Insulate Concrete Wall Exterior

The thermal performance of a masonry wall depends on its steady state thermal.

Insulate concrete wall exterior.

The variety of concrete masonry wall constructions provides for a number of insulating strategies. Before insulating coat the exterior of the walls with fluid applied water control and air control layers. Basement walls made out of concrete stone concrete bloc and other masonry foundation materials have very minimal insulating properties and cause approximately 20 of heat loss in a home. And there is no effective way to fill the voids in an existing concrete block wall.

It may look easy to go buy some packs of rigid insulation panels down at the local hardware store and screw them to your walls but unless you understand how your existing walls are built and how they work in terms of keeping. How to insulate an exterior face of a concrete block wall preparation. Your only option is to cover the inside of the exterior walls with a continuous layer of insulation as though you were insulating a basement wall. Adding extra insulation to the exterior walls of an older home when renovating or remodeling is a great way of improving a home s walls thermal performance and reducing energy use while reducing heating bills carbon footprint and improving a building s comfort level.

The current plan is to place 2 inches of extruded polystyrene xps on the outside of the foundation walls. While the un insulated concrete is at 25 5f about 5 degrees warmer than ambient the insulated wall is almost 10f colder. Nethaniel ealy a builder in idaho who s about to pour a concrete basement foundation is trying to come up with insulation and waterproofing details that will be effective and within the budget. Consult your local building authority before having eifs applied to the exterior of your house or building.

What is striking is that the exterior of the insulated wall is actually below ambient at 15 8f and that there is heat leaking out the bottom of the wall which is insulated below grade to over 8. Then attach 2x4s on the flat directly to the masonry insulate between and on top of them staggering the joints in the insulation and install additional furring on top of the insulation to attach your cladding. That is why insulating your basements walls is necessary especially when you live in areas that have very cold climate. As the federal energy star program and international energy conservation code continue to push the envelope for effectively insulating exterior walls against thermal loss to boost a home s energy efficiency builders of block walls are being forced to adjust their practices to comply with the more stringent standards.

Insulating concrete masonry walls introduction.