LoginThis ebook, produced by TightVent Europe, includes a number of publications from the Intelligent Energy Europe programme and its predecessor, n
Building & Ductwork airtightness
The 2002 Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) already indicated the potential importance of airtightness.
The building airtightness is essential to achieve a high energy performance. In most countries however, it is not mandatory to measure the airtightness.
Previous studies have compared the airtightness measurement of test enclosures utilising both the novel Pulse technique and the conventional blower door method.
Building airtightness is a critical aspect for energy-efficient buildings as energy performance of a building can be reduced significantly by poor airtightness.
Requirements for measuring the building airtightness have been proposed and included by many countries for national regulations or energy-efficient programs to address the negative effect of poor a
Heating energy in buildings represents a significant proportion of the total global energy consumption.
Mandatory building airtightness testing has come gradually into force in European countries, mostly because of the increasing impact of building leakage on the overall energy performance of low-ene
Various studies demonstrate a significant impact of ductwork leakage on the fan power consumption of ventilation systems.
Addressing the airtightness of the building envelope is key to achieve thermal comfort, good performance of ventilation systems and to avoid excessive energy consumption.
Between 2017 and 2018, the Centre for Studies and Expertise on Risks, the Environment, Mobility and Planning (Cerema) organized an airtightness measurement campaign in 117 multi-family collective a
The trend in European countries, such as Belgium, France and Germany is that the quality of the airtightness of the building envelope is getting better and better.
Across different territories there are various normative models for assessing energy demand of domestic dwellings, which use simplified approaches to account for the heat loss due to the air infilt
Buildings represent approximately 40% of global energy demand and heat loss induced by uncontrolled air leakage through the building fabric can represent up to one third of the heating load in a bu
This study used a mathematical model to explore the accuracy of extrapolating multi-point blower door test results down to lower pressures at which building infiltration usually occurs naturally.
Infiltration is an uncontrolled contribution to ventilation in a building and can contribute significantly to the total ventilation rate, particularly in older, leaky, dwellings which can rely on i
Due to the wind induced pressure, different results may be obtained if the inside-outside pressure difference is measured across different locations on the building envelope, i.e.
This paper discusses two particular points of the buildings airtightness measurement method (ISO 9972) in relation with the pressure difference: (1) the nature of the pressure tap and (2) the place
Uncertainties in airtightness measured using fan pressurization test should not be defined by the scattering of the points around the line defined using ordinary least square method anymore.
Since the 1970s, many authors have discussed the impact of poor airtightness on building energy use, indoor air quality, building damage, or noise transmission.
Building airtightness tests have become very common in several countries, either to comply with minimum requirements of regulations or programs, or to justify input values in calculation methods.
The French ongoing research project “Durabilit'air” (2016-2019) aims at improving our knowledge on the variation of buildings airtightness through onsite measurement and accelerated ageing in labor
The airtightness of new buildings has significantly improved in the last two decades thanks to building energy performance regulations.
Wood is a hygroscopic material, it has the ability to adsorb or desorb water in response to the ambient relative humidity.
The estimation of low-rise, residential building infiltration rates using envelope airtightness values from whole building fan pressurization tests has been the subject of much interest and researc
Building airtightness requirements are becoming more and more common in Europe (Leprince, Carrié, & Kapsalaki, 2017).
This article proposes to study the impact of envelope and internal partition walls airleakage distributions, on the indoor air quality (IAQ) performance.
Air infiltration contributes to a heat loss typically representing up to one third of the heating demand of a building.
The air renovation of a building should be controlled in order to ensure a proper level of indoor air quality while minimize heat losses.
In this paper a new methodology is presented to determine airtightness of buildings. The common method for airtightness testing is through fan pressurization with a blower door test.
Nowadays the improvement of building airtightness is an essential condition to achieve high energy performance of buildings.
The steady pressurisation method measures the building leakage in a range of high pressures, typically 10-60 Pa.
The air tightness of eight apartment buildings containing six to eleven units each on three or four floors has been tested with and without guard-zone pressure, i.e.
The AcouReVe Project aimed to improve the knowledge and the quality of acoustic calculation in ventilation ductworks.
In a sealed building with tight facades, conditions for a good indoor air quality and comfortable conditions must be guaranteed all the time especially for employees.
