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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

Evaluation of the U.S. Department of Energy Challenge Home Program Certification of Production Builders

The purpose of this project was to evaluate integrated packages of advanced measures in individual test homes to assess their performance with respect to Building America Program goals, specifically compliance with the DOE Challenge Home Program. BSC consulted on the construction of five test houses by three Cold Climate production builders in three separate US cities. BSC worked with the builders to develop a design package tailored to the cost-related impacts for each builder. Therefore, the resulting design packages do vary from builder to builder. BSC provided support through this research project on the design, construction and performance testing of the five test homes. Overall, the builders have concluded that the energy related upgrades (either through the prescriptive or performance path) represent reasonable upgrades. The builders commented that while not every improvement in specification was cost effective (as in a reasonable payback period), many were improvements that could improve the marketability of the homes and serve to attract more energy efficiency discerning prospective homeowners. However, the builders did express reservations on the associated checklists and added certifications. An increase in administrative time was observed with all builders. The checklists and certifications also inherently increase cost due to: 1. Adding services to the scope of work for various trades, such as HERS Rater, HVAC contractor; 2. Increased material costs related to the checklists, especially the EPA Indoor airPLUS and EPA WaterSense(R) Efficient Hot Water Distribution requirement.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2013

The Performance House—A Cold Climate Challenge Home

Working with builder partners on test homes allows for vetting of whole-house building strategies to eliminate any potential unintended consequences prior to implementing these solution packages on a production scale. To support this research, CARB partnered with Preferred Builders Inc. on a high-performance test home in Old Greenwich, CT. The philosophy and science behind the 2,700 ft 2 "Performance House" was based on the premise that homes should be safe, healthy, comfortable, durable, efficient, and adapt with the homeowners. The technologies and strategies used in the "Performance House" were not cutting-edge, but simply "best practices practiced". The focus was on simplicity in construction, maintenance, and operation. When seeking a 30% source energy savings targets over a comparable 2009 IECC code-built home in the cold climate zone, nearly all components of a home must be optimized. Careful planning and design are critical. To help builders and architects seeking to match the performance of this home, a step-by-step guide through the building shell components of DOE's Challenge Home are provided in a pictorial story book. The end result was a DOE Challenge Home that achieved a HERS Index Score of 20 (43 without PV, the minimum target was 55 for compliance). This home was also awarded the 2012 HOBI for Best Green Energy Efficient Home from the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Connecticut.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2013

Performance House -- A Cold Climate Challenge Home

Working with builder partners on a test homes allows for vetting of whole-house building strategies to eliminate any potential unintended consequences prior to implementing these solution packages on a production scale. To support this research, CARB partnered with Preferred Builders Inc. on a high-performance test home in Old Greenwich, CT. The philosophy and science behind the 2,700 ft2 'Performance House' was based on the premise that homes should be safe, healthy, comfortable, durable, efficient, and adapt with the homeowners. The technologies and strategies used in the 'Performance House' were not cutting-edge, but simply 'best practices practiced'. The focus was on simplicity in construction, maintenance, and operation. When seeking a 30% source energy savings targets over a comparable 2009 IECC code-built home in the cold climate zone, nearly all components of a home must be optimized. Careful planning and design are critical. To help builders and architects seeking to match the performance of this home, a step-by-step guide through the building shell components of DOE's Challenge Home are provided in a pictorial story book. The end result was a DOE Challenge Home that achieved a HERS Index Score of 20 (43 without PV, the minimum target was 55 for compliance). This home was also awarded the 2012 HOBI for Best Green Energy Efficient Home from the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Connecticut.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2013

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study: Clifton View Homes, Coupeville, Washington

Ted Clifton, founder of Clifton View Homes, achieved an impressive Home Energy Rating System (HERS) score of 34 (without solar panels) on a two-story home completed in July 2011 that also earned him his first Challenge Home certification from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This home also garnered a 2013 Housing Innovation Award in the "systems builder" category.

