Tread carefully with new and emerging building technologies

摘要

Codes have advanced quickly over the past six years, pushed in part by the green-building movement. Rapid progress can be a double-edged sword, however; if we get the code wrong, it can take a long time to fix. That makes it more important than ever for us to keep abreast with building science, and to make sure we get it right. When energy came into focus back in the 1970s, we made a lot of mistakes, such as putting impervious vapor barriers on interior walls. This may have saved energy, but it resulted in mold and rot. We are focused on energy again, and over the last three code cycles, energy requirements have grown tremendously.