The New Build Energy Checklist: How to Get It Right From the Start

If you’re building a new home or doing a major renovation, you have a window of opportunity that existing homeowners would pay a great deal to have. The things that matter most for lifetime energy performance — insulation levels, air barrier continuity, duct routing, window orientation — are almost free to get right at the design stage and nearly impossible to fix later without tearing walls open.

Most people building a $1M home spend $50,000 on countertops and flooring and then balk at spending $15,000 extra on a continuous air barrier. The countertops can be replaced in a weekend. The air barrier cannot.

This guide is for builders who want to do it right. Not Passive House fanaticism — practical decisions, in priority order, with honest cost context. The list is intentionally sequenced: what you skip at design phase, you pay for in perpetuity.

The 10-item checklist, in priority order

These are ordered by leverage and by the cost penalty of getting them wrong. The first items are hardest to fix; the last items are expensive later but more recoverable. Do not let your builder reorder them.

• 01

  Envelope: insulation, air sealing, and thermal bridging

  The highest-leverage decision in the entire project

  The building envelope — walls, roof, foundation — determines your baseline energy load. Everything else (HVAC size, solar capacity, utility bills) flows from this. A better envelope means a smaller, cheaper HVAC system, lower solar requirement, and dramatically better comfort.

  Three things matter here, and most builders only think about one of them:

  • Insulation levels — Target R-21+ in walls, R-49+ in ceilings. For California climate zones 6–16, this is achievable and cost-effective. Don’t let the framer argue you down to code minimum.
  • Continuous air barrier — Specify it in the plans. Not caulk-and-pray, but an actual continuous air control layer detailed at every penetration and intersection. This is where most builders cut corners because it requires coordination. A blower door test at rough-in catches problems before drywall goes up.
  • Thermal bridging — Metal studs are structural thermal short circuits. Uninsulated headers over windows and doors are common. A 2x6 framed wall with fiberglass batts underperforms its nominal R-value by 30–40% due to framing losses. Solutions: advanced framing (OVE), continuous exterior insulation (rigid foam or mineral wool over the sheathing), or structural insulated panels (SIPs). Discuss with your architect before framing begins.
• 02

  Window selection and placement

  Free heating if you get it right. A cooling disaster if you don’t.

  Windows are the most consequential design decision most architects treat as purely aesthetic. Orientation, sizing, glazing type, and overhang depth interact to determine whether your windows are a net energy asset or a net liability.

  • South-facing glass with properly sized overhangs (typically 0.5–0.7 times the window height) provides free winter heating and blocks summer sun when the sun angle is high. This is passive solar design at its simplest, and it’s free if designed in from the start.
  • SHGC matters for California. In warm California climates (most of the state), you want low SHGC (<0.25) on east and west glazing to block solar heat gain. On south glazing with proper overhangs, a moderate SHGC (0.30–0.40) can be intentional. Make sure your architect is specifying SHGC by orientation, not ordering one window type for the whole house.
  • West-facing glass without fixed shading is a cooling problem that no HVAC system fixes cheaply. If you have a great west view, budget for deep overhangs, exterior screens, or automated shading before you commit to floor-to-ceiling glazing.
  • U-factor determines heat loss on cold nights. In most California climate zones, U-0.30 or better is appropriate for all orientations. Higher-performance zones (mountains, Bay Area) warrant U-0.22 or better.
• 03

  Mechanical ventilation: ERV or HRV

  Non-negotiable in a tight house

  If you build a tight house — and you should — you cannot rely on random air infiltration for fresh air. A house below 3 ACH50 needs controlled ventilation. Kitchen and bath exhaust fans don’t count: they exhaust air but don’t bring in tempered fresh air, and they create negative pressure that pulls unconditioned air through random gaps.

  • ERV (energy recovery ventilator) transfers both heat and moisture between incoming and outgoing air streams. Right choice for most California climates, where humidity management matters year-round.
  • HRV (heat recovery ventilator) transfers heat but not moisture. More appropriate for cold-dry climates (higher elevations in California, mountain locations).
  • Size the ERV/HRV based on the ASHRAE 62.2 ventilation rate for your occupancy, not just the house square footage. Route supply air to bedrooms and living areas; exhaust from bathrooms and kitchen. Have a mechanical engineer lay this out, not the HVAC installer.
  • Plan for the ductwork in the mechanical layout before construction drawings are finalized. Retrofitting an ERV to an existing duct system is difficult and rarely done well.
• 04

  HVAC system design: Manual J and right-sizing

  Bigger is not better. It is measurably worse.

