Related Links for Homeowners
Building America benefits homeowners by moving the housing industry toward higher quality homes that use less energy. The Discovery House, built by McStain Neighborhoods, is a great example of this research.
Photo courtesy of DOE/NREL.
On this page you will find links to Web sites that can provide more information about energy-efficient homes for homeowners. You can also view a listing of Web sites for builders, developers, and others in the industry.
Department of Energy Web Sites
The following Department of Energy (DOE) Web sites offer comprehensive resources to homeowners who are interested in using less energy in their current home or want to build an energy-efficient home.
- A Consumer's Guide for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy: Your Home—Learn how to use the energy in your home more efficiently and how to utilize renewable energy.
- Building Technologies Program: Residential Buildings—View step-by-step information about building or remodeling a more energy-efficient home.
Other Helpful Web Sites
Following are Web sites from a variety of organizations that can provide information regarding energy efficiency:
- Advanced Energy Corporation—The Knowledge Library offers great information and articles about creating an energy-efficient house.
- American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy—A non-profit organization dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a means of promoting both economic prosperity and environmental protection. View the Home Energy Checklist for Action and the Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings.
- Builders Challenge—This initiative, sponsored by Building America, encourages builders to construct more energy-efficient homes. This page provides a list of all builders that have committed to building these higher quality homes.
- Building Science Consortium - Homeowners Resources—Provided by a Building America team leader, this site offers helpful articles geared towards energy efficiency and a higher quality home. You can also search all documents.
- Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation—Lots of quality information and technical resources for cold climates for both builders and home buyers/owners.
- BuildingGreen—Lots of news stories and feature articles offered online that deal with energy efficiency in design and construction.
- DSIRE - Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy—A comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and selected federal incentives that promote renewable energy.
- Do It Yourself Network—An on-air, online network that provides in-depth project instructions, easy to understand demonstrations and product tips for home and hobby enthusiasts.
- DOE's Efficient Windows Collaborative—Provides unbiased information on the benefits of energy-efficient windows, descriptions of how they work, and recommendations for their selection and use.
- ENERGY STAR®—ENERGY STAR, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, offers product-specific information on high performance appliances and lighting for the home. You can also view information about home improvement, new homes, and tax credits for energy efficiency.
- Florida Solar Energy Center—This Building America team leader offers excellent technical resources, particularly on energy efficiency for hot-humid climates. See the consumer section.
- Home Energy Briefs—Offered by the Rocky Mountain Institute, these nine guides describe what the average homeowner can do to save energy.
- Home Energy Magazine—Good technical information for both builders and consumers.
- Home-Smart—A resource for Minnesota homeowners that provides step-by-step Basic Care guides, tutorials on How Your Home Works, and Troubleshooting on moisture and energy issues. Helpful for anyone who lives in a cold climate.
- Insulation Fact Sheet and Tool—This fact sheet, provided by the DOE, covers a variety of information regarding insulation. You can also access an online tool, the ZIP-Code Insulation Program, to help determine the amount of insulation appropriate for your house based on your location.
- National Energy Affordability and Accessibility Project—The Residential Energy Efficiency Database helps consumers find energy efficiency programs a utility or state offers to help save energy and money.
- National Renewable Energy Lab—This national laboratory does a wide range of work on energy efficiency−this section of their Web site focuses on the Residential Buildings Research Projects.
- Oikos Green Building Source—Produced by Iris Communications, this is one of the oldest and best commercial sources of publications, products, and news on sustainable and energy-efficient construction.
- Simply Insulate—Helpful information about insulation and links to information about incentives in your area. This Web site was created and is maintained by North American Insulation Manufacturers Association.
- Southface Institute—A Building America partner, based in Atlanta, has great resources on sustainability and energy efficiency.
- Sustainable Buildings Industry Council—An independent, non-profit trade association that seeks to dramatically improve the long-term performance and value of buildings through outreach, advocacy and education programs.