PNNL

Abstract

For builders looking for innovative approaches to solving design and construction problems, other builders can be a great source of ideas. One place to see what other builders are doing is the case study library in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America Solution Center. With a current stack of 274 and growing, the DOE case studies provide a treasury of stories of what builders have done to construct high-performance homes in climate zones across the United States. Building projects vary greatly from multi-family affordable to single family entry-level production through luxury custom homes. Many of the case studies feature award-winning homes certified through DOE’s Zero Energy Ready Home program. There are write-ups on several retrofit and gut rehab projects as well. There are also technology case studies and research case studies highlighting DOE-sponsored field research and laboratory research on specific energy-efficiency measures. You can browse the case study library by clicking on “Case Studies” in the left navigation bar. To narrow your choices, use the filters on the right, including key word, author, organization, etc. You can also find case studies on a specific topic by entering your key word in the search box, then selecting “Case Study” under “Filter by Content Type.” Many of the topic-specific installation guides in the Solution Center also link to related case studies under the “More” tab. The Building America Solution Center is the U.S. Department of Energy’s free web tool to help builders construct, renovate, and sell more efficient, comfortable, durable, and healthy homes. This article will be distributed via the February 2017 issue of the Building America Update Newsletter, http://energy.gov/eere/buildings/building-america-update-newsletter