Noise remains a major concern for building occupants, both in their home and workplace. Ventilation system is one of the noise sources in buildings.
Airtightness is the most important property of building envelopes to understand the ventilation.
This paper presents the results of a series of 30 fan pressurization tests in reproducibility conditions performed within a period of 10 days in October 2017.
The air infiltration of a building, which fundamentally depends on its airtightness, can be a significant contributor to its heat loss.
This paper introduces an experimental study of enclosure airtightness testing of an outdoor chamber using both the pulse technique and the blower door method.
Since the 1970s, many authors have discussed the impact of poor airtightness on building energy use, indoor air quality, building damage, or noise transmission (Carrié and Rosenthal, 2008) (Tamura,
Aeroseal technology utilizes air laden with fine aerosol particles (2-20 μm) to pressurize a duct system, resulting in deposition of those particles at the leaks within that duct system.
The implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive 2010/31/EU recast puts increasing pressure to achieve better building and ductwork airtightness.
This paper summarizes the most recent results of the French database of ductwork airtightness. This database was created in 2016.
A ductwork system that has limited air leakage, within defined limits, will ensure that the design characteristics of the VAC system are sustained.
Duct leakage airflow in existing ductwork can reach values of over 20% of the design air handling unit (AHU) airflow, undermining efficiency and effectiveness of HVAC systems.
One of the main factors influencing building airtightness is the construction typology.
The increasing weight of building leakages energy impact on the overall energy performance of low-energy buildings led to a better understanding of the actual airtightness performance of buildings.
In this study, durability of building airtightness was assessed by means of repeated airtightness testing of the studied houses.
The air leakage impact on energy performance in buildings has already been broadly studied in USA, Canada and most European countries.
The French database of building airtightness has been fed by measurement performed by qualified testers since 2006.
Since January 1st, 2018, airtightness testing has become implicitly mandatory for every new residential building in Flanders. There is no minimum requirement for airtightness.
This paper analyses the contribution of a steady wind to the uncertainties in building pressurisation tests, using the approach developed in another paper (Carrié and Leprince, 2016).
This paper discusses two particular points of the buildings airtightness measurement method (ISO 9972) in relation with the calculation of the combined standard uncertainty: (1) the zero-flow press
Excessive air leakage through the building envelope increases the infiltration heat loss and therefore lowers the energy efficiency.
This paper introduces a comparison study of measuring the airtightness of a house sized test chamber using the novel pulse technique and the standard blower door method in a controlled environment.
As UK homes are insulated and draught proofed in an attempt to reduce wintertime heating demand they become more airtight.
The airtightness of buildings is important for several reasons, such as being a prerequisite for low-energy buildings and for a healthy indoor air quality (without i.e. mould or radon).
Last years, interest in airtightness increases among all construction fields and airtightness becomes a major issue in the reduction of energy consumption in buildings.
In France, the current regulation on the energy performance of buildings (RT 2012) does not require ductwork airtightness measurement when the default-value is used in the regulatory EP-calculation
The harsh Norwegian climate requires buildings designed according to high standards.
This paper aims to present the elaboration of a device able to modify the airtightness of a test House.
Mandatory building airtightness testing has come gradually into force in the UK, France, Ireland and Denmark.
This paper proposes a methodology to assess fan energy use savings when improving ductwork airtightness. This methodology is based on new standard FprEN 16798-5-1:2016.
It has already been proved that air leakage causes a great impact in the energy performance of buildings in cold climates.
An airtight building envelope ensures not only the energy-efficiency of a building, but also a damage free construction.
Mandatory building airtightness testing has come gradually into force in European countries mostly because of the increasing weight of building leakage energy impact on the overall energy performan
The airtightness just after the end of a building phase is assumed to be relevant criteria for high energy performance.
The industry is now focusing in system solutions and the goal is to be able to deliver complete reliable, energy efficient solutions that is understandable and easy to maintain by the normal servic
Air infiltration holds a central role in building energy consumption and is associated to several building physics phenomena.
Wind pressure and thermal forces are driving forces for pressure difference on the building envelope.
With lower air leakage in modern homes, ventilation of homes has become more important than ever before. It seems however that we are getting it very wrong.
There are several methods for measuring air tightness that may result in different values and sometimes quite different uncertainties.
