the floor cavity, even when compression occurs due to excess insulation, as long as the R-value of the batts has been appropriately assessed based on manufacturer guidance and the only defect preventing the insulation from achieving the required installation grade is the compression caused by the excess insulation.

Footnote 13) Alternatively, an air barrier is permitted to be installed at the exterior horizontal surface of the floor insulation if the insulation is installed in contact with this air barrier, the exterior vertical surfaces of the floor cavity are also insulated, and air barriers are included at the exterior vertical surfaces of this insulation.

Footnote 45) As defined by ANSI / RESNET / ICC Std. 301-2019, a Dwelling Unit Mechanical Ventilation System is a ventilation system consisting of powered ventilation equipment such as motor-driven fans and blowers and related mechanical components such as ducts, inlets, dampers, filters and associated control devices that provides dwelling-unit ventilation at a known or measured airflow rate.

Footnote 46) Item 7.3 applies to any outdoor air inlet connected to a ducted return of the dwelling unit HVAC system, regardless of its intended purpose (e.g., for ventilation air, make-up air, combustion air). This Item does not apply to HVAC systems without a ducted return.

Please see the ENERGY STAR Single-Family New Homes Implementation Timeline for the program version and revision currently applicable in your state.

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home (Revision 07)

Exhibit 1 Mandatory Requirements.
Exhibit 1, Item 1) Certified under the ENERGY STAR Qualified Homes Program or the ENERGY STAR Multifamily New Construction Program.
Exhibit 1, Item 6) Certified under EPA Indoor airPLUS.

EPA Indoor airPLUS (Revision 04)

5.4 Attached Garages.

Note: Completion of the ENERGY STAR requirements satisfies the following Indoor airPLUS requirement:

Isolate attached garages from conditioned spaces as follows:

• Air-seal common walls and ceilings between attached garages and living spaces before installing insulation (Rater-F 2.4, 2.6, and 4.7).
• Use weather stripping or equivalent gasket to ensure all doors between living spaces and attached garages are substantially airtight (Rater F 4.9).

Additional Indoor airPLUS Requirements:

• Install an automatic door closer on all connecting doors between living spaces and attached garages, AND
• In homes with exhaust-only whole house ventilation meet one of the following two requirements:
  • Equip the attached garage with an exhaust fan with a minimum installed capacity of 70 cfm that is vented directly outdoors. The fan shall be wired for continuous operation or with automatic fan controls (e.g., a motion detector) that activate the fan whenever the garage is occupied and operate for at least 1 hour after the garage has been vacated. If a ducted fan (not through-the-wall) is used, test and verify minimum capacity of 70 cfm, OR
  • Verify that the garage-to-house air barrier can maintain a pressure difference of greater than 45 Pa while the home maintains a 50 Pascal pressure difference with respect to the outdoors. All operable garage openings shall be closed during this test.

Advisories:

1. EPA recommends installing a garage exhaust fan if the homebuyer is expected to occupy the garage for work or recreational activities over extended periods of time.
2. ENERGY STAR certified fans are highly recommended.
3. Provide occupants with information in the Buyer Information Kit on the importance of, and methods for, ensuring adequate ventilation in the garage while occupied for extended periods of time.

4.3 Location of Air-Handling Equipment and Ductwork. No air-handling equipment or ductwork installed in garage.
Note: Ducts and equipment may be located in framing spaces or building cavities adjacent to garage walls or ceilings if they are separated from the garage space with a continuous air barrier.

5.2 Carbon Monoxide Alarms. All homes equipped with combustion appliance(s) or an attached garage shall have a carbon monoxide (CO) alarm installed in a central location in the immediate vicinity of each separate sleeping zone (e.g., in a hallway adjacent to bedrooms.) The alarm(s) shall be hard-wired with a battery back-up function and placed according to NFPA 720. The alarms shall be certified by either CSA 6.19-01 or UL 2034.

7.3 Owner and Resident Information Kit. Advisory: Provide the homebuyer with information that addresses the importance of ensuring that manually controlled ventilation options (e.g., bathroom, garage (if applicable), kitchen exhaust fans; operable windows, and doors, etc.) are used when strong pollutant sources are present, such as when using common household products (e.g., cleaning products, pesticides) and when using the garage for hobbies or other pollutant generating activities.