Insulation Institute Blog

When properly installed, housewrap can be the workhorse of a home’s exterior envelope, as a weather-resistive barrier that performs as the buildings shell, repelling water while also allowing water vapor to pass to the outside of the structure. But, like everything else in construction, it only works well if properly installed.  Rex Nelson of Correct Housewrap Installation estimates that 90 percent of housewrap installations are bad, which he says is not only avoidable, but potentially very damaging to the home’s exterior.  Nelson says that contractors should understand what the product is intended to do and be trained on properly installing it, which will help improve housewrap jobs and building durability in the long run.

Mold in a home can create indoor air quality and health issues for the occupants, cost builders and contractors thousands of dollars to fix and result in costly and lengthy litigation. Moreover, increasingly tight construction with less natural ventilation may create indoor environments prone to moisture buildup, one of the key requirements for mold growth.  The best and least expensive strategy for builders to address mold is prevention.  Insulation Institute talked with Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant Mike Lanius of Indoor Environmental Professionals about the prevalence of mold in new construction, ways to prevent it and the single most common error he sees in new construction that leads to mold and what builders can do to prevent it.