Located high in the Colorado Rockies, the Van Geet residence is not connected to electrical utility service. Instead, the four-bedroom, three-bath house gets all its electrical power and most of its heat from solar building designs and energy-efficient technologies. Natural ventilation cools the house.

In addition to research, the Building Technologies Program supports a wide range of activities designed to facilitate widespread adoption and use of energy-saving technologies and practices. Through building project profiles, technical assistance, regulatory activities, and awards and recognition, the Program provides the information and assistance needed to help homeowners and business owners, architects and engineers, community planners and consumers make smart choices about energy.

Building Projects
Building designers and decision makers can learn how others are implementing the latest energy technologies and green building practices by visiting the High Performance Buildings database. The Building America projects database provides information on the energy-efficient homes built through Building America research projects. Zero Energy Building projects demonstrate the first steps toward designing and constructing homes that produce as much energy as they use.

Technical Assistance
Building Energy Software Tools help researchers, designers, architects, engineers, builders, code officials, and others to evaluate and rank potential energy-efficiency technologies and renewable energy strategies. To facilitate code compliance, Building Energy Codes offers compliance and implementation tools, training, and technical assistance.

Regulatory Activities
Building Energy Codes also works with other government agencies, state and local jurisdictions, national code organizations, and industry to help develop improved national model energy codes. To improve appliance and equipment standards, the Building Technologies Program participates in rulemaking and product test procedures.

Recognition
ENERGY STAR products and partnerships help businesses and consumers easily identify highly efficient products, homes, and buildings that save energy and money, while protecting the environment. ENERGY STAR works with manufacturers, national and regional retailers, state and local governments, and utilities to establish energy efficiency criteria, label products, and promote the manufacture and use of ENERGY STAR products.

 

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