Niall Crosson, Ecological Building Systems
Presentation – ASBP Healthy Buildings Conference and Expo 2017, February 2017
“Airtightness is an essential part of creating a healthy, comfortable, energy-efficient living environment. Air leakage is one of the most significant contributors to inefficiently heated buildings. Research confirms that air leakage can account for up to half of all heat losses in modern buildings and reduce insulation performance by as much as 480%. It is no surprise that airtightness is now highlighted as one of the most effective means of reducing heat loss and improving energy efficiency.
Increased Airtightness can have unintended consequences if it is not combined with a robust ventilation strategy to ensure adequate fresh clean air is delivered to the occupants. It is important that once we “Build Tight” that we “Ventilate Right”.
The materials we use (such as vapour barriers) to attain improved airtightness may also have a deleterious effect on the building envelope and inadvertently lead to increased risk of mould and structural degradation over the long term.”
In this presentation, Niall outlines key considerations to ensure a healthy living climate within buildings and also key steps to optimising the safety of the building envelope against mould growth and condensation risk.