  This is where well-intentioned builders get the most badly served by the industry. HVAC contractors routinely oversize systems by 50–100% because “more capacity” feels safe to homeowners and exposes contractors to fewer callbacks. Oversized systems are worse in every measurable way.

  • Short-cycling: An oversized system hits setpoint quickly and shuts off before completing a full conditioning cycle. It never runs long enough to dehumidify properly. In a California home, summer comfort is largely about humidity, not just temperature.
  • Wear and efficiency: Start-stop cycling is hard on equipment. Runtime efficiency is dramatically better during steady-state operation than during startup cycles.
  • Manual J is non-negotiable. Require a full ACCA Manual J load calculation from your mechanical engineer before the HVAC system is specified. Not a rule-of-thumb tonnage estimate — a calculation that accounts for your actual envelope R-values, window specs, infiltration rate, climate zone, and orientation. If your contractor says “I’ve been doing this for 30 years, I know what this house needs” — walk away.
  • Heat pump as primary. A properly sized cold-climate heat pump (or standard heat pump in most California climates) outperforms gas furnaces in efficiency and has lower operating cost in most utility rate environments. The “gas backup” is increasingly unnecessary and adds system complexity and maintenance.
  • Duct design matters as much as equipment size. Manual D for duct sizing, tight duct construction (Mastic sealed, not tape), ducts in conditioned space where possible. Ducts in attics lose 20–30% of their efficiency in California summers.
• 05

  Water heating: heat pump water heater

  The highest-ROI appliance upgrade in most homes

  A heat pump water heater (HPWH) moves heat from ambient air into the water rather than generating it with a resistance element or gas burner. Efficiency ratings of 3.0–4.0 COP mean you get three to four times the hot water output per kilowatt-hour compared to a resistance electric unit.

  • The correct specification is a 50–80 gallon HPWH (Rheem ProTerra, A.O. Smith Voltex, or equivalent). Install in a space with at least 700 cubic feet of air volume — mechanical room, garage, utility room.
  • Pre-wire for 240V/30A circuit at minimum. The HPWH will use it and the circuit cost is trivial to include in rough-in.
  • If solar thermal is on your radar, run conduit for future piping to the roof. But HPWH is almost always the right call over active solar thermal: lower capital cost, lower maintenance, and benefits from any future solar PV electricity.
  • In California, HPWH qualifies for significant rebates under TECH Clean California and local utility programs. Factor this into the cost comparison.
• 06

  Induction cooking: pre-electrify the kitchen

  Gas cooking is the last vestige of gas most people keep. They shouldn’t.

  Induction cooking is faster than gas, more precise than gas, easier to clean, and doesn’t burn combustion gases into your kitchen air. The main reason people keep gas stoves is habit and a sense that gas is “real” cooking. Professional chefs are switching to induction.

  • Specify a 240V/50A circuit rough-in at the range location. If you install a gas range at first, you have the infrastructure to switch later at minimal cost.
  • If going full induction now, eliminate the gas line to the kitchen entirely. Every gas appliance you remove reduces your monthly utility base charges.
  • High-end induction ranges (Wolf, Miele, Gaggenau) are available at equivalent price points to professional gas ranges and outperform them for most residential cooking tasks.
  • Indoor air quality benefit is real and measurable. Gas cooking generates NOx and particulate matter at levels that exceed outdoor air quality standards in unventilated kitchens. This matters especially if you have children or anyone with respiratory conditions.
• 07

  Electrical panel sizing: 400A minimum for an all-electric home

  Upgrading later costs $5,000–$15,000. Doing it now costs $2,000 extra.

  The electrical panel is the arterial infrastructure of an all-electric home. If you’re building with EVs, a heat pump HVAC system, a heat pump water heater, induction cooking, and solar-plus-battery, a 200A panel will be undersized or marginal. A 400A service is the correct call for new construction if you intend to electrify fully.

