It’s that time of year again. The time when Arizona receives the most substantial portion of rain for the year. In preparation for Monsoon season, Carrig and Dancer found a nifty article outlining the 20 or so chores needed to complete before monsoon season takes full force. The completion of these chores will ensure our homes are safe and dry from the severely heavy rainfall. Among the comprehensive list of chores like patching the roof, staking young trees, adding surge protection, and ensuring that your lawn and porch are ready to bear the rain, is a much overlooked task. That is the task of installing and properly situating vapor barriers. The vapor barrier is essentially a condensation controller for your insulation. It is used to resist diffusion of moisture through the wall, ceiling and floor assemblies. In the depiction below, the vapor retarder is on the interior of the wall. Which is common in hot, humid climates. The warm, moist air enters the wall cavity and accumulates onto the cold interior wall board.
One of the worst case scenarios homeowners may face is moisture damage. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development , one third to one half of all homes have damp conditions which may result in the development of pollutants such as molds and bacteria. One of the best preventative practices, as advised by the H.U.D. is to install an exterior wall sheathing with an effective air barrier. This will significantly affect the pressure gradient across the wall. Sheathing of an exterior wall will create an air barrier that minimizes the intrusion of humid outside air.
-img src: www.stanford.edu
The effects of moisture damages are far reaching to say the least.
Carrig and Dancer specialize in residential and commercial insulation. We will service your every insulation need to improve the value and the comfort of your home.