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Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS)

RECS Terminology

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ

A

Adequacy of insulation: How respondents perceive the acceptability of the housing unit's insulation.

Air conditioning: A central (whole house), or individual (such as window/wall) system used to control the humidity, ventilation, and temperature in a housing unit, mainly to cool the atmosphere in warm conditions. Nearly all air-conditioning units are fueled by electricity, although RECS captures some units that use natural gas. Consumption and cost estimates exclude attached fans or blowers.

All-electric home: Homes that only use electricity and do not use natural gas, propane, wood, fuel oil or kerosene for any end use. May include homes that use other fuels for outdoor grilling only.

Apartment: A self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a multi-family residential building that has two or more housing units. Apartments may be owned by an owner/occupier or rented by tenants. This category includes condominium or cooperative apartments (that is, individually-owned apartments), basement apartments, or other residential structures where units are stacked vertically. Housing units that are connected side-by-side by a wall that extends ground to roof are considered single-family attached units (that is, a townhouse, row house, or duplex.) RECS categorizes apartments into those that are in buildings with two to four units—this category also includes houses originally intended for occupancy by one household (or for some other use) that have since been converted to separate dwellings for two to four households—and those that are in buildings with five or more units.

Appliances: Home appliances are electrical machines that accomplish a household function or task. Appliances include refrigerators, freezers, cooking equipment, laundry machines, dishwashers, and minor food-preparation machines. In early versions of RECS tables and analysis, appliances also included televisions and computers.

Appliance efficiency standards: The National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987 requires the U.S. Secretary of Energy to set minimum efficiency standards for various appliance categories and to make periodic updates. Appendix A from our Annual Energy Outlook describes current standards and other legislation and regulations affecting the residential sector.

Attic: A space directly below the pitched roof of a home where a person has enough room to stand up. For RECS, attics are further defined as finished/unfinished, heated/unheated, and cooled/uncooled.

Attic fan: Provides powered ventilation to cool an attic space by drawing in cooler outside air through attic vents (in soffits or gables) and pushing hot air to the outside.

Average consumption: All estimates of average consumption are computed as weighted annual averages for all housing units that use a given fuel. For consumption, averages are expressed as million British thermal units per housing unit or physical units per housing unit, for example kilowatthours per housing unit for electricity or gallons per housing unit for fuel oil.

Average expenditure: All estimates of average expenditures are computed as weighted annual averages for all housing units that use an end use or fuel. For fuel expenditures, averages are expressed as dollars spent on a given fuel per housing unit using the fuel. For end-use expenditures, averages are expressed as dollars spent on a given end use per housing unit using the end use.

B

Basement: One or more floors of a home where a person can walk upright, that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. For RECS, basements are further defined as finished/unfinished, heated/unheated, and cooled/uncooled.

Bathroom: A full bathroom contains a sink with running water; a toilet; and either a bathtub, a shower, or both. A half bathroom contains a sink with running water and either a toilet, bathtub, or shower.

Bedroom: A room specifically designed for sleeping, even if it is not presently used for sleeping. A one-room efficiency or studio apartment has no separate bedrooms.

Billing period: For electricity and natural gas, the period of time between bills. Consumption for the billing period is usually calculated by subtracting a meter reading on the billing period start date from the meter reading on the billing period end date. Occasionally, the billing period consumption is estimated. For bulk fuels, the billing period is the time between fuel deliveries.

Boiler: (See Steam or hot-water system)

British thermal units (Btu): A Btu is a traditional unit of heat defined as the amount of energy required to increase the temperature of 1 pound of water by 1° Fahrenheit, at normal atmospheric pressure. Energy consumption is expressed in Btu in the RECS tables and analyses to allow for consumption comparisons between fuels that are measured in different units. Heat content rates (for example, thermal conversion factors) are in the Appendices of the Monthly Energy Review.

