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Design
Every wall needs a water-resistive barrier such as asphalt felt or housewrap. It’s also possible to use rigid foam
as a barrier, as long as foam seams are sealed with a suitable tape or installed with Z-flashing. Regardless of
your choice of barrier, all penetrations, including windows and doors, need to be flashed properly; these
flashings need to be integrated with the barrier using adequate overlaps or durable tapes.
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Rigid Foam on the Roof and Walls - Fine Homebuilding Article http://www.finehomebuilding.com/design/departments/energy-...
Exterior foam is a good option for walls and roofs, new or old
Adding exterior foam to walls works well for new construction. As long as you meet local wind and earthquake
codes, it’s usually possible to build a foam-sheathed wall without structural oriented strand board (OSB) or
plywood sheathing. Foam-sheathed walls are braced using one of four methods:
Of course, you should check with an engineer and your local building official before finalizing your wall-bracing
plan.
Exterior foam sheathing is often installed on existing homes as an energy-saving retrofit when new roofing or
siding is needed. You can install rigid foam on the inside of a wall as well, but adding exterior foam increases the
R-value of a wall or roof without eating up interior living space.
Installed on the roof, exterior foam makes the living space below more comfortable and reduces the likelihood of
ice dams.
The illustration shows two layers of OSB or plywood roof sheathing: a lower layer conventionally nailed to the
rafters and an upper layer installed as a nailing surface for the roofing material on top of the rigid foam. The type
of fasteners used and the way they need to be spaced for the top layer of sheathing depend on the pitch of the
roof and roof loads, particularly wind and snow loads. It’s fairly easy to find screws with a pullout-resistance
rating exceeding 400 lb., even when they are secured just to plywood or OSB sheathing. The fastener rating
increases if the screws are driven into the rafters. (Fastener sources include Wind-lock and FastenMaster, which
manufactures HeadLok and OlyLog screws.)
Most foam-sheathed walls include a rain-screen gap between the foam and the siding. After the foam is tacked
in place temporarily with a few nails, it is secured in place with vertical 1x3 or 1x4 strapping that is screwed
through the foam to the underlying studs. Some siding types, including cedar shingles, may require a drainage
mat, kerfed horizontal furring, or an OSB or plywood nailer over the foam.
When exterior rigid foam is used as an energy-saving detail in warmer climates, condensation is not a concern,
so no minimum R-values apply.
Since exterior foam reduces a wall’s ability to dry to the exterior, foam-sheathed walls should be able to dry to
the interior. That means that foam-sheathed walls should never include interior polyethylene or vinyl wallpaper.
Painted drywall has a high enough permeance to allow any incidental moisture that enters a wall cavity in the
2 of 3 2/21/12 11:27 AM
Rigid Foam on the Roof and Walls - Fine Homebuilding Article http://www.finehomebuilding.com/design/departments/energy-...
If you are considering installing exterior foam on a house with interior 6-mil polyethylene, proceed with caution. If
water ever enters a wall with foam sheathing and interior poly, the wall has a very limited ability to dry. This
raises the stakes, and water-management details must be impeccable.
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