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Building Envelope Testing

Overview

Building envelope testing is the process of testing the physical separator between the interior and exterior of a building to determine if there are any air, water, or thermal leaks within the structure. The physical components of a building envelope include the roof, walls, foundation, doors, windows, ceiling, and their related barriers and insulations.

An envelope leakage test is performed in different way according to the scope. The test is listed below:

  • Blower Door
  • Thermal Imagining
Blower Door

The blower door test method covers a standardized technique for measuring air-leakage rates through a building envelope under controlled pressurization and de-pressurization. This test method is applicable to small temperature differentials and low-wind pressure conditions. This test method is intended to produce a measure of air tightness of a building envelope. This test method does not measure air leakage rates under normal conditions of weather and building operation. This test method is intended for the measurement of the airtightness of building envelopes of single-zone buildings. For this test method, many multi-zone buildings can be treated as single-zone buildings by opening interior doors or by inducing equal pressures in adjacent zones. The testing will be carried out by an experienced Level II tester, certified by ATTMA, UK.

Thermal Imagining

In construction, thermography is incredibly useful because it can quickly and easily demonstrate flaws in a construction assembly. These flaws are commonly seen as cold or hot spots which indicate a lack of insulation in a particular location. A thermal imaging camera records the intensity of radiation in the infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum and converts it to a visible image. A thermal imaging camera is a unique tool to map the energy loss from a building. This method is quick and the thermal images which the camera provides a precise and convincing argumentation. The testing will be carried out by an experienced Level II tester, fulfilling the requirements of SNT-TC-1A, 2011 edition of ASNT, USA. A high resolution FLIR thermal imaging camera will be used to capture visual and infrared images to analyze.