[Greenbuilding] Steel Building Vapor Barrier Issue + MeatHook's 20th Anniversay

[RT]

David;

I have to confess that I haven't read your entire description before  
responding simply because it's too painful to read. The phrase "What a  
cluster-%$!# !" was going through my head constantly while it was nodding  
back in forth in pity and I had to resist the urge to simply hit  
"Delete".  (Trying to minimise needless headaches in my old age. Eh ?)

I'm wondering if there's enough room to add insulation to the inside of  
the steel framing -- enough so that the dew point of any moisture  
piggy-backed on air leakage from the conditioned interior  is far, far  
away from the steel framing ?   The current vapour barrier would need to  
be removed of course since it'd be at the wrong location. The reasoning is  
that it's probably easier to add  to the interior to accommodate the  
additional insulation than it is to try and wrap the outside of the  
existing structure to eliminate all of the massive thermal bridges and  
mistakes in detailing.

It sounds like the structure is basically an agricultural implement  
storage shed.  If that's the case, perhaps the approach may be to build  
properly insulated/air-sealed  autonomous "modules" inside of the steel  
structural shell -- ie modules that include insulated floors, walls and  
ceilings.

And if it is in fact an agricultural setting, perhaps this would be an  
opportunity to utilise straw bales (or other cellulosic material (ie wood  
chips, ag waste fibre etc) made into building blocks for the shells of the  
modules ?   This would be something the homeowners could do themselves  
since I'm guessing their building budget has taken a severe hit with the  
cluster-$%@# that they're dealing with now.

On Fri, 16 Dec 2016 11:39:18 -0500, David Wentling via Greenbuilding  
<greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org> wrote:

>
> a 40’ x 60’ steel building on a slab in zone 7 of Colorado.  House’s  
> long orientation is nearly due east-west.
>
> Initially, they installed the standard “thin” fiberglass batt (~2”) with  
> the vinyl vapor barrier inward prior to installing the walls and roof.  
> As we all >know the insulation value at the compression atop each rafter  
> is zero. Thermal Bridge. The homeowner then proceeded to convert half of  
> the steel >building into a house and the other into a garage.


            === * ===
Oh, and before I forget:

On Thu, 15 Dec 2016 12:36:42 -0500, Norbert Senf <norbert.senf at gmail.com>  
wrote:

> I got online in 1996, and I remember getting on the strawbale list on  
> Crest, and I believe the greenbuilding list was around the same time.
> <snip>

Happy 20th Anniversary, Dear (MeatHook).
"Of course !" I remembered that it was your 20th.

Seems like it was just yesterday that my eyeballs popped out of my head at  
the video that Norbert put up of flames shooting out of what was designed  
as a combustion air supply inlet  for a wood-burning device but obviously  
the house had a different idea in mind.


-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom T6015O
Kanata, Ontario, Canada

< A r c h i L o g i c at Y a h o o dot C a >

(manually winnow the chaff from my edress if you hit "Reply")
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