Challenge Home↗
DOE OSTI2013

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study: Palo Duro Homes, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Palo Duro uses advanced framing techniques like 2x6 24-inch on-center framing, open headers above windows on non-load-bearing walls, 2-stud corners, ladder blocking where walls intersect, and single top and bottom plates. These techniques reduce the amount of lumber in the wall, allowing more room for insulation and reducing costs and installation time. The builder garnered a 2013 Housing Innovation Award in the production builder category.

Challenge Home↗
DOE OSTI2016

Business Metrics for High-Performance Homes: A Colorado Springs Case Study

This report explores the correlation between energy efficiency and the business success of home builders by examining a data set of builders and homes in the Colorado Springs, Colorado, market between 2006 and 2014. During this time, the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009 occurred, and new-home sales plummeted both nationally and in Colorado Springs. What is evident from an analysis of builders and homes in Colorado Springs is that builders who had Home Energy Rating System (HERS) ratings performed on some or all of their homes during the Recession remained in business during this challenging economic period. Many builders who did not have HERS ratings performed on their homes at that time went out of business or left the area. From the analysis presented in this report, it is evident that a correlation exists between energy efficiency and the business success of home builders, although the reasons for this correlation remain largely anecdotal and not yet clearly understood.

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DOE OSTI2016

The Performance House: A Cold Climate Challenge Home - Old Greenwich

Working with builder partners on test homes allows for vetting of whole-house building strategies to eliminate any potential unintended consequences prior to implementing these solution packages on a production scale. To support this research, the Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings partnered with Preferred Builders Inc. on a high performance test home in Old Greenwich, Connecticut. The philosophy and science behind the 2,700 ft2 Performance House were based on the premise that homes should be safe, healthy, comfortable, durable, efficient, and adapt with the homeowners. The technologies and strategies used in the Performance House were not cutting-edge, but simply best practices practiced. The focus was on simplicity in construction, maintenance, and operation. When seeking a 30% source energy savings targets over a comparable 2009 International Energy Conservation Code-built home in the cold climate zone, nearly all components of a home must be optimized. Careful planning and design are critical. The Performance House demonstrates how a home can be designed and constructed in the cold climate zone to be energy efficient, low maintenance, sustainable, and comfortable. Lower price premiums are still needed for solutions such as ccSPF and light-emitting diodes, but this is anticipated as their market demand increases. For a solution package of this level to become commercially viable, there is still a need to improve the home appraisal process to better value the multiple benefits of a solution package of this type over standard builder practices.

accessibility↗
DOE OSTI2013

Building America Top Innovations 2013 Profile – Zero Energy-Ready Single-Family Homes

Building homes that are zero energy-ready is a goal of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America program and one embodied in Building America’s premier home certification program, the Challenge Home program. This case study describes several examples of successful zero energy-ready home projects completed by Building America teams and partner builders.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2011

High Performance Builder Spotlight: Wathen Castanos Hybrid Homes

Wathen Castanos Hybrid Homes of Fresno, CA, has worked with Building America team member IBACOS to apply building science to production homes. Even without solar panels, the company’s Jordan model exceeds California’s building efficiency standard by 36%.

builder's challenge↗
DOE OSTI2015

New Whole-House Solutions Case Study: A Production Builder's Passive House - Denver, Colorado

Brookfield Home’s first project is in a community called Midtown in Denver, Colorado, in which the builder took on the challenge of increased energy efficiency by creating a Passive House (PH)-certified model home. Brookfield worked with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America research team IBACOS to create the home, evaluate advanced building technologies, and use the home as a marketing tool for potential homebuyers. Brookfield also worked with KGA studio architects to create a new floor plan that would be constructed to the PH standard as an upgrade option.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2020

A Path to Zero Energy Ready Home Construction

This paper will be presented at the 5th Residential Building Design & Construction Conference in State College, Pennsylvania. While the number of zero energy homes constructed in the U.S. has grown dramatically, increasing nearly 400% since 2015, zero energy homes still accounted for less than 1% of all U.S. homes constructed as of December 2018. Concerns about high costs or implementation challenges have kept many builders from attempting zero energy home construction. However, builders participating in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home Program are showing that zero energy ready home construction can be achieved simply and cost effectively with off-the-shelf equipment and materials and common construction techniques. Construction methods used by builders in the DOE program are compared with those used in just-to-code new homes and existing homes for several key components, including wall assemblies and HVAC systems. Examples of cost-effective assemblies used in the Mid Atlantic states are provided.