Built-in electric unit: An individual, resistance electric-heating unit that is permanently installed in the floors, walls, ceilings, or baseboards and is part of the electrical installation of the building. Electric space-heating devices plugged into an electric socket or outlet are not considered built in.

Built-in oil or gas room heater: Any of the following space-heating equipment: circulating heaters, convectors, radiant gas heaters, or other non-portable room heaters that use fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas, or propane.

C

CDD: (See Cooling Degree Days (CDD))

Ceiling fan: A ceiling fan is an electrically powered fan that is suspended from the ceiling of a room that uses rotating paddles to circulate the air. This does not include whole-house fans and attic fans.

Census region and division: A geographic area consisting of several U.S.states defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. The states are grouped into four regions and nine divisions. Because energy usage differs substantially within the division, beginning with the 2009 RECS, EIA further divides the Mountain Division into Mountain South (which includes Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada) and Mountain North (which includes Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming).

Region Division States
Northeast New England Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Rhode Island
  Middle Atlantic New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania
Midwest East North Central Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin
  West North Central Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota
South South Atlantic Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia
  East South Central Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee
  West South Central Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas
West Mountain* Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming
  Pacific Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington
*Mountain South: Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico
Mountain North: Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming

Central heat pump: A type of heat pump that heats or cools an entire house or a large part of a house. They provide warm or cool air to individual rooms using ducts. Also known as a “ducted heat pump.”

Central warm-air furnace: A type of space-heating equipment where a central combustor or resistance unit (generally using natural gas, fuel oil, propane, or electricity) provides warm air through ducts leading to various rooms. Consumption and expenditure estimates for furnaces exclude furnace fans and blowers. Heat pumps are not included in this category.

Climate region: A set of climatically distinct areas, defined by long-term weather conditions that affect the heating and cooling loads in buildings. In 2009, RECS began using Building America Climate Regions, which are defined using heating degree days, average temperatures, and precipitation data. Before 2009, RECS used seven distinct climate categories originally identified by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) for the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Clothes dryer: An appliance in the home that dries laundry, such as clothing and sheets using heat and rapid air movement. The hot air used can be heated by electricity, natural gas, or propane.

Clothes washer: An appliance in the home used to wash laundry. Clothes washers can open from the top or front. The machine is powered by an electric motor.

Community solar generation: Electricity generated offsite from a housing unit using photovoltaic (PV) panels. RECS does not capture housing units that use community solar generation as part of solar estimates.

Compact fluorescent (CFL) bulb: Lightbulbs that use fluorescent lighting technology, but in a format that can be used in common household lighting fixtures. CFLs are one of three types of lighting included in the 2020 RECS questionnaire. (See Incandescent bulb and LED bulb)

Concrete slab: The foundation of a home or building that is solid, poured concrete.

Conditional end-use intensity (CEUI): A measure of energy efficiency that allows comparisons across housing units by adjusting either the end-use consumption or expenditures for the effects of certain characteristics, such as square footage or number of household members.

Condominium or cooperative: (See Apartment)

Condominium or cooperative fee: When living in condominiums or cooperatives, residents pay this fee to the homeowners’ association for maintenance, management, insurance, and in some cases, utilities.

Consumption: The amount of electricity or natural gas delivered by an energy supplier to a housing unit during the reference year, electricity generated via on-site renewables (e.g., solar panels) and consumed at the housing unit, or the amount of fuel oil or kerosene and propane purchased. Total site consumption in RECS tables and analyses includes electricity, natural gas, fuel oil or kerosene, and propane. Wood consumption estimates are also produced but not included in total site energy consumption.

Cooled square footage: The floor area in a housing unit that is cooled by air-conditioning equipment.

Cooling Degree Days (CDD): A measure of how hot a location was over a period of time relative to a base temperature. In the RECS tables and analyses, the base temperature is 65° Fahrenheit, and the period of time is one year. The CDDs for a single day is the difference between that day's average outside temperature and the base temperature if the daily average is greater than the base; CDD is zero if the daily average outside temperature is less than or equal to the base temperature. The number of CDDs for a longer period of time is the sum of the daily CDDs for the days in that period. Average daily temperature is the mean of the maximum and minimum temperature for a 24-hour period. Local weather station CDD data (annual and 30-year averages) from the National Climate Data Center are linked to each RECS household case.

