BASC Search | Building America Solution Center

These factory-built walls consist of 9.5-inch I-studs sheathed with coated OSB, faced with OSB, and dense-packed with cellulose; a second interior surface of drywall is added to provide a 1.5-inch cavity for electrical wiring.

Image

Are the Walls Closing In?

Presentation

Webinar describing research on moisture performance in high-R walls.

Interior wall attached with top plate metal connector, drywall clips support drywall, side view

Image

The OSB roof decking product comes with an adhered radiant foil barrier which helps to prevent heat transfer in or out of the vented attic, while R-13 unfaced fiberglass fills the advanced-framed 2x6 walls.

Image

Completed wall retrofit of masonry home (on right) showing new lap siding attached over four inches of rigid foam; windows were boxed with plywood to accommodate depth of foam plus 1x4 furring strips

Image

Your Northern Home: Walls

Video

Video describing how walls in cold climates must address three key issues: air leakage, moisture movement, and conductive heat losses.

A double layer of hat channels installed at 90-degrees to each other with stainless-steel screws through the rigid foam to anchor cladding to steel studs with less thermal transfer; the second layer of hat channels provides increased rigidity

Image

Spray foam on a stone or rubble foundation

CAD File

Utilities are commonly recessed into cutouts in the foam after concrete has been poured

Image

New Whole-House Solutions Case Study: Imagine Homes: Stillwater Ranch, San Antonio, TX

Case Study

Case study describing a new home builder that strives to address health, safety, and durability issues in a hot and humid climate.

New Whole-House Solutions Case Study: Insight Homes: Deep Creek, Seaford, Delaware

Case Study

Case study describing a home builder that has refined its home designs to achieve HERS scores of 49 to 56 on 40 to 70 homes per year.

The Larsen-truss 9-inch wall cavities were covered with a smart vapor membrane that was fastened to the trusses with furring strips, which also provide an air gap behind the wood siding; each truss cavity is then filled with blown cellulose.

Image

Vinyl Siding Installation Manual

Reference

Publication with installation guidance for vinyl siding.

Spray foam on concrete foundation wall with framed interior wall

CAD File

Multi-Family Construction Air Sealing Guide

Reference

Report providing guidance to air-sealing multifamily homes.

Drywall was removed and the existing 2x4 walls were filled with 3.5 inches of dense-packed cellulose. Outside, the ½-inch plywood was topped with house wrap, 1.5 inches closed-cell rigid foam, 1x3 furring strips, and fiber cement siding.

Image

Attach the interior 2x4 wall to the exterior wall top plate with a flat metal connector plate

Image

Polyethylene is being attached to the crawlspace floor and walls with plywood furring strips

Image

Over the taped rigid foam board, 2x4 furring strips provide a ventilating air gap and drainage plane under the engineered wood lap siding. The furring strips were attached with structural screws to provide an attachment surface for the siding.

Image

Joni Mitchell, Water and Walls, BSI-071

Reference

Article describing walls and moisture development on them.

All About Water-Resistive Barriers

Reference

Article about different types of weather resistant barrier.

Ladder framing detail side view

Image

Furred-out siding

Image

Install the starter strip for the vinyl siding along a chalk line

Image

This kneewall has no top plate and the resulting gap provides a wide-open pathway for air and vapor to travel between the living space and the attic

Image

Right: All joints in the rigid foam are taped to keep stucco out of joints for even drying. Mesh tape (shown here) is used with expanded polystyrene (EPS); acrylic sheathing tape or self-adhered membrane is used with XPS

Image

All About Larsen Trusses

Reference

Website article interviewing the inventor of the Larsen truss, a history of its use, and a discussion of its advantages and disadvantages.

Deep-Dish Retrofits, BSI-079

Reference

Report covering exterior energy retrofits of masonry buildings.

Flow-Through Assemblies, BSI-091

Reference

Article discussing flow-through assemblies of walls.

Interior wall post support detail side view

Image