  • The cost delta between 200A and 400A at the time of new construction is approximately $1,500–$2,500 in materials and labor. A panel upgrade after the fact requires permitting, utility coordination, potentially running new service conductors from the street, and typically costs $5,000–$15,000. Do it once, do it right.
  • Specify a panel with ample breaker spaces — 40+ spaces. Specify AFCI and GFCI breakers as required by code, but plan for space beyond code minimums. Panel real estate is cheap now, expensive later.
  • If whole-home battery backup (Powerwall, Franklin, Enphase) is on your planning horizon, ensure the electrical plan accounts for it — backup loads panel or automatic transfer switch location should be reserved now.
• 08

  EV charging rough-in

  $500 now. $2,000–$5,000 if you go back later.

  Even if you don’t own an EV today, you will. Or your next car will be electric. Running conduit and wire to the garage at rough-in stage costs almost nothing. Returning after drywall, flooring, and landscaping to run a 240V circuit through finished spaces costs substantially more.

  • Specify: 1-inch conduit from the electrical panel to the garage, with a 240V/50A circuit pulled through. This handles any Level 2 EVSE (EV service equipment) on the market today.
  • If you have a long driveway or want charging at a detached structure, run conduit there now as well. Trenching after landscaping is the expensive version of this lesson.
  • For a two-car garage, run two circuits or plan the conduit so a second circuit can be pulled later. EV households frequently end up with two EVs.
  • The EVSE itself (the charger) can be purchased and installed later. The conduit and wire are the expensive part to retrofit.
• 09

  Solar and battery: design the roof for it now

  The equipment can wait. The roof geometry cannot.

  Solar economics are time-sensitive in a way that shifts with net metering policy, panel costs, and your utility rate. The infrastructure is not. Design decisions made now — roof pitch, orientation, obstruction placement, conduit routing — determine what’s possible at any future installation date.

  • Roof orientation: South-facing is optimal for annual generation in California. West-facing generates less total energy but the production curve aligns better with TOU utility rates (peak pricing in the late afternoon). A south-west mix is common for good reason. Avoid north-facing panels unless there’s no alternative.
  • Roof pitch: 15–40 degrees is the practical working range. Flat roofs work with ballasted racking. Steep pitches (>45 degrees) add installation complexity and cost.
  • Obstruction placement: HVAC equipment, vents, skylights, and chimneys all shade panels. Work with your architect to locate these on non-solar roof planes.
  • Conduit runs: Pull conduit from the roof to the electrical panel and to the battery location (typically garage or utility room) during rough-in. This alone saves $500–$1,500 at installation time and makes future installs cleaner.
  • Solar installation itself can wait until the economics are right for your situation, net metering terms in your utility territory are understood, and you’ve lived in the house long enough to understand your actual consumption.
• 10

  Smart home infrastructure: wire it, then decide

  Smart home tech changes fast. The conduit doesn’t.

  Smart home technology evolves quickly enough that specifying specific systems five years before you install them is a bad bet. But the physical infrastructure — conduit, wire, junction box placement — is permanent and cheap to include during construction.

  • Run Cat 6A ethernet to every room, even if you think you’ll use Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi is convenient; wired is reliable. For home offices, media rooms, and network equipment locations, wired connections matter.
  • Specify conduit (not just wire) for runs that are difficult to access. This allows future wire pulls without opening walls.
  • Plan junction box locations for future motorized shading, automated lighting, and security cameras. The box locations are set by the framing; the devices can be chosen later.
  • Install a structured wiring panel (data/telecom closet) in a central, accessible location — not just a cluster of boxes in a mechanical room corner.
  • Whole-home audio and AV wiring is much cheaper at rough-in than as a retrofit. If this is on your list, include speaker and HDMI conduit runs in the initial plan.

What most builders get wrong

These are the most common failure modes in otherwise well-intentioned new construction projects. They share a common thread: they save money in year one and cost far more over the life of the building.

Oversized HVAC

The “more capacity is safer” logic is deeply embedded in the contractor community. It’s wrong. An oversized heat pump short-cycles, fails to dehumidify, creates temperature swings, and wears out faster. The fix — replacing a system with a properly sized one — costs $10,000–$20,000 and requires convincing yourself and a second contractor that the previous contractor was wrong. The only defense is requiring a Manual J calculation before signing off on any HVAC specification.