Cord of wood: (See Wood consumption)

Crawl space: Space where a person cannot walk upright between the ground and the first floor of a house.

Cubic foot (cf): Standard unit of volume used as a natural gas measure. The volume of gas contained in a 1x1x1 foot cube at standard temperature and pressure (60° Fahrenheit and 14.73 pounds standard per square inch).  

Current dollars: Unless otherwise noted, all dollar values in the RECS tables and analyses are expressed in the current U.S. dollars at the time of data collection. The dollar amounts have not been adjusted for inflation.

D

Dehumidifier: A device that removes moisture from the air, and are typically used in the summer in warm climates or year round in humid climates. Can also be used in basements or other areas that are too damp. Can be either small, portable units or whole-home units.

Dishwasher: An appliance used for automatically cleaning dishware, utensils, and cutlery. As of 1988, dishwashers must be equipped with an option to dry without heat.

Distributed solar generation: Electricity generated at a housing unit through photovoltaic (PV) panels. (See Solar Energy)

Ductless heat pump (mini-split): A type of heat pump that heats or cools smaller spaces, either a single room or part of a house. They do not require any ductwork, which is why they are popular for additions or in older homes. Consists of an outdoor unit and an indoor unit, otherwise known as a “head”.

E

Electric vehicle (EV): A general term for any on-road licensed vehicle that can plug into an electric power source and uses electric power to move. EVs plug into a source of electricity and store power in a battery pack for all or part of their power needs. Includes Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) and Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles (PHEVs). Can also be referred to as Plug-in Electric Vehicles (PEV).

End use: A specific energy-consuming function for which fuels (energy sources) are ultimately used in the household. The amount of energy used for end uses is modeled using survey variables, weather data, and engineering estimates of consumption rather than being directly measured. RECS has 28 energy consumption and expenditure end-use categories.

Energy supplier: A company that provides energy to customers. An energy supplier can be a utility company that provides electricity or natural gas through powerlines or pipelines, or a bulk fuel supplier that delivers fuel oil, kerosene, or propane to a tank at the home. The RECS Energy Supplier Survey (ESS) collects information from energy suppliers who provide electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, kerosene, or propane to households. The ESS does not collect information about wood usage or cash-and-carry bulk fuel purchases.

Ethnicity: The householder's self-identification as being Hispanic or Latino. RECS questions adhere to standards issued by the Office of Management and Budget, which specify that race and ethnicity are two separate and distinct concepts.

Evaporative cooler (swamp cooler): A type of cooling equipment that uses the evaporation of water to cool air. This type of equipment is commonly found in warm, dry climates.

Expenditures: Money charged for the energy delivered to a housing unit during a given period of time. For the RECS tables and analyses, all expenditure statistics are presented on an annualized basis. The total dollar amount includes base service charges and fees, and state and local taxes. It excludes late fees, one-time service fees, merchandise, and equipment repair charges. Electricity and natural gas expenditures are for the amount of those energy sources consumed. Fuel oil, kerosene, and propane expenditures are for the amount of fuel purchased, which may differ from the amount of fuel consumed. For households that do not pay their fuel supplier directly, the expenditures for fuels are imputed.

F

Fireplace: A structure made of brick, stone, or metal that is built into the wall and designed to contain a fire. A wood or pellet stove is a freestanding fireplace that can be detached from its chimney. Fireplaces can burn wood, natural gas, or propane, or can use electricity.

Freezer (stand-alone): An electric motor-driven refrigeration unit designed for storing food at temperatures of about 0° Fahrenheit. A freezer is a stand-alone appliance, not part of a refrigerator, that can be an upright model (vertical unit with the door opening outward) or a chest model (horizontal unit with the door opening upward).

