Guideline Documents

Illustrated Guide – Achieving Airtight Buildings

Building Enclosure Consulting Multiple Climates
JAMES HIGGINS RDH Building Science
DANIEL HAALAND RDH Building Science
LORNE RICKETTS RDH Building Science

Illustrated-Guide-Achieving-Airtight-Bldgs

This guide is a useful resource for designing, building, and testing buildings to meet the local building code airtightness requirements, as more and more jurisdictions work to implement airtightness performance and testing requirements. The information and guidance here is generally intended for design and construction professionals and is more applicable to Part 3 and larger, more complex Part 9 buildings such as wood frame multi-unit residential buildings. While achieving an airtight enclosure is important for all building types, the specific air barrier design considerations, enclosure assembly types, and interface details presented in this guide pertain mostly to conventional, non-combustible or wood frame buildings.

Produced by RDH Building Science. Published by BC Housing, BC Hydro and the City of Vancouver.

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