Several past studies tested air-leakage rates in multifamily buildings and dwelling unit compartmentalization rates, but most of these studies were performed in colder climate states and are not directly transferable to California. Therefore, there is a general lack of California specific...

Abstract: In 2021 PG&E’s Code Readiness Program research team (Research Team) initiated an evaluation and data collection of nonresidential hydronic heat pump (HP) heating equipment across California. The intent of the data collection effort was to better understand how hydronic HPs perform...

The current California Building Standards Code, Title 24, does not include minimum ventilation requirements for residential heat pump water heaters (HPWH). Building owners across California are installing HPWHs in small closets without adequate ventilation, leading to high...

Heat pumps provide significant energy savings and a path for electrification, but they typically use refrigerants with a high global warming potential (GWP), which can degrade the greenhouse gas reductions from energy savings. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has regulations that will...

Heat Pump space conditioning systems (HP) are a key tool in meeting the state’s GHG goals, however, recent data from field M&V studies has shown significant energy penalty from the incorrect operation of crankcase heaters (CCH), defrost controls and standby power usage – up to 50% of the annual...

The Palm Springs Case Study is one of eight buildings evaluated under a Code Readiness field monitoring research effort to better understand real-world performance of dedicated outdoor air systems (DOAS) in California. The Palm Springs site was renovated in 2021 with a fully decoupled HVAC system...

This report summarizes building energy modeling analysis completed over a period of time from 2022 through 2023 as part of PG&E’s Code Readiness program effort to better understand air-leakage rates in recently constructed multifamily buildings in California. The building energy modeling in...

Heat Pump space conditioning systems are an important technology in the residential sector for both energy efficiency and decarbonization efforts. This project aims to address gaps in current EE Portfolio offerings for Residential Heat Pumps when retrofitting existing buildings with no existing...

The current measure package for Water-Cooled Chillers (WCC) has several shortcomings that have been identified, most notably an unrealistic full-load efficiency (FLE, in kW/ton) requirement to go along with the part-load efficiency (PLE, in IPLV) requirement. Current WCC measures are restrictive in...

There are currently no deemed savings for high performance windows in commercial buildings in CA. A first step towards assessing the potential for a deemed measure for high performance commercial windows is to understand the market potential for such a measure. A statewide market study will be...