Frost-free freezer: A freezer, either separated from or attached to a refrigerator that automatically defrosts, usually on 12- or 24- hour cycles.

Fuel: The energy sources used by a household on site. The energy sources identified as a characteristic for the RECS tables and microdata files are electricity, natural gas, fuel oil or kerosene, propane, wood, and solar thermal. Fuel consumption and expenditures estimates are produced for electricity, natural gas, fuel oil or kerosene, and propane only. Wood consumption estimates are also produced but not included in total site consumption.

Fuel oil: A subset of distillate fuel oil, which is a general classification of liquid petroleum products. Residential fuel oils are less volatile than gasoline and are burned for space heating or water heating. No. 2 fuel oil is the most common type used in homes. Because kerosene use is relatively rare, fuel oil and kerosene were combined into a single fuel category beginning with the 2015 RECS.

G

Geothermal or ground source heat pump: A type of heat pump that uses the natural heat storage ability of the earth or the groundwater to heat or cool a home. The earth can absorb and store heat energy from the sun. To use that stored energy, heat is extracted from the earth through a liquid medium (groundwater or an anti-freeze solution) and is pumped to the heat pump or heat exchanger. There, the heat is used to heat the home. In the summer, the process is reversed and indoor heat is extracted from the home and transferred to the earth through the liquid. It is also referred to as a closed-loop system or a geothermal heat pump.

H

HDD: See Heating Degree Days

Heat pump: A type of heating and air-conditioning equipment that draws heat into a building from outside and, during the cooling season, ejects heat from the building to the outside. Heat pumps are vapor-compression refrigeration systems whose indoor/outdoor coils are used reversibly as condensers or evaporators, depending on the need for heating or cooling.

Heated square footage: The floor area in a housing unit that is heated by any heating equipment.

Heating Degree Days (HDD): A measure of how cold a location was over a period of time, relative to a base temperature. In the RECS tables and analyses, the base temperature used is 65° Fahrenheit and the period of time is one year. The heating degree-days for a single day is the difference between the base temperature and the day's average outside temperature if the daily average is less than the base, and zero if the daily average outside temperature is greater than or equal to the base temperature. The heating degree-days for a longer period of time are the sum of the daily heating degree-days for days in that period. Average daily temperature is the mean of the maximum and minimum temperature for a 24-hour period. Local weather station heating degree day data (annual and 30-year averages) from the National Climate Data Center are linked to each RECS household case.

Heating equipment: The equipment used for heating ambient air in a housing unit, such as a central warm-air furnace; heat pump; built-in electric units; steam or hot-water system; stove; room heater; fireplace; or portable heater. (See Central warm-air furnaceHeat pumpBuilt-in electric unitsSteam or hot-water systemWood or pellet stoveBuilt-in oil or gas room heater)

Household: A household consists of all people who occupy a particular housing unit as their usual residence or who live there at the time of the interview and have no usual residence elsewhere. Occupants can be related or unrelated. In the RECS tables and analyses, the number of households is the same as the number of occupied housing units.

Household income: Respondent-reported total combined annual income from all sources (before taxes and deductions) from all household members.

Household member: (See Household)

Housing unit: A house, apartment, group of rooms, or single room if it is either occupied or intended for occupancy as separate living quarters by a family, an individual, or a group of unrelated persons. Separate living quarters means the occupants live and eat separately from other persons in the house or apartment and have direct access from the outside of the building or through a common hall—that is, they can get to their unit without going through someone else's living quarters. Housing units do not include group quarters such as dormitories or military barracks.

Humidifier: A device that adds moisture to the air and is typically used in the winter in cold climates, or year round in dry climates. Can be either small, portable units or whole-home units.

