Aaron McCormack of 475 High-Performance Building Supply and cohost Kevin Brennan dove headfirst into the world of fluid-applied air barriers on our 10th episode of Construction Tech Tuesday. The two focused primarily on how these components can be used to mitigate air leaks in older, masonry homes, and gave special attention to party walls.
As Kevin said in the beginning of the below video, you can’t overlook these surfaces during a renovation or retrofit. Apart from oftentimes being made of lower quality (and more porous) bricks, these walls frequently have little to no insulation or sealant. This is a big deal. Party walls often represent the largest surface areas in the building—upwards of 6,000 square feet per wall in places like brownstone Brooklyn. If they aren’t properly sealed, your chances of passing your blower door test are going to go out the window (even if it is a high-performance one). A fluid-applied air barrier will ensure that you seal up any gaps between different materials (like masonry and timber), as well as any pinholes in the wall itself.
Apart from talking about some of the technical specs of fluid applied air barriers, Kevin and Aaron play a video of them getting their hands dirty and showing off the technique and the technology involved in applying Proclima Visconn, a fluid-applied air barrier, to a party wall using an airless sprayer. In addition, Amy Failla of Baxt Ingui Architects makes a brief cameo to talk about the retrofit of a former firehouse in Manhattan; Aaron introduces us to Aerofixx, a new Visconn product that comes in sausage form; and Kevin demonstrates the latest in leak detection technology: the bubble blaster.
Get your dose of the technique, the technical, and the technology here: