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The 2019 FHB House is a modern take on a traditional neighborhood home in a New Urbanist planned community outside of Louisville, Kentucky. The aesthetic is a nod to house styles found through historic southern cites but the choice of building materials and amenities is distinctly modern.

Kentucky 2019

Wall Framing and Sheathing

Insulated sheathing and 2x4 framing offer an economical alternative to 2x6s with no exterior foam insulation.

By Jason Black
Article Image

Building a spec house is always a matter of finding the right balance between cost, building performance, and level of finishes. One place where these all come into play is the materials we chose for the framing.

After the floor is sheathed, the framing guys snap wall layout lines on the floor deck and begin scattering lumber. We use a mix of 2×4 studs in the walls: Much of the walls are framed with standard 2x4s, but in the kitchen we use Timberstrand LSLs. They’re more expensive than dimensional lumber but they are dead straight; no twist, bow, or wane. With cabinets, countertops, and backsplash on these walls a plumb, straight wall makes for a better-looking kitchen and a more efficient installation.  The benefits of engineered studs over Douglas fir studs on these kitchen walls is magnified by the fact that we are required by the town plan to have 10-ft. tall first-story walls.

Why 2×4 walls, you might ask? They are code compliant in our area and it came down to the cost and performance tradeoffs with our sheathing. We’ve used Zip System for a number of years for its integrated WRB (water-resistive barrier) and its air-sealing ability. The R-Sheathing version is newly available in our area and we’re using it for the first time on the FHB House. The R-Sheathing has a layer of polyiso rigid foam bonded to the back side. (We’re using the 1 in. R-Sheathing version that has 7/16 in. panel with ½ in. of foam for a combined R 3.6.) We wanted to use the R-Sheathing because it provides a continuous layer of insulation that will reduce thermal bridging. The sheathing offers some additional R value and it’s a continuous insulation layer outside of the framing. From a comfort standpoint here in climate zone 4, we think this will be a good tradeoff to using 2×6 walls that have a moderately higher R value but a bit more thermal bridging.

 

The walls are framed with 2x4s in most areas of the house.

 

In the kitchen, though, where cabinets and countertops and backsplash will be installed TrusJoist Timberstrand LSLs are used. Especially on these 10-ft.-tall walls, the straight studs make a big difference for the trades that come in behind the framers.

 

 

The Zip System sheathing has an integrated water-resistive barrier. When the seams are taped the coating also serves as the air barrier.

 

This is the Zip System R-Sheathing which includes polyiso rigid foam on the back side. The R-3 version on this house has 1/2 in. of foam glued to the 7/16 in. sheathing panel. The R-Sheathing is also available with 1 in., 1 1/2 in., and 2 in. of foam offering up to R 12.6 of insulation.

 

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Kentucky 2019 Videos Visit the Resource Guide Behind the Build: Rhode Island 2016 Behind the Build: Vermont 2017 Behind the Build: Califormia 2018 Behind the Build: Connecticut 2020

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