I

Incandescent bulb: A type of lightbulb that produces visible light by heating a tiny coil or filament of tungsten wire via electric current to such a high temperature that it glows. RECS estimates of incandescent bulbs also include halogen bulbs. Incandescent bulbs are one of three types of lighting included in the 2020 RECS questionnaire. (See Compact fluorescent bulb and LED bulb)

Induction cooktop: A type of cooktop that uses electromagnetic technology to generate heat directly in magnetic cookware instead of on the cooktop.

Intensities: The ratio of energy consumption or expenditures to another metric. In RECS, intensities are provided per housing unit, per household member, and per square foot.

J

 

K

Kerosene: A distilled product of oil or coal with the generic name kerosene, having properties similar to those of No. 1 fuel oil. Beginning with the 2015 RECS, kerosene is included with data and estimates for fuel oil.

Kilowatthour (kWh): A measure of electricity defined as a derived unit of work or energy, measured as 1 kilowatt (1,000 watts) of power expended for 1 hour. One kWh is equivalent to 3,412 British thermal units. (See British thermal units (Btu))

L

Light-emitting diode (LED) bulb: A type of highly efficient directional lighting consisting of a two-lead semiconductor that emits light when activated. LEDs are one of three types of lighting included in the 2020 RECS questionnaire. (See Compact fluorescent bulb and Incandescent bulb)

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG): (See Propane)

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): A program that provides assistance to eligible low-income households in paying the costs of heating or cooling their housing units. States administer the program using funds from the federal government.

M

Master metering: Measurement of electricity or natural gas consumed by several housing units in a building (or group of buildings) by using a single meter. Master metering is more common in older, multifamily apartment buildings. RECS identifies households that pay fuel costs through rent or condo fees, but it does not specifically identify a housing unit that is part of a master-metered building.

Metric conversion factors: Estimates are presented in U.S. customary measures. Square footage estimates may be converted to metric units by using this relationship: 1 square foot is approximately equal to 0.0929 square meters. Energy estimates may be converted to metric units by using the relationship: 1 British thermal unit is approximately equal to 1,055 joules, and one kilowatthour equals 3,600,000 joules. One gigajoule is approximately 278 kWh.

Metropolitan or Micropolitan Statistical Area: A Metropolitan Statistical Area is a county or group of contiguous counties that contain at least one city of 50,000 inhabitants or more, or an urbanized area of at least 50,000 inhabitants and a total population of the metropolitan statistical area is at least 100,000 (in New England, 75,000). A Micropolitan Statistical Area, contains a principal city with at least 10,000 inhabitants, but not more than 50,000 inhabitants. The contiguous counties are included in a Metropolitan or Micropolitan Statistical Area if, according to certain criteria, they are essentially metropolitan in character and are socially and economically integrated with the central city. Both Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas are defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

Microwave oven: A household cooking appliance with a compartment designed to cook or heat food by means of microwave radiation.

Mobile home: A housing unit built off-site on a movable chassis and moved to a home site. A mobile home may be placed on a permanent or temporary foundation and may contain one or more rooms. A prefabricated or modular home assembled on-site is a single-family housing unit and not a mobile home.

N

Natural gas: A naturally occurring hydrocarbon gas (mostly methane) delivered as an energy source to individual buildings by underground pipelines from a central utility company. Natural gas does not refer to propane.

O

Occupied housing unit: A unit with someone living in it as a usual or permanent place of residence.

Oven: An appliance with a thermally insulated compartment that supplies heat and is used for cooking food. Toaster ovens are not considered ovens. Ovens with a combined stove top or burners together in one unit are considered ranges.

Owned or rented: A housing unit is classified as Owned when it is occupied by someone in the household who is named on the deed, mortgage, or contract to purchase the unit. All other housing units are classified as Rented. The rent may be paid by an occupant, by someone not living in the unit, or the unit may be occupied rent free. Rent free means the unit is not owned by the occupant and no money is paid or contracted for rent. Such units are usually provided in exchange for services rendered or as an allowance or favor from a relative or friend not living in the unit. Unless shown separately, rent-free households are grouped with rented households.

