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Autumn 2010

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Habitat
Volunteer RESNET raters assisted
South Sarasota County HFH with
ENERGY STAR ratings for Garden Park,
the affiliate’s new townhome community
in Nokomis, FL.
FLeX House
Team Florida’s entry concept,
The FLeX House.
IR Image
IR image inside a 2nd story floor cavity
open to a hot attic shows thermal stratification.
Photo credit: Chuck Withers
2 story
Photo of image above.
The floor space is between conditioned
space above and below.
Photo credit: Chuck Withers
LifeStyle Homes
Located in Melbourne, Florida,
this revised St. Croix model is
LifeStyle Homes’ first zero energy home.
Current Sponsors -
Funding Buildings Research Projects of $50k or more
-ASHRAE
-Atlantic Housing Partners
-Florida DCA
-Florida Energy Office
-Florida Natural Gas Association
-Florida Power & Light Co.
-NETL
-NRDC - Earth's Best Defense
-PNNL
-Southern Company
-USDOE Building America
-USDOE Energy Codes
-USDOE Software Tools
-USDOE State Energy Program
Publications Now Online
DOE Selects FSEC-led Residential Research Team
DOE selected the Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction (BA-PIRC) to support retrofit and new residential construction research and implementation for the next five years.
DOE Announcement
FSEC to Research Affordable Housing and Retrofits
FSEC received funding in October 2010 from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to research the energy efficiency of new high performance affordable housing and deep energy retrofits in existing homes.
UCF/FSEC Posts New Job Openings
FSEC's Buildings Research Division is currently seeking Assistants in Buildings Research and an Assistant in Building Energy Simulation. These Faculty positions are located in Cocoa.
Job Opportunities
New ENERGY STAR® Homes Standard for Houses Permitted after January 1, 2011
This fall, FSEC posted a step-by-step guide to help Habitat for Humanity affiliates reach ENERGY STAR. Building America researchers will continue to work with Habitat International and Habitat affiliates as they rise to this new challenge.
Affiliate Steps for 2011 ENERGY STAR
Habitat for Humanity Case Studies
Building America has a long history of partnership with Habitat for Humanity International and Habitat affiliates across the country. The case studies of Habitat affiliates provide insight on building higher performance affordable housing.
Case Studies
Team Florida’s Entry in the 2011 Solar Decathlon
UCF/FSEC is part of Team Florida which also includes a group of students and faculty lead by USF, FSU and  UF.  The FLeX House can adapt easily to different site situations and plan configurations and respond to Florida’s hot humid climate.  It will incorporate zero energy technologies and be displayed on USF’s campus after the October 2011 competition.
Follow the FLeX House's Progress
Pubs Now online
Opportunities for Energy Conservation and Improved Comfort From Wind Washing Retrofits in Two-Story Homes - Part I & II
Through the summer of 2009, a field study tested thirty-two two-story homes and found significant wind washing potential in 40% of the homes. Part I will highlight the evaluation methods used and the extent of wind washing found in this study. Repairs and energy monitoring were completed in six of these homes to evaluate retrofit methods and cost effectiveness of retrofit solutions. These results are discussed in Part II.
Part I | Part II
Training
Builder to Offer More Zero Energy Homes
LifeStyle Homes completed its first zero energy home in August 2010. Final inspection and testing of the home resulted in an impressive HERS Index of -6, exceeding the Builders Challenge level of performance. FSEC helped by showing them ways to build energy efficient homes and testing them at various points during construction.
Story
Training
New FSEC Training Courses in 2011
FSEC currently offers a wide range of courses covering renewable energy and building energy technology topics. Most include both classroom instruction and hands-on field experience. In many cases, attendees can receive CEU credits and some courses are approved for Florida professional license renewals. New courses are also being developed for retrofitting homes. We will keep you posted!
View FSEC's Course Schedule
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