- Reduced wall air leakage
- Lower energy costs
- 38% increase in wall strength
- Lower labor costs
- Less waste
The Benefits Of Tallwall
Why houses that leak air suck (and what a builder can do about it)
May 5, 2010Builders of wood-framed houses may not always pay enough mind to the question of air leakage through walls in the finished product. And they can’t be blamed, given that building codes and prevailing economic considerations tend to keep their attentions focused elsewhere.
But there’s plenty to be gained by builders who opt for more airtight walls, and TallWall makes it a piece of cake.
Taking leaky horizontal joints out of the equation
TallWall OSB installs vertically, with each vertical seam lining up to a stud. There are no leaky mid-wall horizontal joints, the traditional ‘weak link’ in the quest build a tight envelope. Of course, figuring that builders would expect independent confirmation of this claim, Norbord brought in the NAHB Research Center for verification. It asked the respected organization to compare the amount of air leakage between horizontally installed standard OSB panels and vertically installed TallWall panels.
The Center designed a means to test the claim (see tests and results) and get to the heart of the matter. The tests showed up to a 60% reduction in air infiltration using TallWall compared to the old school method.
Lower energy costs for the homeowner
And don’t forget, we’re talking about air traveling in both directions through walls. So houses built with TallWall are likely to cost less to heat in cold weather and less to cool when it’s hot. And as TallWall is reducing air infiltration, it’s also reducing the humidity that enters the house along with that air. And that means a more comfortable home. The reason TallWall delivers such a huge reduction is simple. Each sheet stretches from floor framing to top plate, taking all the mid-wall horizontal joints out of the build, making the house a tighter envelope. And, in the end, sucking less cash out of the owner’s wallet.
What’s it to you?
Using TallWall gives builders valuable new selling features to talk up. Lower heating & cooling costs. A smaller carbon footprint. Better interior air quality. And the means to score well on blower door testing.
All in all, a better house for the money.
When you can offer important new features like that, and competitors can’t, guess who consumers will gravitate toward?
[...] excessive summer heat. This includes securing our homes and offices against drafts that can cause air infiltration heat loss. The efficiency of heating and cooling systems is in fact based on the quality of the materials [...]
[...] the environment through lesser carbon emissions. Fortunately, construction techniques to reduce air leakage, and testing for the problem of air infiltration has become available to the public in several [...]
[...] cooling purposes. Moreover, almost 30% of these total heating and cooling expenses is a result of air leakage in homes and [...]
[...] check the buildings structure and design for air infiltration heat loss, and if possible, with new construction, use newer framing techniques with larger osb sheathing [...]
[...] or the construction methods out-of-date, it is expected that the building itself will be prone to air infiltration heat loss which may be the cause of inefficient temperature [...]
[...] construction to meet the demands of safety standards, such as eliminatingair infiltration and air leakage in homes, offices, and establishments where people are likely to stay during various weather [...]