P

Payment method for energy bills: Method by which fuel suppliers or utility companies were paid for all electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, kerosene, or propane used by a household. Households responsible for paying energy suppliers directly are shown in RECS tables as All paid by household. Households who paid some fuel or end-use charges through rent or a condo fee are shown as Some paid, some included in rent or condo fee. Households for which all fuels and end uses were included in the rent or condo fee were classified as All included in rent or condo fee. If a household did not fall into any of those three categories, it was classified as Other. This category includes households for which fuel bills were paid by a third party such as a housing authority or a relative.

Portable electric heater: A heater that uses electricity and can be picked up and moved.

Portable kerosene heater: A heater that uses kerosene and can be picked up and moved.

Primary electricity: The amount of electricity delivered to housing units as well as the energy used to produce and deliver the electricity. Primary electricity is site (delivered) electricity plus conversion losses in the generation process at the utility plant and energy losses incurred in transmission and distribution.  In all RECS tables and analyses, electricity is represented as site energy.

Primary residence: A housing unit in which a householder spends the largest part of the year and is the householder's usual or permanent place of residence. A primary residence is typically a year-round housing unit. If a seasonal unit happened to be occupied for at least half of the year by the householder, the unit would be considered a primary residence.

Programmable thermostat: A thermostat that can be programmed to adjust the temperature settings for heating or cooling at predetermined times.

Propane: The most common type of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) supplied to RECS households. Propane is usually delivered by tank trucks and stored near the residence in a tank or cylinder until used, but it can also be purchased in canisters from retail stores. In RECS tables and analyses, propane also includes similar fuel gases, such as butane, supplied to a residence in liquid form. The 2015 and 2020 RECS do not include propane purchased in canisters from retail stores in estimates of propane use.

Q

Quadrillion (Quad): The quantity 1,000,000,000,000,000 = 1015 (10 to the 15th power). In the RECS tables, total site consumption is expressed in quadrillion Btu.

R

Race: The householder’s self-reported racial background. The RECS race categories are: White, Black or African-American, American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Respondents may choose more than one race. RECS questions adhere to  standards issued by the Office of Management and Budget, which specify that race and ethnicity are two separate and distinct concepts.

Radiator: A heating unit that is usually visible within the room or space to be heated and that transfers thermal energy via steam or hot water by conduction to the surrounding air.

Range (cooking): A cooking appliance that contains both a cooktop and an oven in one unit. Also known as a stove.

Refrigerator: A household appliance that consists of a thermally-insulated compartment designed for storing food at a constant temperature a few degrees above the freezing point (32° Fahrenheit). Most refrigerators have a second compartment for freezing and storing frozen foods at temperatures of 8° Fahrenheit or below. 

Rented: (See Owned or Rented)

Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS): A national sample survey conducted by the Office of Energy Demand and Integrated Statistics of the U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy. RECS provides baseline information on how U.S. households use energy within the home.

Room: A distinguishable space within a housing unit, including living rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, lodgers' rooms, finished basements or attic rooms, recreation rooms, permanently enclosed porches that are suitable for year-round use, and other finished rooms. For RECS purposes, bathrooms are classified separately. Hallways, pantries, unfinished attics or basements, open porches, and unfinished space used for storage are not considered rooms for RECS purposes.

Relative Standard Error (RSE): A statistical measure of the extent to which a sample survey is likely to deviate from its true value in the population. An RSE provides an estimate of the sampling variability of a survey statistic relative to the survey statistic itself. RSEs are expressed on a percentage scale and included on a separate tab of each RECS data table. You can find guidance on interpreting an RSE or creating a confidence interval for an estimate at this EIA website.

Relative Standard Error (RSE) Column Factor (Shown on RECS tables from 2001 and earlier): An adjustment factor that appears above each column of the detailed tables and is used to compute RSEs. The column factor is equal to the geometric mean of the RSEs in a particular column of the main tables.

