The concept of an air barrier within the building envelope is becoming increasingly popular in modern construction methods. Most of today's standard buildings attribute their success to this passive and concealed mechanism. Air barriers not only improve building energy efficiency but also lower the risk of condensation damage, help with mechanical system size, reduce the impact of wind-driven rain and keep interior air clean and fresh while minimizing pollution produced by fire smoke.
Archenergy helps mitigate those risks by providing air barrier design, with solutions for building envelope assemblies and systems transitions to ensure a continuous air barrier.
We provide Air Barrier Full Designs
We have significant experience assisting developers, general contractors, architects, and engineers with air barrier designs.
View sample project (click image to enlarge)
Our highly skilled engineers are well-versed in the key elements of a successful air barrier design. We consider financial implications, material availability, project specifications, and general contractor expertise and understanding while designing. To minimize possible difficulties with the building envelope and assist prevent sick building syndrome from airtight structures, it is critical to integrate the air barrier design with the weatherization barrier, vapor control, thermal boundary, and adequate ventilation.
We provide Air Barrier Diagrams for Testing
We have helped many air barrier testers and blower door testers with diagrams for testing.
The technique of testing the airtightness of a building envelope is known as air barrier testing. The test determines the rate of air leakage through a building envelope while subjecting it to controlled pressurization and depressurization.
Building testing is not a necessary test mandated by building codes, but rather a performance-based option that many designers demand. The only places where whole-building testing is required are in the state of Washington, the US General Services Administration, and all US Army Corps of Engineers projects.