U.S. Department of Energy Building Technologies Pr↗
DOE OSTI2013

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study: Weiss Building & Development, Downers Grove, Illinois

This single-family home built in a peat bog has underground storage tanks and drainage tanks, blown fiberglass insulation, coated rigid polyisocyanurate, and flashing. The 3,600-square-foot custom home built by Weiss Building & Development LLC is the first home in Illinois certified to the DOE Challenge Home criteria, which requires that homes meet the EPA Indoor airPlus guidelines.The builder won a 2013 Housing Innovation Award in the custom builder category.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2016

Achieving Challenge Home in Affordable Housing in the Hot - Humid Climate

The Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction (BA-PIRC), one of the Building America research team leads, has partnered with two builders as they work through the Challenge Home certification process in one test home each. The builder partners participating in this cost-shared research are Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity near Daytona, Florida and Manatee County Habitat for Humanity near Tampa, Florida. Both are affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International, a non-profit affordable housing organization. This research serves to identify viable technical pathways to meeting the CH criteria for other builders in the region. A further objective of this research is to identify gaps and barriers in the marketplace related to product availability, labor force capability, code issues, cost effectiveness, and business case issues that hinder or prevent broader adoption on a production scale. The builder partners participating in this cost-shared research are Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity (SEVHFH) near Daytona, Florida and Manatee County Habitat for Humanity (MCHFH) near Tampa, Florida. Both are affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), a nonprofit affordable housing organization. Manatee Co Habitat for Humanity Challenge home - Ellenton, FL 34222 S. Sarasota Challenge Home - Sarasota, FL Southeast Volusia co Habitat for Humanity's Challenge Home - Edgewater, FL 32141 Several iterations of home, Challenge Home as built, Challenge Home without solar, and Challenge Home configured to just meet Florida Code. All houses redone in BEOpt 2.1.0.2

affordable housing↗
DOE OSTI2014

Achieving Challenge Home in Affordable Housing in the Hot-Humid Climate

The Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction (BA-PIRC), one of the Building America research team leads, has partnered with two builders as they work through the Challenge Home certification process in one test home each. The builder partners participating in this cost-shared research are Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity near Daytona, Florida and Manatee County Habitat for Humanity near Tampa, Florida. Both are affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International, a non-profit affordable housing organization. This research serves to identify viable technical pathways to meeting the CH criteria for other builders in the region. A further objective of this research is to identify gaps and barriers in the marketplace related to product availability, labor force capability, code issues, cost effectiveness, and business case issues that hinder or prevent broader adoption on a production scale.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2013

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study: Manatee County Habitat for Humanity, Ellenton, Florida

In this 18-home community, all homes are LEED Platinum and meet ENERGY STAR for Homes Version 3 requirements, HERS 23–53. Half way through the project, Habitat for Humanity heard about the DOE Challenge Home program and signed on, committing to build the next home, a three-bedroom, two-bath, 1,143 ft2 duplex, to Challenge Home criteria. The home is the first DOE Challenge Home in Manatee County, and was awarded a 2013 Housing Innovation Award in the affordable builder category.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2014

Achieving Challenge Home in Affordable Housing in the Hot-Humid Climate

The Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction (BA-PIRC), one of the Building America research team leads, has partnered with two builders as they work through the Challenge Home certification process (now Zero Energy Ready Home) in one test home each. The builder partners participating in this cost-shared research are Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity near Daytona, Florida and Manatee County Habitat for Humanity near Tampa, Florida. Both are affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International, a non-profit affordable housing organization. This research serves to identify viable technical pathways to meeting the CH criteria for other builders in the region. A further objective of this research is to identify gaps and barriers in the marketplace related to product availability, labor force capability, code issues, cost effectiveness, and business case issues that hinder or prevent broader adoption on a production scale.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