Benefits of an Air Barrierin a Building

Presented by Mr. Roy Schauffele FCSI, CCPR, LEED Green Assoc.President Division 7 Solutions Inc.

Chairman of the Board, Air Barrier Association of America

AB-70 – 1.5 HSW/LU ABAA M-115-998

Air Barrier Association of America (ABAA) is aRegistered Provider with the American Institute ofArchitects Continuing Education Systems. Creditearned on completion of this program will bereported to CES Records for AIA members.Certificates of Completion for non-AIA members areavailable on request.

This program is registered with the AIA/CES for continuingprofessional education. As such, it does not include content thatmay be deemed or construed to be an approval or endorsement bythe AIA of any material of construction or any method or manner ofhandling, using, distributing, or dealing in any material or product.Questions related to specific materials, methods, and services will

be addressed at the conclusion of this presentation.

Copyright MaterialsThis presentation is protected by US and International Copyright laws.

Reproduction, distribution, display and use of the presentationwithout written permission of the speaker is prohibited.

© Air Barrier Association of America, Inc. 2014

Air Barrier Association of America

Presentation Code of Ethics -

The Representative, when speaking about Air Barrier technology and using language,information, presentations, logos, or any other communication means that could bereasonably likely to cause the recipient(s) of such information to believe that thecommunication represents an official ABAA technical viewpoint, shall:

• Hold themselves out to the public with professionalism and sound ethics by conductingthemselves in a way which reflects positively on ABAA and the ABAA members.

• Clearly state their affiliation

• Identify their relationship with ABAA

• Declare that they are presenting an official (unmodified) presentation prepared by ABAA

• Indicate whether the presentation is at the official request of ABAA

• This is an AIA Accredited Presentation

• This presentation will not highlight focus or reference to a specific product ofmanufacturer

LEARNING OBJECTIVESShow how a air barrier helps the building performance andresiliency

Explain the difference between a material, an ancillarymaterial, a component, an assembly and a system

Understand the process for confirming proper installation

List the support available on air barriers for designprofessions

Benefits of an Air Barrier in a Building

40% of total US prime energy expended70% of all US electric energy used

Existing Buildings Air Leakage L/(s·m²) @ pressure difference of 75 Pa

Note:2 L/(s·m²) @ a pressure difference of 75 Pa is equal to 0.40 CFM per ft² @pressure difference of 1.56 lbs/ ft²

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NY School CDN office CDN Apart US Office UK CDN School Small Com CDN Retail

Air leakage in Buildings

Existing Buildings Achievable new construction

2.74 0.40 (ABAA)

2.52 0.25 (USACE 1)

1.58 0.24 NIST 1

1.44 0.15 (USACE 2)

0.84 0.13 (Europe)

0.62 0.10 (USACE 3)

0.58 0.05 (USACE 4)

0.42 0.04 (NIST2)

CFM/ft² @ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressure difference

Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

Air Leakage in Existing Buildings

NISTPersily and Grot 1986

Persily et al. 1991Musser and Persily 2002

n = 9

FSECCummings et al. 1996Cummings et al. 2000

n = 88

Camroden AssociatesBrennan et al. 1992

n = 23

Army Corp of Engineersn = 79

PSUBahnfleth et al. 1999

n = 2

Average = 7.9 L/(s.m2)

IECC 2012 = 2.0 L/(s.m2)

NIST: National Institute of Standards and TechnologyFSEC: Florida Solar Energy CenterPSU: Penn State University

Building Codes

Code Requirement

IgCC 606.1.2.2 (Whole Building only) 0.25 CFM/ft² @ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressuredifference

ASHRAE 90.1 None for whole building

IECC 502.4.1.2.3 (for Whole Building) 0.04 CFM/ft² @ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressuredifference

State of New York 502.4.3.1 (for WholeBuilding)

0.04 CFM/ft² @ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressuredifference

Air Barriers cannot be dealt withwithout understanding that theyare part of a wall assembly”

N.B. Hutcheon’s CBD-48 - Requirements for Exterior Walls

Air Barrier Performance Requirements as Establishedby ABAA

Material - 0.004 CFM/ft²@ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressure difference (ISO

14857 ASTM E 2178)

Accessory – tapes, strips, caulking, etc - 0.004 CFM/ft²@ 1.56

lbs/ft² pressure difference (ASTM E 283)

Component – windows, doors, skylights, etc. - 0.04 CFM/ft²@

1.56 lbs/ft² pressure difference (ASTM E 283)

Assembly (Wall assembly, roof assembly, foundation assembly)-

0.04 CFM/ft²@ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressure difference (ASTM E 2357)

System (Whole Building) - 0.40 CFM/ft²@ 1.56 lbs/ft² pressure

difference (ISO 9972, ASTM E 779, CGSB 149.10)

• Air barrier material testing

PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR AIR BARRIERS

ISO 14857 or ASTM E 2178 – Air Permeance of Building Materials

• Air barrier assembly testing

ASTM E 2357 – Air leakage of Air Barrier Assemblies

• Air barrier assembly testing

ASTM E 2357 – Air leakage of Air Barrier Assemblies

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ABAA Whole Building Air Tightness Committee

Updated USACE Air Leakage Test protocol for Building Envelopes

Developing ABAA standard for whole building air leakage testing

Liaison with USACE, GSA

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Impermeability

Continuity (most important / most difficult)

Strength

Durability

PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR AIR BARRIERS

We need your help

Design the air barrier

But it doesn’t stop there

On Site Realities

The best design in theworld can be compromised

by the installation

ABAA focuses on theinstallation to ensure that

the design is properlytransferred to the site

But installation has to startwith proper substrate

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So you think that yourdesign is great and your job

is done, right?

