BASC Search | Building America Solution Center

This wall and window assembly has excessive framing around the windows, which can lead to heat gain in how climate zones.

Image

Building America Best Practices Series - 40% Whole-House Energy Savings in the Cold and Very Cold Climates, Volume 12

Reference

Guide describing measures that builders in the cold and very cold climates can take to build homes that have whole-house energy savings of 40% over the Building America benchmark with no added overall costs for consumers.

In hot, humid climates, passive cooling should focus on shading, airflow through cross ventilation and ceiling fans, and low-mass construction

Image

The polyethylene ceiling vapor barrier is sealed to form an air barrier around the exhaust fan in this very cold climate location (≥ CZ 6).

Image

Low perimeter to area (P/A) ratio home designs reduce heat transfer and perform better in hot climate zones than high P/A ratio homes.

Image

In hot, dry climates, passive cooling should focus on shading, night flush through cross ventilation and whole-house fans, potentially using high-mass construction

Image

Light colors have been used on exterior walls and roofs to keep buildings cooler in hot climates for centuries, as shown by this traditional building in Morocco, built in the early 1800s

Image

In tropical climates such as Puerto Rico, some houses have metal jalousie louvers instead of glass windows; metal jalousies look like shutters, but typically offer little debris resistance.

Image

A typical Las Vegas hot-dry climate home made of wood frame construction and insulated with R-25 expanded polystyrene externally over a drainage plane, with an unvented wood frame insulated attic and roof assembly.

Image

Right - In cooler climates, landscape shading should focus on the east- and west-facing walls, while leaving the south side of the house clear for solar access in winter (well-sized roof overhangs could provide summer shading for the south-facing windows)

Image

The number of days per year that the temperature exceeds 90°F is expected to increase throughout the contiguous U.S. when comparing mid-century (2036-2065) to near-present (1976-2005)

Image

How to: REMOTE Wall System Part 2

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center on complete wall system construction guidelines in cold climates. Part 2 of 2.

How to: REMOTE Wall System Part 1

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center on complete wall system construction guidelines in cold climates. Part 1 of 2.

Cool Neighborhoods: The Measurement of Small Scale Heat Islands

Reference

Paper describing the effects of tree canopies on residential climates indicating tree cover to be beneficial to climate conditions

Annual average temperatures have increased across North America when comparing the present day to the first half of the last century, and are projected to increase for mid-century and end-of-century relative to the near-present

Image

The frequency, duration, and intensity of extreme heat events have increased every decade since the 1960s

Image

CCHRC Building Addition: Creating a Heated Roof to Apply Roofing Membrane

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center on how to create a heated roof to apply roofing membrane correctly in cold climates.

gutters and good drainage

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center explaining how to correctly 'fur' and outside wall for maximum insulation protection.

Kwigillingok Energy Efficiency Project

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center on how to incorporate energy efficient building design into cold climates, focusing on the tribal community of Kwigillingok, Alaska.

CCHRC Building Addition: Creating a heated roof to apply roofing membrane

Video

Video from Cold Climate Housing Research Center on how to create a heated roof to apply roofing membrane correctly in cold climates.

Building Alaska's Next Generation Housing

Video

Video from Alaska Public Media and Cold Climate Housing Research Center explaining how the changing climate will need to be met with changing housing structures, specifically homes' foundations.