ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 58
BUILDING SCIENCES
COLUMN
Joseph W. Lstiburek
FIGURE 1 " Old Walls. " Old walls had multiple layers. Water that penetrated the outer
layer was stored, absorbed, redistributed and subsequently dried to both the exterior and interior. They were called " mass walls. "
FIGURE 2 " Modern Walls. " The water that penetrates is drained back to the exterior.
Recall the " drain the rain on the plane. "
Brick Veneer/Stone Veneer
Drained Cavity
Water Control Layer
Non Paper-Faced Exterior Gypsum Sheathing,
Plywood or Oriented Strand Board (OSB)
Wood Stud Cavity
Cavity Insulation
Gypsum Board
Latex Paint or Vapor Semi-Permeable Textured Wall Finish
Rubble
Solid Masonry
If You Want to Save
Cash...Flash
BY JOSEPH W. LSTIBUREK, PH.D., P.ENG., FELLOW ASHRAE
Sometimes obvious things are not so obvious. And when you miss them, they can be
expensive and embarrassing. Often the embarrassment is worse than the expense,
" that was dumb, " ... " that hurts, " ...and, finally " there is no way I am going to tell anyone
about this. " Well, enough time has passed...and now I am going to share.*
Here goes with the obvious. Brick and stone leak. They
have always leaked, and they still leak. Here is the catch:
old walls handled leakage differently than modern
walls. Old walls had multiple layers smooshed† together.
Water that penetrated the outer layer was stored,
absorbed, redistributed and subsequently dried to both
the exterior and interior. They were called " mass walls "
(Figure 1).
Modern walls take a different approach. The water
that penetrates is drained back to the exterior (Figure 2).
Recall the " drain the rain on the plane " discussion
( " Drain the Rain, On the Plane. The Drainage Plane. "
ASHRAE Journal, August 2019 61(8):60-64).
Having said that, and pointed that out over and over
again, people forget that old walls are different than
modern walls still to this day. I am going to try again,
one more time, to show the obvious...and then have
some fun at other people's expense.
First, I am going to conduct a field test that follows
no approved ASTM protocol. Check out Photo 1. I have
tricked a youngster into using an ordinary garden hose
to spray water against a brick veneer. This gentleman is
*There is no statute of limitations for embarrassment. However, I have found over time, it now tends to bring a smile. The time between
the embarrassment and the smile still varies, but tends to be directly related to the cost of the embarrassment. This is known as the
Lstiburek Postulate.
†I
58
am pretty sure " smooshed " is a metric term.
ASHRAE JOURNAL
ashrae.org
D ECEM BER 2020
https://www.ashrae.org/
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ASHRAE Journal - December 2020
Contents
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Intro
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - CT1
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - CT2
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Cover1
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Cover2
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 1
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Contents
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 3
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 4
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 5
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 6
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 7
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 8
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 9
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 10
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 11
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 12
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 13
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 14
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 15
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 16
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 17
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 18
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 19
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 20
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 21
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 22
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 23
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 24
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 25
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 26
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 27
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 28
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 29
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 30
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 31
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 32
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 33
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 34
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 35
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 36
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 37
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 38
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 39
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 40
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 41
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 42
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 43
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 44
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 45
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 46
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 47
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 48
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 49
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 50
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 51
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 52
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 53
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 54
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 55
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 56
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 57
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 58
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 59
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 60
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 61
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 62
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 63
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 64
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 65
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 66
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 67
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 68
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 69
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 70
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 71
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 72
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 73
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 74
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 75
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 76
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 77
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 78
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 79
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 80
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 81
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 82
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 83
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 84
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 85
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 86
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 87
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 88
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 89
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 90
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 91
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 92
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 93
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 94
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 95
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 96
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 97
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 98
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 99
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 100
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 101
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 102
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 103
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 104
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 105
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 106
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 107
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 108
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 109
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 110
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 111
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 112
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 113
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 114
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 115
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 116
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 117
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 118
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 119
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 120
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 121
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 122
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 123
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 124
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 125
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 126
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 127
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - 128
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Cover3
ASHRAE Journal - December 2020 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_MCDEBX
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_WNYSQY
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_XATVOD
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_FJSHSS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_CCBZDS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_XDEFVG
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2023november_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2023november
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_VHGNBL
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_WPKBNJ
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_UUVCDE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_RTGDEW
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraemexico_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_LKRFXS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_AZSOFG
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_ERCDBH
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_QWDFRV
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_JHGVDF
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_OPUYHG
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_SREIBM
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_LRTGLK
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_OKRFGH
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2022november_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2022november
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_TZSERA
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_LVRUIX
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_RPTVYZ
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/mini_pub_catalog
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_XIYTGD
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraemexico_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_RFGDOB
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_PABXNU
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_REMKLS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_PICVBT
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_AOYTVW
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_JQOPLS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_IOYTBC
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_SGAJJF
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_IGHYER
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_PDRKLS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2021november
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2021november_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_XCODFR
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_QSLFGO
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_ILKVNM
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraemexico_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_OPDJKD
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_VJKSRY
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_SDHUTC
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_JPPKRR
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_SDLTTH
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_CKLLES
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_SLDOX
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_HJETUK
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_OLUHGE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2020october
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2020october_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_ZERDGH
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_QVMNEO
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_RTPOKE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_BBATRE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_STUBMW
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_TPEMPE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_JNMKDS
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_FBTTPA
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_WQMMNE
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_TVBRYN
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_showguide2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_KTUZMA
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_ABEDGD
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201909
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2019septmeber_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2019september
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201908
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201907
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201906
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201905
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201904
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_2019april
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201903
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_2019march
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201902
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201901
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_showguide2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_2018december
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_2018november
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2018fall_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2018fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_2018october
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraemexico_2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201810
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraeinsights_201806
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201805
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201804
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201803
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201712
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201711
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201710
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2017fall_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2017fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201709
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201705
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashrae_meetinginsert_201610
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2016fall_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2016fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_acrexindia
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2015summer_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_amca_2015summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/amca/2014summer2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/amca/2014summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_acma_2014summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201311
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201309
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_acmasupp_2013fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201305
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201303
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/pubcatalog_2013winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201211
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/achr_expo_mexico2012
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201209
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201208_v3
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201208_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/pubcatalog_2012summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201205
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201203
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/pubcatalog_2012winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201111_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/ashraejournal_201109_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/pubcatalog_2011summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201105
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ashrae/meetingplanner_201103
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com