High Performing Buildings - Spring 2009 - (Page 56) turned up the wall from the floor. The drainage mat below the insulated slab will allow some water to be stored and will carry any excess water to an interior sump pit. This pit can be fitted with a sump pump in the future if there is any sign that the ground water level is changing. Building paper “insulation stop” retained the spray insulation when it was installed under the roof deck. An air handler in the attic supplies the attic and second floor. A pleated media filter was installed at the return. The original builders left their mark embedded in the parge coat over the chimney, “Built July 1915.” Air Barrier Continuity For an air barrier to be effective, it needs to wrap all six sides of the “conditioned cube,” and all components need to be connected in a continuous manner. The new slab was connected to the basement walls with spray foam that extended from the new basement slab to the rim sill, directly under the first floor. The corrugated housewrap became the air barrier at the exterior wall above grade, helped by the two staggered layers of foam sheathing installed over it. At the roof-wall interface, the spring 2009 air barrier was transferred back to the interior at the soffit where the housewrap was adhered to the board sheathing and then connected with spray foam to the top plate of the second floor wall. It was continued with more spray foam to the interior side of the roof board sheathing. Thermal Continuity The insulation followed the same path as the air barrier to wrap all six sides of the cube. Starting at the basement, the existing slab floor was covered with 2 in. of XPS. The existing basement walls were Exposed spray foam insulation on the basement walls was covered with gypsum board over metal studs. 56 HigH Performing Buildings
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