I’m going to start construction on my new house in about a month and will be acting as the GC as well. (I know I know, but I’m already a contractor in another field and have experience working w/ subs, deadlines, etc.)
With regards to energy efficiency, my question is this: How much is too much? This house will be a one story 4 sided brick “traditional”. I plan to use Tech Shield for the roof sheathing, Tyvek on the walls, Pella or Marvin windows and so on. I’d like the house to be as energy efficient as possible but I seem to be getting differing opinions from people as how tightly sealed a house should be. Some say it should be caulked beyond belief and be as tight as possible while others say the house should “breathe” some. This may be a hard question to quantify but I’d appreciate any input you guys have.
BTW – the house is located North of the Atlanta area where the weather can be plenty hot or cold.
Thanks!!!
Replies
Seal it as tightly as possible and install an air-to-air exchanger. That way you can actually control the "breathing" of the house.
did
I have
misplaced my pants EM>
I'm with diddidit -
Make it tight, and control the "breathing".
Also add all the insulation you want now - It's a lot harder to add down the road.
Early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
Go to http://www.buildingscience.com and get the book for your area.
Some areas can also be ordered through Amazon and my library has the one for my area.
There is a lot of information online, but there are more details in the book.
You should build the house so that it does not need any caulking, but you will still end up with some.
Cauling requires maintance and it applied to the wrong places can trap water and do more damage than not having it.