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If you want your air barrierto perform and your

building to perform, youneed ABAA’s help

ABAA Site QualityAssurance Program

Benefits of Quality Assurance

Installer Training• Foundation for the SQAP is proper installer

training on the installation of air barriers

• Training is provided for:Self adhered

Fluid applied – non foaming

Fluid applied – foaming (spray polyurethane foam)

Mechanical fastened flexible membranes

Mechanical fastened boardstock – non insulating

Mechanical fastened boardstock – insulating

Flexible thin membranes

Sealants

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Installer Certification

• Certification is the confirmation that the installerhas the necessary knowledge, skills and abilitiesrequired to complete a task

• ABAA uses BPQI to provide ISO 17024 compliantcertifications.

• Certification is critical to risk management

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Contractor Accreditation• Installers work for contractors

• Contractors are normally an entity not a person

• Contractor needs to take on responsibilities touse proper material

use trained and certified people

follow instructions from the owner, designprofessionals, manufacturer and ABAA

signs a legal agreement saying that they will dothings right and correct defects

provide a warranty for the installation

lead the team to solve site issues

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Manufacturer Product Listing

• Manufacturers need to

meet ABAA requirements for material

test their material to prove they meet therequirements

sign a legal agreement saying that they willproduce the material they declared

correct any deficiencies in the material

provide a warranty for the material

be part of the team to solve on site issues

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Everybody Pulling Together

• ABAA’s Site Quality Assurance Program is a riskmanagement program

• Program is designed to keep problems fromoccurring rather than focusing on correctionsafter inspections

• Program brings the parties together to keepproblems from happening and to resolveproblems when they occur

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Model Specifications

• Basis for a proper installation

• Required Available for each type of material

• Required to obtain the ABAA SQAP

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Technical Support

• Provided by ABAA on basic issues

• ABAA is the gateway to subject matter experts forcomplicated issues

• ABAA library

• Design professionals training

• Standards development

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Mock-Ups

• Recommended for every project

• Find the problems before they become problems

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Confirmation

• ABAA provides a specialized audit process forthe installation

• Goal is to resolve issues not inspect for issues

• Part of the on-going training process for allinvolved

• Supplements the owner’s third partyinspection/commissioning process

• Focused so it can be more specific

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Site Air Barrier Audits

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Site Air Barrier Audits

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Report Distribution

• Site audit reports generated

• Provided to all the parties

Design professional / owner

General contractor

Air barrier contractor

Manufacturer

• Identifies issues to be addressed and providesguidance on corrections

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Process for Correcting Defects

• Once an issue has been identified, the contractoris obligated under the SQAP to correct it.

• ABAA oversees the rework and providestechnical support when required.

• When material issues are identified, ABAA bringsin the manufacturer

• ABAA manages any conflict resolution whenrequired

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Follow-Up Audits

• When an audit has identified issues wherecorrective action is required, ABAA may requirean additional audit which cost is born by thecontractor

• The additional audit report is circulated to allparties involved so that the corrective action isdocumented

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Site Testing and Inspection

• Installer obligated to do daily site testing andinspection and record results on a Daily WorkRecord

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Pressure Testing

• Movement toward whole building testing

• Requirement in some project specifications

• Some states and some cities are requiring wholebuilding testing

• Whole building testing part of a buildingenclosure commissioning process

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ABAA Research

Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

Monitor 3 panels per air barrier type

Level 1 < 0.02 L/(s.m2) (material)

Level 2 ~ 0.2 L/(s.m2) (assembly)

Level 3 ~ 1 L/(s.m2) (enclosure)

Simulated imperfections

Phase 2 at Syracuse NET Facility

Interior Spray-appliedfoam

Mechanicallyfastened

Non-insulatingboard stock

Insulatingboard stock

Sealers w/backup structure

Fluid-appliednon-foaming

Self-adhered

Evaluating 8 air barrier types

Data collection started on October 2012

Special Projects

Research Projects

3rd year of ORNL/DOE/Syracuse University Research Project

RESEARCH WORK BEING DONE

RESEARCH WORK BEING DONE

Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

Phase 2: Preliminary Results

November 6, 2011

Hour

(16) 1/4”φ holes(4) 1/4”φ holes

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3

Air Leakage [L/(s.m2)]at ∆P = 21.3 Pa

Avg Heat Flux(W/m2)

Level 1 < 0.02 -3.2

Level 2 ~ 0.11 -4.2

Level 3 ~ 0.33 -10

Phase 2: Preliminary Results

November 2011 December 2011

Monthly Heat Loss (W.h/m2)

Air leakage @ 75 Pa [L/(s.m2)] Level 1 (< 0.02) Level 2 ≅ 0.21 Level 3 ≅ 0.72

November 2011 564 629 990

December 2011 983 1057 1506

Air Barriers Association of America Realized that a whole industry needed to be developed

Whole building testing a component of the whole industry

Work needs to be performance based and scientifically defensible

Developed standards which were adopted by government agencies

Weakest link is craftsmanship of installers – a focus for ABAA

Inclusive of the whole industry (manufacturers, design professionals,contractors, installers, testers and inspectors

THE organization for anything on air barriers

This concludes The American Institute of ArchitectsContinuing Education Systems Program

abaa@airbarrier.org

Thank you for your time!

ANY QUESTIONS??