Aerosol Envelope Sealing for Residential New Construction

Ben Schoenbauer, Senior Research Engineer

Energy Design Conference & Expo

February 20,2018

Center for Energy and Environment

Pg. 2

Discover + Deploy the most effective solutions for a healthy, low-carbon economy

Research

Financing Policy

Programs Planning & Consulting

In accordance with the Department of Labor and Industry’s statute 326.0981, Subd. 11, “This educational offering is recognized by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry as satisfying 1 hour of credit toward Building Officials and Residential Contractors continuing education requirements.” For additional continuing education approvals, please see your credit tracking card.

Pg. 4

Presentation Overview

•  Air Sealing Benefits •  Basic Concept •  Development Timeline •  Building America Project • Other Efforts •  Path Forward

Pg. 5

Energy Benefits •  Large fraction of energy use for heating and cooling

•  48% in residential •  35% in commercial

•  Reducing envelope leakage could reduce HVAC energy use by 30%

•  Envelope tightness standards only recently required in codes

•  Cost-effective approaches to sealing envelope leakage would improve adherence to code

Pg. 6

IECC Codes Around U.S. Morestringentcodesareforcingbuilderstochangethewaytheybuildhomes

In2015Minnesotaenergycoderequires6ghtnessnogreaterthan3ACH50forsinglefamilyandlow-rise

mul6familybuildings

Source:DOEEnergyCodesProgram,updatedDecember15,2017

Pg. 7

Single Family Air Tightness • Over the last 10 – 15 years Minnesota builders have

adopted air sealing strategies to build tight single family houses.

•  Recently tightness requirements have expanded and tightened

•  For many builders townhouses and slab on grade houses have still been a challenge

•  air sealing strategies have typically not been applied to multifamily buildings

Pg. 8

Health Benefits •  Reduced infiltration of outdoor air and outdoor

pollutants: particulates (PM2.5) and Ozone

•  Improves effectiveness of mechanical ventilation •  HRV or ERV and filters •  Putting HRV/ERV on leaky building doesn’t save energy or

reduce uncontrolled infiltration

•  Reduce pollutant transfer between units in multifamily buildings

Pg. 9

Multifamily Noise Transfer Minnesotacoderequirement

10dB~differencebetweenagarbagedisposalanddishwasher

Pg. 10

Benefits for Large Buildings •  A tighter envelope makes it possible to pressurize

buildings using HVAC system – reduce infiltration

•  Better and more efficient air flow control in sensitive spaces

•  Elimination of outdoor chemical infiltration •  Contagious disease spaces •  Clean rooms •  Laboratories •  Schools in non-compliance areas (have current CEC project on

HVAC and IAQ in schools)

Pg. 11

How Does It Work? •  Blower Door creates and maintains positive

pressure

•  Spray “fog” of sealant particles into the house

•  Particles carried to leaks by escaping air flow

•  Process is tracked and displayed in real time and documented electronically

•  Finds and seals leaks missed or inaccessible by manual trial-and-error methods

How does it do that?

No, really? (animation video here)

SealantislowVOC:GREENGuardGoldCer6fiedforuseinCaliforniaschoolandhealthcarefacili6es.

Sealantisasynthe6cacrylic–typicallyrolledorsprayedonformonolithicexteriorairbarrier.Dilutedforaerosolapplica6on.

Pg. 13

Automated AeroBarrier Sealing

Bottom plate/sheathing gap Missing foam Penetrations

Pg. 14

Development Timeline

Pg. 15

Demonstrations with Habitat for Humanity •  First demonstration in real building •  Determined need for multiple injection point •  It worked!

Pg. 16

Honda Smart Home •  Implemented temp/humidity control

7

3

4.15

2.61 2.56

0.79 0.6

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

8.0

2009IECC 2012IECC PreTest1 PostTest1 PreTest2 PostTest2 Goal(PassiveHouse)

ACH5

0

Manualsealingaccomplishedby3contractorsover8hours

Pg. 17

•  Sealedmul6pleapartmentsinaday•  Side-by-sideapplica6onhumidityanalysis•  Be]ersealqualitywithhigherRH

•  Measuredsoundtransmissionreduc6on

•  Determinednopreprequired

New York Apartments

Pg. 18

Minnesota Multifamily Sealing Results: 18 New Construction Units

Before = 3.9 ACH50, after = 0.7 ACH50 54% to 95% below code requirement

Pg. 19

Leakage Reduced Over Injection Period

ACH50 pre: 2.0 – 2.9, post: 0.2 – 0.7; 71% to 94% reduction

New construction Floor area: 900 to 1,300sf Needed to meet 0.3 cfm50/sf or about 5 – 7 ACH50

BuildingB

Pg. 20

Sealing Rate

Stop6me?