Ignoring thermal bridging

Metal studs are structural thermal short circuits. An exterior wall framed with metal studs and R-15 batt insulation has an effective R-value of approximately R-8 due to the studs conducting heat around the insulation. Uninsulated headers over windows and doors are another common leak. Advanced framing (OVE), continuous exterior insulation, or structural alternatives address this. But it must be specified before framing begins — not corrected afterward.

No ERV in a tight house

A house built to modern energy standards with a good air barrier is too tight for passive ventilation. Builders who do excellent envelope work and then specify no ERV leave homeowners with air quality and moisture problems. The ERV is not optional if you’re building tight. It’s part of the system.

West-facing glass without shading

The view to the west is frequently spectacular. The late afternoon sun through unshaded west-facing glass is frequently brutal. Fixed overhangs don’t help on the west elevation (the sun is low in the sky). Exterior solar shades, deep roof overhangs on west facades, or accepting smaller west windows are the options. Address this in design, before the drawings are submitted for permit.

No energy modeler before construction drawings are finalized

The sequence matters: energy modeling should happen during schematic design, when changes are still cheap. Most owners get an energy model (if they get one at all) after construction documents are complete, as a compliance exercise. By then, the window sizes, orientations, roof geometry, and wall assembly are locked in. A modeler engaged early can optimize these decisions. Engaged late, they can only document them.

Finding the right team

A high-performance new build requires a different team composition than a conventional build. The key additions are an energy professional involved from the start and a mechanical engineer designing the HVAC, not just an HVAC contractor sizing equipment by rule of thumb.

For energy modeling and verification, look for a HERS rater (Home Energy Rating System) or a PHIUS-certified verifier if you’re targeting Passive House performance. A HERS rater can model your design before construction, identify high-leverage improvements, and provide the third-party blower door testing and duct leakage testing that verifies the actual build. In California, Title 24 compliance requires some of this work; a HERS rater adds the value of engagement at the design stage rather than just compliance documentation at the end.

For HVAC, hire a mechanical engineer — not just the HVAC installation contractor — to perform the Manual J load calculation, specify equipment, and design the duct system (Manual D). Many HVAC contractors do excellent installation work but have financial incentives to oversize and under-engineer. The mechanical engineer’s fee is typically $2,000–$5,000 on a residential project. It pays for itself in the first year of correct equipment operation.

When interviewing architects, ask specifically for completed projects and their final HERS scores. An architect with performance experience will know their numbers. One who doesn’t track them probably doesn’t prioritize performance. Ask for references you can call.

How to allocate the budget

For a $1M build, spending $30,000–$80,000 more on envelope, mechanical, and electrical infrastructure is a good investment. Here’s a rough allocation framework:

• Envelope upgrade (continuous insulation, advanced framing, air barrier): $15,000–$35,000 over code-minimum construction
• Window upgrades (SHGC optimization, higher U-factor performance): $5,000–$15,000 over standard specification
• ERV system: $3,000–$8,000 installed
• Mechanical engineer fee (Manual J/D): $2,000–$5,000
• HERS rater (design + testing): $1,500–$4,000
• 400A panel over 200A: $1,500–$2,500 incremental
• EV conduit and wiring: $500–$1,500
• Solar conduit runs: $500–$1,000
• Heat pump water heater over gas: $500–$2,000 incremental (often offset by rebates)

That totals roughly $30,000–$73,500 on a $1M build — 3–7% of total cost — for infrastructure that determines your energy performance for the life of the building.

Compare this to what most $1M builds allocate to countertops ($15,000–$50,000), flooring ($20,000–$60,000), and decorative lighting ($10,000–$30,000). Those are legitimate choices. But countertops can be replaced in a weekend and flooring in a week. You cannot retroactively add a continuous air barrier to a finished house without tearing off the exterior cladding. The foundation of the house cannot be upgraded after move-in.

If your architect or contractor can’t answer these questions, or becomes defensive when you ask them, that’s useful information. The right team welcomes the questions because they’re already asking them internally.