Library

Cooling

• Cooling Systems
• Air Conditioning
• Evaporative Cooling
• Other Cooling Technologies
• Ventilation
• Evaporative Coolers: An energy-saving way to beat the heat
• Which Passive Cooling Strategy Is Right for You?

Electricity

• Buying Clean Electricity
• Biomass Energy or Biopower
• Concentrating Solar Power
• Geothermal Power
• Hydropower or Hydroelectric Power
• Photovoltaics (Solar Power)
• Wind Power
• Home Power Quality
• Hydrogen Fuel Cell Basics
• Wire Size Tables For Low Voltage

Also see Solar (Photovoltaics) & Wind

Energy & Efficiency

• Do-It-Yourself Home Energy Audits
• Energy Saving Tips
• Estimating Appliance and Home Electronic Energy Use
• Heat & Cool Efficiently
• The Hidden Cost of Home Energy Use
• Non-Energy Benefits of Energy Efficiency
• Professional Home Energy Audits
• The Profitability of Energy Efficiency Upgrades
• Programmable Thermostats
• Tips on Saving Energy and Money at Home [PDF 3.6Mb]
• Your Home's Energy Use

Fuel

• Making Alcohol Fuel
Biofuels for Transportation

Geothermal

• Buying A Geothermal Heat Pump
• Direct Use of Geothermal Energy
• Frequently Asked Questions About Geothermal Energy
• Geothermal Basics

Heating

• Heating Systems
• Furnaces and Boilers
• Gas-Fired Boilers and Furnaces
• Oil-Fired Furnaces and Boilers
• Wood and Pellet-Fuel Heating
• Electric Resistance Heating
• Active Solar Heating
• Solar Air Heating
• Solar Liquid Heating
• Radiant Heating
• Small Space Heaters
• Heat Distribution Systems
• Heat Pumps
• Air-Source
• Ductless, Mini-Split
• Geothermal
• Absorption
• Operating and Maintaining Your Heat Pump
• Advanced Features to Look for in a Heat Pump
• Minimizing Energy Losses in Ducts
• Radiant Floors Demand Careful Planning
• Selecting and Replacing Heating and Cooling Systems
• Limitations When Replacing Existing Systems
• Selecting Fuel Type and Type of System
• Sizing Your Heating and Cooling System
• Supporting Equipment for Heating and Cooling Systems
• Thermostats and Control Systems
• Choosing a Wood Stove
• Comparing Stove Materials: Cast Iron, Steel, Soapstone, Tile, Firebrick and more
• Installing a Woodstove: The Basics on How to Install a Wood Burning Stove
• Choosing and using your wood stove
• Central Heat from Wood, Pellets, Corn or Coal
• Outdoor Wood Boilers: An Introduction
• Heat Values and Burning Qualities of Common Wood Species
• Starting & Tending a Wood Fire
• Dos and Don'ts of Catalytic Woodstoves
• Dos and Don'ts of Non-Catalytic Woodstoves
• Consumer Guide to Heating with Pellets
• Choosing a Coal stove
• Tips for starting a coal fire
• Residential Wood Stove Installation
• Facts About Heating with Wood
• All You Need to Know About Wood Gasification
• Glossary of Wood Heating Terms
• Woodstove Preliminary Installation Guide
• Basement Woodstove Installations
• What Makes A Good Chimney?
• Dehumidifying Heat Pipes
• Duct Losses Hurt Forced Air Heating System Performance
• Electric Radiant Heat: Making the Right Choice
• Forced-Air Systems Need Pressure Relief
• Gas and Electric Meters

Hydroelectric (Water Power)

• Hydroelectric Power for the Nation
• Hydroelectric power: How it works
• Hydropower Basics
• Micro-Hydropower System: A Buyer's Guide [PDF 4.3Mb]
• Small Michell (Banki) Turbine: A Construction Manual [Free PDF 733KB]

Insulation

• A Do-It-Yourself Guide to Sealing and Insulating
• Air Barriers
• Air Sealing
• Air Seal and Insulate Your Home
• Basement Insulation
• The Best Defense Against Ice Dams: Energy Efficient Roofs
• Building Interior Window Insulation Panels
• Estimated Energy Savings from Air Sealing and Insulating Your Home
• Caulking and Weatherstripping
• Crawl Space Insulation
• Duct Insulation
• Homeowner's Guide To Ventilation [PDF 4.8MB]
• How to Insulate Water Pipes
• Installing an Insulation Blanket on an Electric Storage Water Heater
• Insulating Your Home
• Which Kind of Insulation Is Best?
• Insulating a New House
• Adding Insulation to an Existing House
• Insulation Fact Sheet [PDF 40Kb]
• Moisture Control in Homes
• Moisture Control
• Vapor Barriers (Vapor Diffusion Retarders)
• How Moisture Moves through a Home
• Moisture Control in Basements
• Crawl Space Moisture Control
• Slab-on-Grade Foundation Moisture and Air Leakage Control
• Moisture Control in Walls
• Radiant Barriers
• Effect of Radiant Barriers on Heating and Cooling Bills
• Radiant Barriers: Important Non-Energy Considerations
• Radiant Barriers: Installation Procedures
• Radiant Barriers: Test Results and Worksheet
• Types of Insulation
• Blanket (Batt and Roll) Insulation
• Concrete Block Insulation
• Foam Board Insulation
• Insulating Concrete Forms
• Loose-Fill Insulation
• Sprayed-Foam and Foamed-In-Place Insulation
• Ventilation

Lighting

• How Compact Fluorescents Compare with Incandescents
• Lighting Design
• Lighting Principles and Terms
• Replacing Lamps and Ballasts in Fluorescent Lighting Fixtures
• Tips For Daylighting [PDF 1.1Kb]
• Types of Lighting
• When to Turn Off Your Lights

Solar (Photovoltaics)

• Solar Power Glossary
• Small Solar Electric Systems
• Small Solar Electric System Components
• Installing and Maintaining a Small Solar Electric System
• Microinverters Make a Simple DIY Installation
• Solar Electricity Basics
• Solar Heat For My Maine Workshop
• Solar Radiation Basics
• Average Daily Solar Radiation
• Solar Water Pumping Guide
• RE Earthship Design: on-the-job-training
• RV Solar Electric Systems
• RV Solar - Frequently Asked Questions
• What The Heck Is A Maximum Power Point Tracker?

Water Heating

• Solar Water Heating Calculator
• Solar Hot Water System Types
• Solar Hot Water System Installation
• Collector Mounting
• Roof Pipe Flashing
• Piping From Tank To Collector
• Collector Feed Line Piping
• Collector Return Line Plumbing
• Storage Tank
• Controller and Sensors
• Pump and Valves
• Pipe Insulation
• Final Checkout
• Water Heating Overview
• Conventional storage water heaters
• Demand (Tankless or instantaneous) water heaters
• Heat pump water heaters
• Solar water heaters
• Selecting a Solar Water Heater
• Sizing a Solar Water Heating System
• Estimating a Solar Water Heater System's Cost
• Heat Exchangers for Solar Water Heating Systems
• Heat-Transfer Fluids for Solar Water Heating Systems
• Solar Water Heating System Freeze Protection
• Siting Your Solar Water Heating System's Collector
• Solar Water Heater Energy Efficiency
• Tankless coil and indirect water heaters
• Fuel Types, Availability and Costs for Water Heating
• Sizing Storage and Heat Pump (with Tank) Water Heaters
• Sizing a Demand (Tankless or Instantaneous) Water Heater
• Determining Energy Efficiency of Storage Demand and Heat Pump Water Heaters
• Estimating a Storage, Demand, or Heat Pump Water Heater's Costs
• Energy-Efficient Water Heating
• Swimming Pool Heating
• Gas-fired Pool Heaters
• Heat Pump Pool Heaters
• Solar Pool Heaters
• Installing and Operating a Swimming Pool Pump for Energy Efficiency
• Swimming Pool Covers Save Energy and Money
• Managing the water temperature
• The Integral Passive Solar Water Heater Book [PDF 8.2Mb]
• Our First Solar Hot Water Experiment
• Solar Hot Water Batch Collector
• Solar Water Heaters Also Shine in Northern Climates

Wind

• Estimating Your Wind Resource
• Frequently Asked Questions on Small Wind Systems
• Small Wind Electric Systems
• Small Wind Turbine Equipment Providers
• What do I need to know to purchase a residential wind turbine?
• Wind Energy Basics
• Wind Energy Basics
• Wind Energy Myths [PDF 211Kb]
• Small Wind Economic Model Spreadsheet Tool (to help analyze the economics of a small wind electric system .MS Excel 102kb)
• My Roof-top Wind Farm