Building America Climate-Specific Guidance
Select a climate zone from the map above, and view a listing of climate regions by county in the Guide to Determining Climate Regions: Volume 7.1 to view climates by county.
Building America's Best Practices handbooks and case studies demonstrate real world solutions for improving the energy performance and quality of new and existing homes in five major climate regions. By organizing guides by climate region, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) helps builders find information specific to the region where they are operating.
- Cold and Very Cold Climates
- Hot-Dry and Mixed-Dry Climates
- Hot-Humid Climates
- Marine Climates
- Mixed-Humid Climates
You can also use the map to access the Best Practices Series handbooks and case studies by climate zone.
Solutions that Work Across Climates
DOE has developed several building solutions that work across climate regions.
- Insulation: A Guide for Contractors to Share with Homeowners identifies steps to take to increase insulation in homes, ensure healthy levels of ventilation, and prevent moisture problems.
- HVAC: A Guide for Contractors to Share with Homeowners offers tips about energy-efficient heating, ventilation, and cooling options to help homeowners cut their energy use, reduce carbon footprint, and increase their homes' comfort, health, and safety.
- Energy Performance Techniques and Technologies: Preserving Historic Homes (Volume 13) focuses on being aware of and adhering to historic designation regulations, and addressing health and safety issues while preserving the features that make historic homes appealing.
- Air Sealing: A Guide for Contractors to Share with Homeowners (Volume 10) provides information to help homeowners understand ways to seal unwanted air leaks in homes, while ensuring healthy levels of ventilation and avoiding indoor air pollution.
- Solar Thermal & Photovoltaic Systems (Volume 6) features current photovoltaic and solar thermal building practices by more than a dozen builders.
For additional, updated information on hundreds of building science topics that can help you build or retrofit to the most recent high-performance construction criteria, including the latest version of ENERGY STAR and the DOE Challenge Home requirements, see the Building America Solution Center.