BuildingB

Pg. 21

Minnesota Multifamily Sealing Results: 9 Existing Units

Average leakage: pre= 14.6 ACH50, post= 4.8 ACH50 6 of 9 within 15% of new construction code requirement

Pg. 22

Leakage Reduced Over Injection Period

ACH50 pre: 12.0 – 17.2, post: 1.4 – 10.5; 39% to 88% reduction

Existing units Floor area: 230 to 250sf Sealed 4 in one day

Largeleakbehindkitchencabinet

BuildingD–AffordableHousing

Pg. 23

Pre-Sheetrock Sealed leaks

Sealformedbetweengapinfoam

Pg. 24

Post-Sheetrock Sealed Leaks

Sealformedbetweengapinfoam

Pg. 25

Aerosol Envelope Air Sealing Technology for New Homes

How to integrate AeroBarrier envelope sealing into home building process:

•  Determine appropriate time during construction for application

• Measure performance relative to conventional methods

•  Determine existing sealing efforts that could be avoided

•  Determine cost-effectiveness

Partners:BuildingKnowledge,UCDavis,UofMColdClimateHousing,Aeroseal

Pg. 26

Project Team

Pg. 27

Building America Project Approach HouseLeakage

Assessment

• Reviewexis6ngsealingprac6ces• Aerosolsealingdemonstra6on

DevelopTwoSealingOp6ons

• Meetwithbuildertogooverop6ons• Picktwopromisingapproaches

PerformAerosolSealing

• Sealatleasttwohomesundereachop6on• Evaluateimpactrela6vetobaseline

RefineSealingOp6ons

• Refinemostpromisingop6on

PerformAerosolSealing

• Seal3-4homesunderrefinedop6on

Pg. 28

Air Sealing Assessment Atticaccesspanels GasketedDoor No Excellent

Dropdownstairs N/A N/A

Whole-housefans N/A N/A

Recessedlightingfixtures N/A Gasketedfixture Yes Excellent

Dropceil ing/soffit InsulationContractor ClosedCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

ExteriorWalls InsulationContractor Gasket/OSB N/A Excellent

Sil l Plate CarpentryContractor Gasket/OSB Yes Acceptable

TopPlate InsulationContracor Gasket Yes Acceptable

Drywalltotopplate InsulationContracor Gasket Yes Excellent

InteriorpartitionwalltoexteriorwallCarpentryContractor/InsulationContractor SolidBlocking/CanFoam Yes Excellent

Kneewalls CarpentryContractor OSB Excellent

Windows,skylightsanddoors Roughopenings WindowInstallationContractor CanFoam Yes Excellent

Rimjoists InsulationContractor OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Ducts InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam No Excellent

Flues InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam No Excellent

Shafts InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam No Excellent

Plumbing InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Piping InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Wiring InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Exhaustfans InsulationContractorCanFoam/OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Other N/A

GarageseparationwallsFloorcavitiesalignedwithgarageseparationwalls

CarpentryContractor/InsulationContractor

Blocking/OpenCell SprayFoam No Excellent

Shower/tubonexteriorwallCarpentryContractor/InsulationContractor OSB/OpenCell SprayFoam Yes Excellent

Stairstringeronexteriorwall None Yes N/A

Fireplaceonexteriorwall N/A N/A N/A N/A

Electrial/lowvoltageboxesonexteriorwalls None Yes N/A

HVACregisterbootsthatpenetratebuildingthermalenvelope N/A Yes N/A

Ceiling/Attic

Walls

Shafts,penetrationstounconditionedspaces

Other

Qualityofsealwork

Category Component Whodoessealing? Materialusedforsealing? CanAeroBarrierReplace?

ENERGYSTARRaterFieldChecklist

Pg. 29

Building America Interim Results •  California Builder #1 •  Homes designed with sealed attics •  Using open-cell spray foam

•  Under roof deck •  At rim joist and other mechanical penetrations

•  Fiberglass in wall cavity •  HRV integrated into central air handler •  Target leakage of 800 CFM50 (2.1-2.4 ACH50)

Pg. 30

Conventional Sealing

Can foam at seams where wood is joined

Canfoamandgasketatsillplate

Foamgaskettosealdrywalltotopplate

Pg. 31

Sealing Options •  Sealing options

•  Option 1: Seal home after open-cell spray foam insulation •  Option 2: Seal home before spray foam insulation

•  Advantage of sealing before drywall •  Addresses outer wall surface •  Seals less prone to damage in wall cavity •  Better aerosol distribution

Pg. 32

Option 1

Foam at roof deck

Foamatrimjoist

Pg. 33

Option 1 Results

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

0 20 40 60 80 100

Leakage(cfm

at5

0Pa)

ElapsedMinutes

Stage/Op6on

Lot

Plan

FloorArea(f2)

Volume(f3)

Pre-Seal Post-Seal

CFM50 ACH50 CFM50 ACH50 %Reduc6onAferFoam 7 3 2569 23121 1690 4.39 429 1.11 75%AferFoam 8 1 2032 22215 1286 3.47 351 0.95 73%

Pg. 34

Option 1 Example Seals

Seals formed under trusses

Seal formed at corner of wall assembly

Pg. 35

Option 2

Exposed roof deck

RimjoistpenetraEons

Pg. 36

Option 2 Pre sealing work •  Large penetrations needed to be sealed prior to

aerosol sealing •  Time/materials for pre-sealing was tracked

Pg. 37

Prepare for unexpected!

