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Category Archives: Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope
Snug as a Bug
Facebook reminded me that it has been seven years since we had our energy audit. Seven years since I retired. A bit over seven years since we purchased the house. The good news is that the property values have escalated, … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Energy Efficiency, Fireplace Boiler, Radiant Heat
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Storage Closet
Sealing the gap between the walls and the floor in the storage closet has been on the to do list for some time. I emptied the closet and vacuumed the floor to access the gap on the outside walls. The … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Maintenance and Repair
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Airlock Entry Interior Door
As the cold weather descends and as I set the thermostats a little lower to cut back our electricity use (I’m studying our use to figure out where we use too much electricity) I decided it was time to isolate … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Foundation Insulation
We had some warm December weather and Dave thought he could do another outdoor project so he started digging the trench to repair and replace the foundation insulation. Although we thought the white insulation was EPS with its lower insulating … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope
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More Tile
Unfortunately the tub drain still leaks but I decided to tile the second half of the bathroom instead of taking it apart again first. The wall near the sink plumbing was not square. Squaring the tile with the brick wall … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Bathrooms, Tile
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A Week’s Worth of Drywalling
Our drywall contractor had a problem with his subcontractors. Basically, they didn’t show on the date he set for the job. They probably would have showed eventually, they did send two guys for a short time at the end of … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Drywall Prep: Membrane Installed
The membrane on the rest of the walls has been installed, the seams taped, and the edges caulked to the studs. The caulk is super rubbery and stays flexible. It is recommended for the edges of the membrane. I put … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Drywall Prep: Install the nailers for drywall.
These are all finished now. Unless the drywallers find they need another one somewhere. There are some tricky areas where the house orientation changes direction to catch the sun. The rafters come together at an angle and the nailers had … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Drywall Prep: Install Membrane Progress
We are making good progress on the membrane installation. The first area was to finish the wiring chase with insulation, polyiso and then the membrane seen installed here. The wiring chase included some tricky areas around the radon pipe where … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Drywall Prep: Decide About and Alter Master Bathroom Wall
Seems like it shouldn’t take two days to complete the wall in the master bathroom and closet but it did. First I put up the membrane in the closet area as the bathroom was done already. The 50 amp wire … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Plumbing
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Drywall Prep: Insulate with Polyiso around Doors
We are cutting and fitting the polyiso left over from the wiring chase around the door areas to use up smaller pieces. By using the polyiso so sparingly we can keep more of it tacked up as temporary bathroom walls. … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Drywall Preparations
We have had two vendors look at the job and each says they can do it. We are awaiting the estimates. But there is a lot to do before the crew can come in and drywall. I’m thinking it is … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction, Planning
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Moved Modem
Ever since we moved in, the modem for our internet connection has been installed right at the garage door. There is a closet built in there now and although the electricians installed an extra outlet for the equipment, it did … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Electrical, Maintenance and Repair, Tools
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One Afternoon, One Siding Piece
My brother couldn’t finish the siding on the lower house because we ran out of siding. So we tried to order more, just the unpainted stucco version, but it ended up being backordered so it didn’t arrive until this week. … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction
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Back to the Siding
My brother generously offered to visit and help with the house construction. It is sort of a vacation for him and he likes house building projects almost as much as I do. He is much more of a perfectionist though, … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction, Trombe Wall
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Service Chase Rules
We chose to create an expensive air barrier inside the house with Siga Majpell, a breathable membrane that forms an air barrier while allowing for the drying of the interior of the wall or ceiling should they get moisture inside. … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Electrical
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Siding Arrives
Just before we left for Thanksgiving the siding arrived from Lowes. I had unfortunately chosen the Westminster store that was farther away for the delivery which I found out when I arrived at the closer store. It was about 20 … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Construction, Tools
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Waterway Rainscreen
Just as I was planning the rainscreen layer for the siding, Repurposed Materials had an auction to move some of their excess inventory. Among the treasures being sold were several rolls of Waterway rainscreen. The rolls are 35′ long and … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Reduce Reuse Recycle
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Siding Rainscreen
Building Science experts recommend a rainscreen layer between siding and the house wrap to protect the house wrap and siding from holding moisture and allow for evaporation of moisture that penetrates the siding. This rainscreen layer incorporates a drainage plane … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope, Moisture Intrusion/Expansive Soil
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Where the Cold Gets In
We finally had our first frost on October 28th. The end of October is very late for first frost, but we got more tomatoes from the garden because of it. And we are warming up for an Indian Summer the … Continue reading
Posted in Air Intrusion/Thermal Envelope
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