High performance zero energy homes provide many benefits including cost savings, energy resiliency, durability, comfort, and sustainable operation. While these types of homes have been built for a long time, the knowledge of how to build them has historically been kept by few. Now with increasingly stringent building codes across the U.S., driven by long-term energy policy and growing demands on the energy grid, all builders and implementers need to know how to build high performance. This session will review key strategies to build high performance zero energy homes discussing measures that impact building envelope, heating, cooling, ventilation, water heating, and other loads. The presentation will highlight electric technology including heat pumps.

Learning Objectives:

Understand key strategies to build high performance zero energy homes
Examine strategies to reduce building heating and cooling loads
Examine common mechanical systems
Identify key system interactions in high performance zero energy homes

Instructor: Alea German