Publications

The most recent edition, the 2018 IECC, was published in August 2017, triggering the DOE review and determination process. In response, DOE and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) conducted a technical analysis to determine energy savings for the 2018 IECC residential provisions relative to the previous edition—the 2015 IECC. This report documents the methodology used to conduct the analysis and summarizes the results and findings.

From August 1997 to September 1999, one hundred new Arkansas homes were evaluated in two areas in the state where there was significant building activity in order to determine the energy performance of current building practices. One of the positive findings was that homes are now being built significantly tighter than a few years ago. Homes built in the early to in.id 1990's were experiencing an average of 0.5 natural air changes per hour (NACH), an acceptable level considered normal for new construction Only 24 homes in this evaluation had leakage rates exceeding 0.4 NACH; the majority of homes (58 percent) had leakage rates of 0.35 and under.

Presentation slides from the 9/8/22 Energy Codes and Utility Programs: The Peanut Butter & Jelly of Energy Efficiency 2022 Summer Seminar Series webinar.

DOE Resources and Funding to Support Resilience Work

DOE Webinar: How Building Codes Facilitate Resilient Communities
September 21, 2023

Presentation slides from the 9/22/22 Energy Code Implementation: Insights from the Field to the Classroom 2022 Summer Seminar Series webinar.

Described separately from the U.S. DOE Multifamily Residential Energy Efficiency Field Study, this report is a simultaneous study of building air tightness occurred using several of the main study buildings and additional sites that met the building type criteria. Overall, 26 sites were evaluated this way using semi-automated testing equipment (blower doors).
 

With fewer building department staff, longer distances to travel between job sites, and less opportunity for workforce education and training, energy code enforcement can present unique challenges in rural communities. This webinar will highlight some of these specific challenges faced by code officials and others in the field and describe existing solutions and new opportunities to help improve code enforcement and compliance.

Project Goal: Assess and record energy code compliance of buildings currently under construction, following the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) processes, in compliance with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), and identify procedural changes in code enforcement and training needed to improve compliance rates.

This report provides an assessment as to whether new buildings constructed to the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the 2021 IECC would save energy and energy costs as compared to the 2018 IECC. The Commercial Energy Efficiency chapter in the 2021 IECC allows users to either follow the provisions in the IECC or use Standard 90.1-2019 as an alternative compliance path. As such, PNNL also compared the energy performance of the 2021 IECC with the corresponding Standard 90.1-2019 to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

This report provides an assessment as to whether new buildings constructed to the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the 2018 IECC would save energy and energy costs as compared to the 2015 IECC. The Commercial Energy Efficiency chapter in the 2018 IECC allows users to either follow the provisions in the IECC or use Standard 90.1-2016 as an alternative compliance path. PNNL also compared the energy performance of the 2018 IECC with the corresponding Standard 90.1-2016 to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

This report provides an assessment as to whether new buildings constructed to the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the 2015 IECC would save energy and energy costs as compared to the 2012 IECC. PNNL also compared the energy performance of the 2015 IECC with the corresponding Standard 90.1-2013. The purpose of this analysis is to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

This spreadsheet contains detailed end use data results from the Progress Indicator analysis of ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2016 conducted by PNNL.

This spreadsheet contains detailed end use data results from the Progress Indicator analysis of ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2013 conducted by PNNL.

This report summarizes technical analysis conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), assessing expected end-use energy consumption in commercial buildings, based on recent editions of the model energy code for the commercial sector, ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. An accompanying spreadsheet is available containing detailed end use data results from the Progress Indicator analysis.

This report summarizes technical analysis conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), assessing expected end-use energy consumption in commercial buildings, based on recent editions of the model energy code for the commercial sector, ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. 

This spreadsheet contains detailed end-use data results from the Determination Analysis of IECC-Residential 2024 conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Summary of the full technical brief which provides requirements for electric readiness that could be incorporated into model residential energy codes. It provides background on the basis and benefits of the provisions, and model code language that can be plugged into the IECC or adapted into other energy codes.

States, territories, tribal governments, and local governments, with the support of partnering organizations, have a unique opportunity to leverage significant federal funding to support improvements to new and existing buildings in jurisdictions across the country. The Department of Energy (DOE) launched two related grant programs that government entities with the authority to adopt building energy codes, and their partner organizations, can access in support of the adoption, implementation, and enforcement of building energy codes.

2019 National Energy Codes Conference Technical program.