Relative Standard Error (RSE) Row Factor (Shown on RECS tables from 2001 and earlier): An adjustment factor that appears to the right of each row of the detailed tables and is used to compute RSE's. The row factor is equal to the geometric mean of the RSE’s in a particular row of the main tables.  

Rural: For the 2020 RECS, housing units were classified using criteria defined by the U.S. Census Bureau based on 2010 Census data. Rural areas are considered to be any area not in an urbanized area or urban cluster. Urbanized areas are densely settled groupings of blocks or tracts with 50,000 or more people, and urban clusters have at least 2,500 people but less than 50,000 people. Before the 2009 RECS, urban and rural classifications, as well as city and town designations, were self-reported by respondents.

S

Secondary heating: Space-heating equipment and fuel used less often than the main space-heating equipment. For the 2020 RECS, respondents could select only one type of secondary heating equipment. Respondents self-report their primary and secondary heating equipment, so it is possible that a respondent may report a larger or more intensive equipment, such as a natural gas furnace, as their secondary equipment, and an electric space heating as their primary space heating equipment.

Separate cooktop: Burners that are used to cook food, but are not attached to an oven. Separate cooktops may use electricity, natural gas, or propane

Shakes: Flat pieces of weatherproof material laid with others in a series of overlapping rows as a covering for roofs. Shakes are similar to wood shingles, but, instead of having a cut and smoothly planed surface, shakes have textured grooves and a rough or rustic appearance. 

Shingles (composition or asphalt): Flat pieces of weatherproof material laid with others in a series of overlapping rows as covering for roofs and sometimes the walls of homes. Shingles are manufactured in a variety of materials, including fiberglass, plastic, baked clay, tile, asbestos, asphalt, aluminum, and wood.

Siding: An exterior wall covering material made of wood, plastic (including vinyl), metal (including aluminum or steel), or fiber cement. The structural walls may be masonry or wood. Siding is generally produced in the shape of boards and applied to the outside of a home in overlapping rows.

Single-family housing unit: A housing unit that typically provides living space for one household or family. Single-family housing units may be detached or attached. Attached single-family housing units are connected side-by-side by a wall that extends ground to roof (that is, a townhouse, row house, or duplex.) A mobile home is not classified as a single-family housing unit in the RECS.

Site electricity: The amount of electricity, in British thermal units or kilowatthours, delivered to the housing unit. Site electricity does not include energy losses in generation and transmission. Site electricity is also known as delivered electricity.

Smart meter: An electricity meter that allows two-way communication between the customer and energy supplier. A common feature of smart meters is the collection and storage of electricity usage at shorter time intervals (for example, hourly or daily).

Smart speaker: An internet-connected speaker that is used to control other devices within the home, such as lighting, televisions, thermostats, security systems, cameras, or locks.

Smart thermostat: An Internet-connected thermostat that can be programmed to adjust the temperature settings for heating or cooling at predetermined times. A smart thermostat may allow heating and cooling to be controlled remotely (for example, through a smartphone). Smart thermostats can also learn a household’s routine behaviors and adjust its heating and cooling schedule to maximize efficiency.

Solar energy: The radiant light and heat from the sun, which can be converted into electricity using photovoltaic (PV) cells. For RECS, Solar is classified as a fuel for solar thermal water heating or pool heating only. Distributed generation via solar photovoltaic cells is classified as electricity and not as a separate fuel or energy source.

Solar thermal water heating: A system that heats water using special photovoltaic (PV) cells integrated with water storage to directly heat water to provide hot water to households. The hot water may then be used for space heating with a steam or hot water system, domestic hot water heating, or pool heating.

Space heating: As an energy end use, the use of mechanical equipment (including wood or pellet stoves and fireplaces) to heat all, or part, of a housing unit to at least 50°F. Heat may be provided by main or secondary space-heating equipment. Space heating is one of the major categories of energy end-use estimates in the RECS tables and analyses. Space-heating end use estimates do not include the energy used by furnace fans or blowers, nor does it include the use of energy to operate appliances, such as lights, televisions, and refrigerators, that give off heat as a byproduct.

