This article considers four aspects of swine housing: insulation, ventilation, heat recovery and lighting. Increasing the insulation levels from poor to adequate will reduce fuel requirements in heated buildings. Loosefill, batts and rigid are the three commonly used types of insulation available. Ventilation or the bringing in of fresh air into the building in the right amounts and velocity and distributing it properly so that it blends and mixes thoroughly with the warm inside air is essential. Ventilation air-to-air heat exchangers are used in swine housing facilities to reduce supplemental heating cost and to preheat incoming fresh air. Factors such as: airflow rate, efficiency and initial cost of heat exchanger, plus fuel costs, size and number of pigs, and climate all influence the decision to use a heat exchanger in a swine housing facility. A switch from incandescent bulbs to replacement fluorescent U-tube units can reduce energy needed for lighting by 75%.