Reports a series of tests of the air leakage of new homes built and sold in the Ottawa area in 1978. The homes were tested by depressurizing them to apressure difference of 10 Pascals. 80 tests were made involving 63 houses and 9 builders. The relative tightness of a house was defined as the volume rate of infiltration under 10 Pa divided by the area of the building envelope that separates the heated volume from outside conditions. Gives results with relative tightness of each house.
Presents the results from a major airtightness survey carried out in Norwegian dwellings. 61 detached houses and 34 flats were pressure tested. In 14 of the detached houses and 6 of the flats, leakage paths were traced using thermography. Gives tables of results. Lists most common leakage paths located by thermography. Occupants of the dwellings were interviewed about draught problems, but there was no clear correlation between occupant dissatisfaction and leakage rate. Notes a considerable variation in leakage between the houses.
Describes the current research programme of the Laboratory concerning air infiltration and ventilation. Gives some technical details. The programme consists of three main projects: 1) The development of mathematical calculation models to predict the interconnections between air tightness, ventilation, air change rates, pressure conditions and energy consumption. This model will be tested in practice. 2) The development of airtight structures and structural joints and sealing methods. Evaluation of theeconomical effects of airtightness is also included in this project.
Describes a method for determining the leakage of an entire building. Each room is pressurized in turn and the leakages of individual rooms are summed to find the total leakage of the building. Derives the equations for calculating total leakage and gives an example of the method applied to a row of three offices.
Presents the air leakage characteristics obtained from measurements of nine brick and concrete block walls in the DBR/NRC huts at Ottawa and Saskatoon. The leakage characteristics of the first three walls were obtained in the Saskatoon test huts - the remainder were obtained in the Ottawa huts. All thetest huts had an overall plan area of approximately 6 ft. by 6 ft. The effects of fill-insulation and different surface finishes were determined.
States that concern for weathertightness requirements for windows has increased recently. Discusses standard methods for testing air leakage and rain penetration of windows. Illustrates some general findings on air leakage. Discusses relationship between air leakage and rain penetration. Outlines characteristics of leakage through doors.
Air leakage through the junction between wall and roof of a building can cause damage from excess dampness. Discusses in detail the problem of constructing atight wall/roof junction for different forms of roof construction. describes installation of roof membrane and vapour barrier.< Also describes problem of air infiltration through uninsulated soffits. Outlines various solutions.
Outlines forces causing air leakage through openings in a building. Discusses likely leakage paths and states importance of identifying these and improving the air tightness of walls, windows, floors and roofs.
Reports tests of the air leakage of 24 houses made using a fan to depressurize each house. Gives a table of results including indoor humidity, air-particulate levels, energy consumption and comfort conditions for each house. Comparison of test results with calculated values for air leakage suggests than doors and windows account for only a fraction of the total. Finds some correlation between indoor humidity, air-particulate levels and leakage.
Describes results of measurements of air leakage, surface pressures and air infiltration for several conventional and energy efficient houses located throughout the United States. The measurements are compared with predicted infiltration obtained from a simple model combining measured air leakage values and average surface pressures. It was found that within limits therewas reasonable agreement between measurements and predictions. Particular features of the energy efficient houses which reduce air leakage, and therefore air infiltration, are described.
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