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Info-512: Crawlspace Insulation

The crawlspace is insulated to control heat flow and to minimize cold surfaces that can condense water and elevate local relative humidity.

Info-408: Critical Seal (Spray Foam at Rim Joist)

The rim joist, band joist, or any area that connects building components, are particularly problematic to air seal properly.

BSI-049: Confusion About Diffusion

An edited version of this Insight first appeared in the ASHRAE Journal. Imagine a three-dimensional molecular billiard game with billiard balls that are sometimes sticky, and where the rules depend on where you are on the table. Then assume that there are many different types of tables and pockets of different sizes.

Hot-Humid House Design Recommendations

In the first part of the text, which describes the Basic Hot-Humid Climate House, you will find a step-by-step explanation of how we applied climate-specific design and building science principles. The second section describes advanced technology packages that can be added to further increase the energy savings achieved by the basic house. At every step, we show you how our decision-making was guided by the whole house energy model.

Lake Charles, LA House Plan Example

Two story, three bedroom, two bath single family house with pier foundation.

New Orleans, LA House Plan Example 3

One story, three bedroom, two bath single family house on piers.

BSD-103: Understanding Basements

Buildings used to be constructed over cellars. Cellars were dank, dark places where coal was stored. People never intended to live in cellars. Now we have things called basements that have pool tables, media centers and play rooms. Cellars were easy to construct – rubble, stone, bricks and sometimes block. If they got wet or were damp so what? Basements are different. They are not easy to construct if we intend to live in them. They need to be dry, comfortable and keep contaminants out. Over the last 50 years there has been a notable expansion of living space. The useful conditioned space of building enclosures is expanding to the outer edge of the building skin (Figure 1). Attics, crawlspaces, garages and basements are valuable real estate that are being used to live in or used for storage or places to locate mechanical systems. Basements are viewed by many as cheap space that can easily be incorporated into a home. Keeping basements dry, comfortable and contaminant free is proving to be anything but simple.

Mold Explosion: Why Now?

Today’s houses make it easier for mold to find the food and water it needs to thrive. The cure is a quick cleanup and smarter choices in materials. Reprinted with permission from Fine Homebuilding, December 2006/January 2007, pages 70-75.

Info-310: Vapor Control Layer Recommendations

The current International Residential Code (IRC 2009) provides excellent guidance for the installation of vapor control layers.

Info-312: Vapor Permeance of Some Building Materials

Good design and practice involve controlling the wetting of building assemblies from both the exterior and interior and different climates require different approaches. This chart lists some common vapor permeance characteristics.

BSD-007: Historical Development of the Building Enclosure

Historical works, notably the Roman Vetruvius’ Ten Books of Architecture, that describe buildings begin with an historical overview. Archaeological and anthropological studies have furthered this understanding. The history of the built form and the building enclosure is more than just a curiosity: understanding the history helps explain many of the buildings types, construction techniques and building materials that we use today. This digest provides a brief overview of the development of the building enclosure and can serve as an entry point into a deeper historically-informed study of buildings and building science.