The control of heat losses, inwards/out, in nearly zero energy buildings is of high importance.
Against the background of increased global demands for energy efficiency, property owners should raise the standards of ductwork systems for ventilation, heating and air conditioning.
This presentation will explain what exactly calibration should mean.
We conducted observations of wind velocity profiles above a high-density area in Tokyo, Japan, using a Doppler LIDAR system.
The objective of this paper is to assess the impact of the envelope airtightness on airflow patterns for single detached dwellings depending on the ventilation system.
The Net Zero Energy Residential Test Facility (NZERTF) was constructed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to support the development and adoption of cost-effective net zer
Constructions joints occur everywhere where several construction materials meet.
Building airtightness in Germany is on a good way. The latest survey amongst FLiB members shows the n50-values are much better than the benchmarks given in EnEV 2014 (German EPBD).
In timber frame construction in Europe air barrier systems are typically realised at the interior side of the building envelope.
Interior wooden surfaces have the capacity to buffer the maxima and minima of relative humidity (RH) indoors.
This paper presents airtightness data measured for about 752 units of high-rise reinforced concrete buildings (apartment buildings) that have been recently constructed within five years in Korea.
The paper presents airtightness measurements results of the multi-family building.
Hand-written results are a thing of the past. See how your phone or tablet and common testing gear can perform an automated cloud based test with secure data storage.
Ventilation of buildings and homes is a key issue both from comfort and energy aspects. However to determine the average ventilation air flow or the Air Change Rate (ACH) for a heating season by te
Over three million subsidised dwellings were built in Spain between 1940 and 1980. Most of these buildings are now obsolete and fail to comply with thermal comfort and ventilation standards.
ATTMA, the Air Tightness Testing & Measurement Association has introduced mandatory lodgement for all members, representing over 140 companies and over 350 test engineers across the UK.
A new low pressure ‘quasi-steady’ pulse technique for determining the airtightness of buildings has been developed further and compared with the standard blower-door technique for field-testing a r
Since 2006, the French Energy Performance regulation, named RT, has been allowing two ways to justify building airtightness: either with a measurement or with the application of a quality managemen
The zero pressure compensation method has proven to be the best method to measure air flow rates accurately although it also has be shown that the accuracy depends on the type of air terminal devic
Mastering building airtightness is essential to meet the requirements of current and future building codes, not only for saving energy but also for ensuring moisture safety.
Since 2000, the French EP-calculations have been considering thermal losses due to building envelope airtightness.
In 2014 the first multi storey residential building planned and constructed to meet the Passivhaus Institute (Darmstadt) criteria was put in operation in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia.
Numerous tests are being performed throughout Europe.
We have analysed the steady wind model error based on a simplified building model with one leak on the windward side and one on the leeward side of the building.
The characterization of power-law coefficients of the airflow through ventilation system components and ductwork or building leaks should include corrections on the airflow rate measurement because
The article presents the results of our research, which was realized under a cooperation project between the University of Pécs, Hungary and the University of Osijek, Croatia.
A project at the Energie- und Umweltzentrum (e.u.[z].) Springe looked into strategies how insulation and sealing components can be installed in existing constructions to improve the best airtightne
Airtightness of buildings is necessary to obtain healthy, sustainable and energy efficient buildings.
Mechanical positive input and extract ventilation are common strategies employed in English houses, generally because they provide adequate indoor air quality and specifically because they are effe
We propose a new approach for measuring air infiltration rates in buildings.
In Sweden, the energy usage in existing residential buildings amounted to 147 TWh in 2012, equivalent to almost 40 % of the final overall national energy usage.
Mandatory building airtightness testing came gradually into force in the UK, France, Ireland and Denmark.
During field measurements on the airtightness of passive houses, ventilations system’s roof penetrations showed to be one of the major leakage paths, as they were not sealed using the appropriate,
Reduction of energy consumption and green house gas emissions of buildings is a great challenge in Europe.
In the “Exemplary Buildings” program of the Brussels Capital Region, building owners and designers are challenged to realise building projects of both high architectural quality and superior enviro
The airtightness just after the end of a building phase is assumed to be relevant criteria for high energy performance.
