Instructions / Assembly
5
OVERVIEW
Continuous Insulation (CI) Denition and Benets
What Is Continuous Insulation (CI)?
ASHRAE 90.1
3
without thermal bridges other than fasteners and service openings. It is installed on the interior or exterior and to any
opaque surface of the building envelope.
ASHRAE Standard 90.1 is one of two primary baseline building energy codes that may be adopted by states and local jurisdictions to
regulate the design and construction of new buildings. ASHRAE 90.1 is limited to commercial buildings, while the International Energy
Conservation Code
®
(IECC)
4
addresses both residential and commercial buildings.
As cities across the United States bolster their clean energy efforts, stricter building energy codes are some of the biggest success
Benets of Continuous Insulation
• Reduces thermal bridging and increases overall R-value.
through the building envelope via a continuous path, such as through wood or, more commonly, highly conductive steel framing
members. Thermal bridging dramatically affects whole-wall R-value. For instance, a steel stud wall assembly with batt insulation
could lose up to 75% of its R-value through thermal bridging.
5
Continuous insulation helps to mitigate thermal bridges while
• Creates barrier continuity. Air and water barriers can be installed as a single material adjacent to wall sheathing, keeping barriers
continuous, a necessary performance attribute of high performing structures.
• Reduces moisture concerns. CI reduces the possibility of condensation within the wall when warm, moist air is prevented from
reaching a dew point temperature.
• Flexibility. CI allows for vapor barrier placement to be on the interior or exterior, or in the same plane as the air and water barrier.
Reduces the risk of dual vapor barriers.
3
ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning
Engineers. https://www.ashrae.org.
4
International Energy Conservation Code, International Code Council, https://iccsafe.org.
5
https://sustainabilityworkshop.autodesk.com/buildings/total-r-values-and-thermal-bridging.