Air Tight Modular Home Construction

The air tight layer (ATL) is one of the most important components of Passive House building and is probably the most difficult to achieve. Air leakage through a building assembly not only results in energy loss, but more importantly it can compromise the durability of a structure by trapping waters vapors in any assembly. Mitigating air leakage is the most cost effective measure of reducing energy loss and is the “secret sauce” of any Passive House building. Passive House Certification requires buildings to achieve air leakage no greater than .6 ACH at 50 pascals of pressure!

What is air tight construction?

EcoCraft Homes custom home’s superior construction process includes an airtight building envelope. To achieve a “continuous uninterrupted airtight building envelope” we implement the passive house “red pencil method.” Essentially in every sectional drawing of the structure an unbroken red line should represent the boundary of an airtight barrier. We take this concept and integrate it into our modular construction process in an enclosed and environmentally controlled factory, which ensures no compromised construction methods due to outdoor weather conditions.

Details are important – but what is more important is the basic concept. A building envelope can only be airtight if it consists of just one uninterrupted airtight envelope enclosing the whole heated space

Traditional new home construction methods that use multiple semi-airtight layers in an attempt to achieve the same energy saving benefits are compromised as without a continuous unbroken barrier, leakage will still occur. While insulation materials do improve energy efficiency, very few of them are actually air tight. An air tight home saves a significant amount on your heating and cooling expenses, which in turn reduces resource usage. Efficiency creates more sustainable structure, reducing your home’s carbon footprint, which is why EcoCraft Homes is truly a “green home builder.”

Did you know?

Air movement accounts for more the 98% of water vapor moment in a building assembly. Infiltration: One half inch hole in a wall assmenly can introduce more than 30 quarts of water. Only 1/3 Qt will be lost through diffusion!