This paper presents the new framework for the realization of reliable pressurization tests in Belgium and the provisions taken to widen the number of buildings where a valid pressurization test can
Airtightness becomes a more and more important parameter in the rationalization of the energy consumption. The quality of the works during the construction process is essential.
Many buildings in Sweden are in need of renovation in order to meet the current standards of energy use in buildings.
When one intends to evaluate buildings energy efficiency their airtightness is a fundamental parameter.
The airtightness test of the building is one of a few building envelope measurements used in practice, which is quantitative, not just qualitative as e.g. infrared thermography.
The aim of the project was to evaluate how the air tightness of buildings changes over time and how the sealing materials are affected during the expected life length of 50 years.
Air tightness is essential to building energy performance, which has been acknowledged for a long time.
For the coming energy-efficient buildings, the guarantee of energy performance becomes a major challenge.
The aim of improving air tightness of structures is to prevent the uncontrolled air leakages through structures.
Improving the airtightness of housing is an issue that concerns the Chilean state.
This study presents a comparison of air leakage measurements collected recently (November 2013 to March 2014) with two sets of prior data collected between 2001-2003 from 17 new homes located near
This publication includes the papers presented at the AIVC -TightVent Workshop: "Design, Implement
French authorities have launched an extensive thermal renovation program aiming at retrofitting 4M dwellings over 10 years, with priority given to the most energy consuming ones.
Airtightness and controlled ventilation are important factors affecting energy use and indoor air quality.
The proceedings of the AIVC -TightVent International Workshop: "Achieving relevant and durable airtightness levels: status, options and progress needed" held in Brussels, Belgium, 28-29 March 2012
This publication collects papers presented at one of the activities organized in the context of the AIVC-project ‘improving the quality of residential ventilation systems’, primarily at the interna
The airtightness of the building envelope was studied in field measurements in recently constructed experimental small test buildings.
CETE de Lyon gives support to French administration for thermal regulation definition and enforcement.
A large social housing retrofitting program was implemented in Porto, Portugal, a mild climate region. One of the features of that program was the upgrade of windows and ventilation systems.
In this paper we present a series of leakage tests on extremely airtight dwellings (ACH50 < 0.6 upon completion) in which the durability of the airtightness and the measurement uncertainty invol
The paper presents a calculation method for the combined standard uncertainty associated with the buildings airtightness measurement done in accordance with the ISO standard 9972:2006 (or EN 13829)
Reducing adventitious infiltration in order to save energy is important and is highlighted by the building standards of many countries. This operational infiltration is often inferred via the meas
Pushed at first by the labels backed onto the 2005 French energy performance (EP) regulation, and later on by the 2012 energy performance regulation, which imposes envelope airtightness requirement
Since January 1st 2013, the French energy performance (EP) regulation requires building airtightness level to be justified to a lower-than-required value.
From 2006 till 2012, the 2005 energy performance (EP) regulation (RT 2005) did not entail any obligation to justify the envelope airtightness level.
The importance of adventitious air leakage under normal operational conditions and its reduction in order to save energy is highlighted by the relvant building standards of many countries.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of measuring position of air-tightness performance in Flat-type and Tower-type apartments.
A new student accommodation for engineering students “Apisseq” was built in the town of Sisimiut, Greenland in 2010. Its purpose is not only to provide accommodation for students.
The existence of air leakages in a building has been very clearly stated as an important reason for energy loss.
The Spanish Technical Building Code is one of the three royal decrees that were approved in Spain as a consequence of the transposition of the European Directive on the energy performance of buildi
From January 1st 2013 on, the French energy performance regulation will demand that the airtightness level is justified and that airtightness of a building should be below 0,6m3/h/m² at 4Pa for sin
DIN 4108-7 requires a limit of q50 ≤ 3.0 m³/m²h for the air permeability of large buildings.
Reliable airtightness data is needed to calculate the estimate of air infiltration and the thermal loads for building energy efficiency and indoor comfort.
French standard for airtightness measurements is NF EN 13829. It is completed by French application guide GA P50-784, to set calibration rules more precisely, among other issues.
In France, starting January 1st, 2013, the energy performance regulation will impose an airtightness treatment for every new residential building.
The airtightness of 36 houses built since 1995 and across four cities in New Zealand (NZ) was measured.