Exposed roof deck RimjoistpenetraEons

Pg. 38

Pre-Sealing Time/Materials SealingPenetra?ons SealingGapatEaves

Stage/Op?on Lot TimeforManualSealing

(person-hours) Cansof

FoamUsed

TimeforManualSealing(person-hours)

CansofFoamUsed

BeforeFoam 23 1.5 3 1.5 4

BeforeFoam 24 4.5 6 1 4

*Note:Pre-sealingworkperformedbyinexperiencedstaff

Pg. 39

Option 2 Results

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

0 50 100 150 200

Leakage(cfm

at5

0Pa)

ElapsedMinutes

Stage/Op6on

Lot

Plan

FloorArea(f2)

Volume(f3)

Pre-Seal Post-Seal AferFoam

CFM50 ACH50 CFM50 ACH50 %Reduc6onCFM50 ACH50%Reduc6on

BeforeFoam 23 3 2569 23121 5836 15.14 828 2.15 86% 483 1.25 42%

BeforeFoam 24 2 2223 20007 3005 9.01 477 1.43 84% 352 1.06 26%

Pg. 40

Option 2 Example Seals

Pg. 41

Summary Results

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

16.0

Op6on1 Op6on1 Op6on2 Op6on2

ACH5

0

Pre-Seal Post-Seal Op6on2AferFoam

AferSprayFoam BeforeSprayFoam

Tightnessgoalsachievedw/osprayfoam

Pg. 42

California Builders - Path Forward

•  Final leakage tests when homes are complete • Work with Builder #2 high performance (sealed) attics

•  Owens Corning box netting attic insulation •  AeroBarrier produce tighter houses than current sealing?

• Work with Builder #1 vented attic houses •  Before drywall in place

•  Develop guidelines for future installations

Pg. 43

Minnesota Builders • Minnesota Builder #1 •  Homes designed with ventilated attics •  Closed-cell spray foam at rim joist •  Interior poly wrap •  Fiberglass/mineral wool in wall cavity •  ERV integrated into central air handler

Pg. 44

Conventional Sealing

Caulk at seams where wood is joined

CanfoamatwirepenetraEons

Caulkatsillplate

Pg. 45

Proposed Sealing Options • Option 1:

•  Seal home after spray foam at rim joist •  Reinforced poly at ceiling-attic interface •  Maintain conventional sealing

• Option 2 (Ultimately not implemented): •  Seal home after spray foam at rim joist •  Reinforced poly at ceiling-attic interface •  Do not install:

•  Airtight electrical boxes •  Interior poly

Pg. 46

Sealing Results

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

Leakage(cfm

at5

0Pa)

ElapsedMinutes

Pg. 47

Reinforced Poly Failure

Pg. 48

MN Builder #1 Results Summary

3.94 3.81 3.78

2.87 2.82

0.64

1.050.67

1.55

0.97

0.35

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

5.0

Demo1 Blaine Eagan Plymouth Lakeville Demo2

ACH5

0

Pre-Seal Post-Seal

84%72%82%46%66% 50%

PercentReduc?on

BaOInsula?oninWalls ARerDrywall

Pg. 49

Seals

Seal formed between studs

Seals formed at wire penetrations

Seal formed at electrical box

Seals formed at plumbing penetrations

Initial Results: First Minnesota Builder

Seal before drywall & wall insulation

ControlHouses

Initial Results: First Minnesota Builder

Seal before drywall & wall insulation ControlHouses

Pg. 52

Minnesota Builders - Path Forward •  Refine sealing option

•  Demonstrate refined option on 2-3 homes

•  Start work with Builder #2 •  Will seal before drywall

•  Possibly recruit another builder that is struggling to achieve 3 ACH50 tightness requirement

•  Develop guidelines for future installations

Pg. 53

Research Path Forward •  Application in commercial buildings

•  Wrapping up project for DoD on non-res retrofits •  Commercial buildings present challenges

•  Roof-to-wall connection •  Supplemental manual sealing sometimes required

•  Application in existing homes •  Existing homes are leakier •  Apply at time of tenant change

