FIELD TEST METHODS FOR THE EVALUATION OF WATERTIGHTNESS PERFORMANCE OF BUILDING ENVELOPE

摘要

In recent years, even with the advancements in material technology and construction techniques for building envelope, water leakage is still a major concern. This is largely attributed to poor workmanship. The shortage of skilled labour and the lack of understanding of the water leakage mechanism are possible causes. However, the underlying reason for bad workmanship is the lacking of an effective, reliable and convenient field testing method for quality control. Since the water-tightness performance of the envelope of a building cannot be predicted by analytical or numerical approach, that is the more reason that testing and evaluation must be an important step in the construction of the envelope of a building. This paper looks at the different field testing methods for water penetration. The advantages and disadvantages of the methods are discussed. Experiment is carried out to obtain test data on the 'hose method'. A new testing method, the Simulation of Wind And raiN (SWAN) is reported.