Airtightness of very large volume buildings: measuring Method and first results

CETE de Lyon gives support to French administration for thermal regulation definition and enforcement. They must therefore work on measurements in order to set appropriate requirements and give advice to professionals about building methods.

Air-tightness of very large volume buildings is a growing issue in France, as performance levels are now required by low-energy labels and energy savings can be significant in those buildings. However, to measure airtightness one must be able to induce adequate airflow-rate to get sufficient differential pressure. A high-capacity fan called MEGAFAN was bought by CETE de Lyon in 2009 to measure very large volume buildings.

This article gives a presentation of this measuring tool and deals with the first measurements made on very large volume buildings and their results.