Square footage: The floor area of the housing unit that is enclosed by the exterior walls. In the RECS tables and analyses, square footage includes the following: finished and unfinished basements, finished and/or heated space in attics; and attached garages that are heated or cooled. Square footage estimates do not include: crawl spaces, even if they are enclosed from the weather; unfinished or unheated attics; and sheds and other buildings that are not attached to the house. Square footage can also be referred to as floorspace.

Steam or hot-water system: A central space-heating system that supplies steam or hot water to radiators, convectors, or pipes. There are two types of steam or hot water systems, one more common than the other. The more common type supplies either steam or hot water from a boiler to conventional radiators, baseboard units, convectors, heating pipes embedded in the walls or ceilings, or heating coils or equipment that are part of a combined heating/ventilating or heating/air-conditioning system. The other, rarer type supplies radiant heat through pipes that carry hot water and are held in a floor.

Stucco: A type of exterior plaster applied as a two-or-three part coating directly onto masonry, or applied over wood or metal lath to a log or wood frame structure. 

Swimming pool heater: Optional heating equipment integrated into a pool’s pump system that heats water to maintain pool water temperature at a specified level.

Swimming pool pump: An electric pump for filtering and circulating pool water. Includes single-speed, two-speed, and variable-speed pool pumps.

T

Temperature: Respondents’ reported estimates of the indoor temperature, which is typically the thermostat setting.

Thermostat: A device that senses the temperature inside all or part of a housing unit and adjusts the amount of heating and air conditioning produced and/or distributed into the housing unit.

Toaster oven: Portable table-top or counter-top appliance used for heating or broiling food. Toaster ovens are not counted as ovens in the RECS.

U

Urban: For the 2020 RECS, housing units were classified using criteria defined by the U.S. Census Bureau based on 2010 Census data. Urbanized areas are densely settled groupings of blocks or tracts with 50,000 or more people, and urban clusters have at least 2,500 people, but less than 50,000 people. All other areas are rural. Before the 2009 RECS, urban and rural classifications, as well as city and town designations, were self-reported by respondents.  

V

Vacant housing unit: A housing unit not occupied at the time of interview. An occupied seasonal or migratory housing unit is classified as vacant if all of its occupants have a usual place of residence elsewhere.

W

Water heater: An automatically controlled, thermally insulated vessel that heats and stores water, or a tankless device that heats and transfers hot water on demand. In some systems, a steam or hot water system provides hot water and heat to the home. In these systems, the water is heated by a coil that is part of the heating system and there is not a separate hot water tank.

Water heater size: Respondents were asked the size of their water heater tank. Four categories were provided: small (30 gallons or less), medium (31 to 49 gallons), large (50 gallons or more), and tankless (or on-demand).

Water heating: The use of energy to heat water for domestic hot water. This category does not include energy used to heat water via a range or separate cooktop for cooking or hot drinks, or for swimming pools. Water heating is one of the major end-use categories in the RECS tables and analyses.

Whole-house fan: A type of fan installed in the ceiling of the living space that is used for whole-house cooling by pulling in air from open windows and exhausting it into the attic. The whole-house fan is different from an attic fan, which exhausts hot air from the attic only.

Wood (fuel): Wood logs, chips, pellets, scraps, or wood products that are burned for heat.

Wood or pellet stove: A heating appliance that is freestanding or installed into the fireplace opening that can burn wood and wood-derived biomass fuel. Freestanding fireplaces that can be detached from their chimneys are considered wood or pellet stoves.

Wood consumption: The amount of wood burned in a fireplace, stove, or furnace in the housing unit at any time during the reference year. Respondents report cut wood or wood logs in cords, which measure approximately 128 cubic feet. Pellets are reported as the number of 40-pound bags or the number of tons used.

 
XYZ

Year of construction: The year the structure was originally completed as reported by the respondent.


Specific questions on this product may be directed to:

Consumption and efficiency data