Freeze-Thaw Damage

This research project developed baseline engineering analysis to support the installation of thick layers of exterior insulation (2” to 8”) on existing masonry walls and wood framed walls through the use of wood furring strips (fastened through the insulation back to the structure) as a cladding attachment location. Furthermore, water management details necessary to connect the exterior insulated wall assemblies to roofs, balconies, decks, and windows were created to provide guidance on the integration of exterior insulation strategies with other enclosure elements.

There is a large existing stock of uninsulated mass masonry buildings: their uninsulated walls result in poor energy performance, which is commonly addressed with the retrofit of interior insulation. Some durability issues associated with interior insulation have been or are being addressed, such as interstitial condensation and freeze-thaw damage issues. However, another durability risk is the hygrothermal behavior of moisture-sensitive wood beams embedded in the load-bearing masonry. Interior insulation reduces the beam end temperatures, reduces available drying potential, and results in higher relative humidity conditions in the beam pocket: all of these factors pose a greater risk to durability.

Basements can account for up to one quarter of the typical energy consumption in a house. Therefore, insulating foundations is a critical measure for achieving high performance buildings. This is important in both new construction and retrofits of existing buildings. The fundamental problems and “best practice solutions” for moisture-safe basement insulation have been well established. However, many foundations are damp (either due to bulk water or capillary “wicking” of moisture) or of a type of construction that is not easy or straightforward to insulate (such as rubble foundations). Damp foundation repair methods can be “leveraged” to provide energy efficiency benefits. An example of this “hybrid” approach is spray foam insulation, which can be an effective means of liquid phase water control (leaking basement), vapor phase water control (diffusion and air leakage transported condensation) as well as an effective insulation.

This paper is from the proceedings of the Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings XI International Conference, December 5-9, 2010 in Clearwater, Florida. This paper summarizes some of the limitations of the various approaches to assessing the freeze-thaw resistance of brick masonry units and presents a detailed methodology for using frost dilatometry to determine the critical degree of saturation of brick material. Test results are presented for bricks from several historical load-bearing masonry. Recommendations are made for applying this approach together with hygrothermal model in the design of retrofit insulation projects.

The primary function of a housewrap or building paper is rain penetration control. It is not air infiltration despite what the manufacturers say.

This paper examines methods of using hygrothermal models, primarily WUFI, to assess the impact of energy efficient enclosure upgrades on the durability of historical buildings. Means of producing and choosing input data for the hygrothermal simulation are discussed. Methods for using the hourly results from the simulations to generate a corrosion index and a freeze-thaw count are developed. An example wall is used to demonstrate the type of output that can be expected and how this can be used in making retrofit design decisions.

Exposure to sunlight (ultraviolet radiation) and moisture are the major factors affecting the durability of paint coatings and the durability of the substrate.

Good design and practice involve controlling the wetting of building assemblies from both the exterior and interior and different climates require different approaches.