The Pressure-equalized rain screen system is the best insurance policy available to designers, builders, and homeowners facing elemental extremes. This cladding design has been tested to the extent that Scandanavian buildings dating back over 500 years are still used. They must be doing something right.
Like every siding application, some maintenance over time will be required. The rain screen system provides a confidence in the future that other systems simply cannot match. By equal distribution of pressure throughout the building envelope, the screen and its associated spacing and venting bear the brunt of nature’s burden.
A very good, though somewhat technical explanation, is available here. A study performed by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) in association with the Ontario Association of Architects identifies the forces involved in envelope penetration and the effective means to combat that inevitability. With any wooden cladding system, deterioration over time is an issue. The rainscreen is an effective preventative measure available to the conscientious builder.
I've found another interesting write-up that differentiates rainscreen systems from the Metal Construction Association. It's not quite as in-depth as the CMHC issue, but it is a very good eleven-page pdf that defines specific differences between pressure-equalized systems and closed systems. It's pretty concise, and much less technical.
Rainscreen siding is green building at its finest. By selecting a wonderfully durable species such as Massaranduba, Garapa, or a domestic gem such as Cypress, your design or home will serve a much longer useful life than conventional construction. Less maintenance and a longer durable life make the rain screen envelope in premium lumber an investment worthy of desirable properties across the country.
The aesthetic value of siding your home in Brazilian Hardwood is striking. For homeowners seeking a measurable investment quality the value added in a tropical lumber home can be immense. Stone, conventional siding, and brick are everywhere. A home polished in Ipe is one to be remembered. The State of Oregon recently sought the longer-term green benefits of a separate water-permeable envelope by requiring it on new construction effective January 1, 2010. This won’t be the last outpost in the United States that will shift to this type of design in the future, as commodities will be unable to keep pace with the planet’s occupants quite as well…
If you're interested in coming trends, and green building developments, please check out some of the information linked above. At Specialty Lumber Solutions, we provide the Vanish ™ Rainscreen Clip. This system affords designers the ability to incorporate a hidden fastening system, eliminating the need for pre-drilling and plugging. Woods such as ipe are exceptionally hard, and I’ve been known to show up with a handful of bits just to get through a day on a drill job. As much as the drilling can be avoided, it should, and these clips do a fine job to snug the siding to battens. It’s a pretty slick application, I think.
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