Indoor environment quality in buildings strongly depends on the proper ventilation. Still a large amount of single- and multifamily buildings are equipped with the natural ventilation system.
The airtightness of office and educational buildings influences energy use and thermal comfort. A leaky building is likely to have a high use of energy and thermal discomfort.
In Spain, the residential sector is the third principal source of energy consumption; many of these dwellings are obsolete and do not have optimal conditions of comfort.
Accidental dispersion of toxic gas clouds may occur around industrial platforms or during hazardous materials transportation.
During the project QUAD-BBC, several ventilation systems have been studied in residential (individual house and collective dwellings) and non-residential (school, offices) and assessed by the evalu
LBNL Residential Diagnostics Database (ResDB) contains blower door measurements and other diagnostic test results of homes in United States.
The performance of ventilation and airtightness of the building envelope was studied in field measurements in recently constructed Estonian apartment buildings.
Starting already 1950 i.e.
A retrofit study was conducted in an unoccupied manufactured house to investigate the impacts of airtightening on ventilation rates and energy consumption.
The airtightness of inclined roofs is important in order to avoid hygrothermal problems and to guarantee the durability of the construction itself.
Recently, insulation retrofits of existing houses have been thought to be one of the effective measures from the viewpoint of global warming prevention.
Starting January 1st, 2013 the French thermal regulation will impose a minimum requirement for residential buildings air-tightness.
Accidental releases occurring in industrial platforms or during transportation of hazardous materials can entail the dispersion of toxic gas clouds.
From the beginning of year 2007 the buildings in Finland must have energy efficiency calculations, which requirements are now part of Building Codes, based on European Performance of Buildings Dire
There are often practical limitations to measure the airtightness of a multifamily building as a whole as described in EN 13829.
A building was tested the equivalent of over 1,000,000 times under windy conditions where each test satisfied the conditions of ASTM, CGSB, ISO, EN, ATTMA and USACE testing standards in every respe
The air tightness of building has been a serious problem over the last 30 years.
As building insulation level increases, the coupling of ventilation systems with building enveloppe airtightness becomes an important issue in order to improve buildings energy performances.
When conducting airtightness tests of buildings, you must ensure that all building parts to be measured have air connection, so that the test object can be considered as one single zone.
The issue of the uncertainty of building airtightness measurements has built up a greater importance since this topic was introduced in many regulations regarding the energy performance of building
The 2012 French thermal regulation will include a minimum requirement for residential buildings envelope airtightness, with two options to justify its treatment: a) measurement at commissioning or
In 2002 the Association for Air Tightness in Buildings (FLiB e. V.) established a certification procedure for airtightness testers in Germany.
Origins of toxic gas clouds may be diverse, including accidental releases due to industry or to hazardous materials transportation, or biological or chemical attacks.
In 1998, Persily published a review of commercial and institutional building airtightness data that found significant levels of air leakage and debunked the myth of the airtight commercial building
Air leakage and other diagnostic measurements are being added to LBNL’s Residential Diagnostics Database (ResDB).
In France, starting on January 1st, 2013, a minimum airtightness value for all residential building will be required by the energy performance regulation (RT 2012).
At the end of 2010, two manufacturers have commissioned an independent engineering firm to carry out a cost-benefit analysis of air-tightness in ventilation.
The thrust of airtightness specification and testing is derived from energy considerations.
Large buildings can not always be tested as a single pressure zone.
The improvement of energy efficiency is the key issue after the energy performance of buildings directive came into the force in European Union countries.
Wind is a potential dominant factor regarding the air infiltration through building envelopes.
A study of excessive air leakage in the ductwork of a large pharmaceutical plant located in the Southeast United States is executed in order to determine the energy loss associated with the excessi
The feasibility of good air-tightness in new buildings can be determined based on the obtained air tightness classes as defined in EN 12237.
Portugal introduced, for the first time, in the 2006 Building Regulations, a requirement on the airtightness of the ductwork in new HVAC installations. A test is required during commissioning.
There exists a significant body of literature on energy and indoor air quality impacts of envelope leakage.
This report gives a critical review of steps taken in 10 countries (Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, UK, USA) with regard to testing and reporting schemes as
We collected information on existing envelope air leakage databases from countries that are involved in the AIVC-TightVent project “Development and applications of building air leakage databases”.