How often do you think about how the exterior walls of a building are vented?
Some of my recent project work led me to a weep vent material that looks great. Primarily, the weep vent material allows the wall to breath while preventing insects and other particulate to block the vent. Secondly the weep vent material adds aesthetic value because it disguises the vent to look like any other mortar joint.
The material is a tough recycled polyester mesh that makes the vent visually disappear among the mortar joints.
Check out this photo of the mesh in a vent mockup:
Additionally, when we looked at this on a job site, we also looked at a piece of a polyethylene cavity cell vent:
The flexible nature of the mesh is a great fit for the existing masonry mortar joints.
What other interesting materials and solutions have you discovered on the job site or through projects?
Cape Cod Community College’s Frank and Maureen Wilkens Science and Engineering Center is a net-positive energy building designed to transform the heart of campus.
The project approaches sustainability through a holistic and global approach, implementing a range of moves including passive solar shading overhangs, air-source heat pumps, high performance materials with low embodied carbon and the expansion of the range of thermal comfort and lighting power density. Combined with on-site photovoltaics, the project achieves net-positive energy use.
The project’s thermally modified wood rainscreen façade is a study of the modern expression of vernacular Cape Cod architecture while reducing embodied carbon. Early lifecycle assessments identified the immense carbon savings of wood over fiber cement. The design team did not stop there, furthering reductions by peeling back unnecessary finishes like carpet and ceilings. Together, these decisions enabled a 19% reduction in embodied carbon.
#earthweek #designalways #buildingscience #performalism #netpositive #capecodmodernism #capecod #newengland