Pg. 54

AeroBarrier Update

RecentSuccessesandUpcomingProjects•  PassiveHouse:MandalayHomes(Presco],AZ)and9thAve.(Brooklyn,NY)•  Mul6-Family(NewBuild):101Apartments(Queens,NY)•  Renova6onApplica6on:7renovatedapartmentssealedto1ACH50(Rockford,IL)•  ApartmentCompartmentaliza6on:36semi-finishedapartments(Brooklyn,NY)•  ApartmentComparison:3unitssealedpredrywall,3unitstobesealedaferdrywallto3ACH50(Dayton,OH)•  CenterforEnergyandEnvironmentandDOEproject:34singlefamilyhouses(17inCalifornia,17inMinnesota)•  DukeEnergy:45roomsto74CFM50or6ghtertocreate“safespaces”(NorthandSouthCarolina,andIndiana)•  SmokeControlCompartmentaliza6on:202roomsinamicro-hotel(SanFrancisco,CA)

MandalayHomesbecamethefirstproduc?onbuildertoincorporateAeroBarrierintoalloftheirhomes

“AeroBarriermaybethemostimportantinnovaEontohitthebuildingcommunityinyears…Theabilitytoconsistentlysealallthesmallleaksthatwouldotherwisetakecountlessmanhourstoseekandhandseal,assumingyouevenfindthemall,injust1automatedapplicaEonissimplyamazing.ThecosteffecEvenessisbeyondimmeasurablewhenyouconsiderthetotalsealingsoluEonAeroBarrierprovidesandallthelaborsavedbyautomaEngtheapplicaEonprocess.Wecouldn'tbehappierwithAeroBarrierandthefinefolksbehindtheproduct.”

-GeoffFerrelChiefTechnologyOfficer,MandalayHomes

Lowairleakagenumberscanbehardtoachieveinrenova6onapplica6onsbecausetheexteriorandframingtypicallystaysinplace.Whenthebuilderislookingtoachieve1ACH50orless,thisbecomessignificantlymoredifficult.

“WithoutAeroBarrierwewouldhavespentcountlesshoursseekingoutandmanuallysealingalltheleakswecouldfind.Theproblemwas,wecouldn’tseemostoftheleaksbecausetheywereinthewallsorframingthatwasstayinginplace.Sotoachieveourgoalof1ACH50withmanualsealingwasaverydaunEng,mostlikelyunachievabletask.AeroBarrierwasabletosealall7apartmentswithintwodays,withoutaproblem.WeevenhadsomeapartmentsstarEngashighas17ACH50thatAeroBarriergotdownto1ACH50.TheEmethatwassavedandtheresultsthatwereachievedwereamazing.Wewouldn’thavebeenabletoachievetheresultswedidwithoutAeroBarrier…”

-JasonLeFleur.President,EcoAchievers

AeroBarrierWorksinRenova?onApplica?onsToo.

AeroBarrier’sversa6lityhasbeenondisplaysealing“safehaven”roomsinacoalpowerplant

Iftherewereevertobeanairborneleakatthepowerplantemployeescanclosethemselvesinoneoftheseroomsandfreshairwillbepumpedintothespace.Becauseoftheeffec6venessofAeroBarrierandtheresultswecanachieve,the“safehavens”willkeepthefreshairintheroomandthechemicalleakout.

Allowingtheemployeestostayintheroomupto2hours.

Results:Pre-Leakage: 10.4ACH50(1,323.2CFM)Post-Leakage: 0.5ACH50(60.4CFM)SealingTime: 2hours20min

AeroBarrierusedtoseal“safehavens”inindustrialbuildings

AeroBarrierisAvailableNowAnywhereintheCountry.

Pg. 60

www.mncee.org/AeroResidential

Ben Schoenbauer: bschoenbauer@mncee.org Dave Bohac: dbohac@mncee.org

Pg. 63

MN Builder #1 Results Summary Pre-Seal Post-Seal Stage/Op6on FloorArea(f2) CFM50 ACH50 CFM50 ACH50 %Reduc6onDemo1 3,636 2,200 3.94 358 0.64 84%Blaine 4,470 2,637 3.81 728 1.05 72%Eagan 3,955 2,300 3.78 409 0.67 82%Plymouth 4,248 1,893 2.87 1,023 1.55 46%Lakeville 4,478 1,959 2.82 674 0.97 66%Demo2 4,135 419 0.70 209 0.35 50%

3.94 3.81 3.78

2.87 2.82

0.64

1.050.67

1.55

0.97

0.35

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

5.0

Demo1 Blaine Eagan Plymouth Lakeville Demo2

ACH5

0

Pre-Seal Post-Seal

84%72%82%46%66% 50%

PercentReduc?on

BaOInsula?oninWalls ARerDrywall