The newest version of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) will be released soon. The update offers numerous benefits for jurisdictions, builders, and homebuyers, building on the 2015 IECC that provided for more flexibility for homebuilders.
It added a new compliance path for residential—the Energy Rating Index, or ERI path. This allows builders to meet the code by reaching a whole-house target score (a numerical 0-100 score), customized by climate zone. If jurisdictions adopt the new version in a timely manner, it will provide consistency for builders from one jurisdiction to the next, per the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project.
Newer codes have clarified sections of the IECC that had caused confusion, simplified the language, and removed contradictions between different parts of the code. For each new code cycle, the everyday users of the code--builders, code officials, raters, etc.--submit ideas for improvements that make the code better, and those ideas are voted in (or out) by their peers.
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