Check but Verify - Why we do multiple blower door tests
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ก.ย. 2024
- With code set to change so that every new house is required to have a blower door test done, Matt and Jake decided to have a conversation about how to not get surprised by your ach numbers after a build's completion. They stop by the Risinger Build where Jake takes over to show how multiple two-inch holes can affect your blower door score and talk about why it's important to do multiple tests during construction. Be sure to be diligent about openings in your builds before doing a blower door test and walk around the perimeter, looking for light leaks and openings and be sure to tape up any penetrations and as always, know better, build better!
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Blower door testing is a great tool to measure the quality of your work.
Every builder should strive to be a quality builder.
When I had my blower door test done on my personal build, my painters had just left late the night before finishing up painting and they forgot about to re-install the weather stripping on my exterior doors, and we later found out that Lincoln has forgotten to install the bottom weather stripping on my 12’ sliding patio door at the factory. That next morning the BD guy showed up earlier than I expected and I hadn’t re-installed the weather stripping on 4 exterior doors. I was on a time crunch to get CO and movers were scheduled in 2 days. I was nervous what the results would be but I still got a 2.0
Ach50 🎉. One day I’d like
To get them back out to re-test.
Matt Risinger, your videos are a work of art
Ever try using a fog machine? It really shows leaks and embarrasses the worker that swears it is sealed well. (While doing the blower test)
My 1986 ACH50 retrofit was 1.25 - more leaks to plug.
I’m going to use a fog machine on my personal build. I expect to be the one who’s embarrassed. 😂
@@superspeeder lol. We had a makeshift blower door to pressurize and a band fog machine. Wind was minimal outside. Walking around with fog made every leak obvious.
@@RBBlackstone that’s my plan as well. I bought a cheap used fog machine and got some good juice from a local music shop. I bought an 8” inline fan to pressurize the envelope.
My cheap DIY blower door test will be flipping the fan around to depressurize, use the variable speed control to get close to 50Pa on my manometer, then use an anemometer to measure the air velocity drawn into the fan. Not a certified test, but should get me in the ballpark.
Matt really got going!
It's funny watching how the US is so far ahead of Au in some ways - like the blower door requirement - while being so far behind in others - like the use of toxic outgassing and flammable plastics. In Australia it's a real question "if this house burns down, will people die?" and we take it very seriously.
But I'd like our standard of airtightness and mechanical ventilation to be up to the same quality as our fire safety standard.
Zip-R properly taped and closed cell foam between studs will get you a pass on a blower door test. No extra planning needed or expensive latex vapor misting to seal missed cracks. We did one test after insulating and our numbers were 75% better than passing with a forgotten 6" unblocked vent to outside near furnace in basement.
I just like to lick the back of my hand. 😂
If you were going to do 3 blower door tests where would you want to do aero barrier if you were gonna go that route? I'm guessing after all the holes have been punched in the walls but before drywall?
Absolutely because it might keep you from doing Aeroseal altogether because you discover you don’t need it.
in my climate zone aero barrier wont do anything until post drywall hang typically post trim. i feel like there product would be better utilized pre insulation if possible. i think about what it might do to affect the insulation r value if it starts to slowly stick to itself and close up holes. i would imagine it does the same thing inside the insulation.
Trust but verify
Here in Texas I saw the requirements coming so I got certified as a rater and bought the tools and added the service to my HVAC company. But, the reality is- there is so much construction the city's force retrofit of HVAC equipment and ductwork to be tested but builders are getting a pass. The city's I talked to said they require blower door and duct blaster tests but aren't getting them from the builders and are giving certification of occupancy any way. Needless to say I'm selling my equipment.
id imagine you have the same issues that Vegas has. its easy for the smaller builders to get everything done closer to the right way, but try getting the big trac builders on board is a different story. they want to do the barest of minimums and just keep going along. its sad really. the whole industry broken and needs repair. 90 day finishes are not a quality product.
Incorrect, Jake… it’s all about winning, getting that low number for internet bragging rights. 😂
lol rebates from the government haha
Don't trust, verify.
2:04 Nice watch Jake
Made my day!🎉
Current building codes call for 3-5 ACH50. That being the target you may consider only two tests. One after MEP and one for occuplacy.
Building codes are pathetic, always decades behind the standards we SHOULD be building to. Code should be 1.5 ACH50. 3 in pretty bad and 5 is downright terrible, and these numbers shouldn't be the target of any self-respecting builder.
@@dlg548590%of the area I work in has no blower door test required (2012 IECC with amendments) we now have one major city that now requires it between 3 and 5. Most builders are only doing final occupancy test and if they get below 3 they cut holes or n the basement so they don’t need to install ventilation.
If you ask me, we should have required ERVs before requiring blower door testing. Then builders couldn’t fight it.
@@dlg5485 couldn't agree more
we have had blower door tests code her for quite sometimes. it's about $400 bucks and they drop the paperwork with a pass it dropped off. I mean they probably test some houses but they will give you a pass without actually doing the work.
That's fraud
They're committing a crime
@@Ariccio123 i agree, but what OP said happens all the time. if you cant prove it didn't happen then it just a he said she said. sadly most builders move people in so fast you wouldn't be able to preform a QA on said house anyway.
That’s a big 2 inch hole
Imagine what six inches actually looks like! 😂
the more I see requirements like this the more I know poor people will never be able to afford new homes,,
This is not so much about spending money on expensive materials, it’s about caring about your workmanship. It isn’t hard to build a good, durable house, but it’s way easier to build a bad one which will have elevated energy bills and potentially need premature (and expensive) repairs.
@@superspeeder
you speak like a person that doesnt have to worry about money
like I said,, they are getting so expensive to build the poor will never be able to own a home,,
@@madebysteve1738So why are you even on this channel? It's 100% about building a better house. If someone is building a 300k shitty house, maybe they could build a house 20% smaller and actually use some good building practices that let them have low utility bills and a better quality of life. This is not "build a house for people who refuse to leave their dead-end retail jobs" channel.
@@chriswithrow3107 pardon me I didnt realize I was speaking above my station,,
I do think there is a real argument to be made however that a more considered approach can improve the quality of the performance of the home to a point that the building becomes more economical to own overall. Our homes cost upwards of hundreds of dollars a month less to operate than existing homes of the same size. This makes a new home virtually the same cost as a thirty year old home in my market once operation is considered. It doesn’t cost as much as you might think.