LEED AP Building Design and Construction (BD+C) Practice Exam

Which of the following strategies can increase energy performance in a building?

1. Choosing low-VOC materials

2. Efficient envelope

3. Increasing onsite parking

4. Scheduling regular maintenance

The correct answer is: Efficient envelope

Enhancing the energy performance of a building heavily relies on the efficiency of its envelope, which includes walls, roofs, windows, and doors. An efficient building envelope plays a crucial role in minimizing energy loss and improving insulation. By using high-performance materials and designs that reduce heat transfer, a well-designed envelope can help maintain comfortable indoor temperatures while reducing the need for heating and cooling systems. This is vital because a significant proportion of a building's energy consumption comes from heating, cooling, and ventilation. By optimizing the envelope, buildings can achieve lower energy use, which contributes directly to improved overall energy performance. Other strategies, while valuable, do not directly address energy performance to the same extent. For instance, choosing low-VOC materials focuses on indoor air quality rather than energy use. Increasing onsite parking does not impact energy consumption but may even lead to increased reliance on vehicles. Regular maintenance, while important for operational efficiency, typically addresses upkeep rather than fundamentally altering the building's energy use characteristics. Thus, enhancing the building envelope is the most impactful strategy among the options presented for increasing energy performance.