What's your BuildIQ: Mold Prevention

Publication Date:

Wed, 2004-06-30 19:00

Mold, caused by water intrusion, negatively affects a home's durability, the customer's satisfaction and health, and the builder's reputation and bottom line. To grow into mold colonies, mold spores need three things: a food source, a temperature above 32ºF and moisture. All of these are found in a home, which is made with organic materials and is kept at a temperature conducive to mold growth. Controlling moisture is key to preventing mold growth.

You can't depend on the exterior finish to prevent water intrusion through the walls because it isn't entirely waterproof. Stucco can crack, brick is porous and courses of siding have gaps between them. Making the exterior surface as weather-resistant as possible is only part of the drainage solution, though. To prevent water intrusion, you must think of the wall as a water management system and apply a second line of defense, consisting of the drainage plane and the proper flashings, to drain away any water that penetrates the wall cladding.

Do you know the best practices for preventing mold in walls? The following questions will test your BuildIQ. Stumped or want to learn more? Visit hz.buildiquniversity.com [1]

1. Which of the following is true?

	A.	A 3/8-inch air space in a brick-veneer wall system allows the backside of the brick to dry.
	B.	The foam insulation board in an EIFS can't be grooved.
	C.	Cement board siding shouldn't be backprimed.

2. The crew is applying a rigid foam sheathing to the first- and second-floor walls of the home and a house wrap to the attic walls. These two materials will come in contact with one another. Which of the following is true?

	A.	To create a continuous drainage plane, you must integrate the rigid foam sheathing and the house wrap.
	B.	The attic walls don't need drainage plane protection.
	C.	There's no way to create a continuous drainage plane using two different materials.

3. While checking the brick walls, you notice that the space between the sheathing and the brick veneer is about 1/4 inch. Which of the following explains why this space should be larger than 1/4 inch?

	A.	To allow the mason to create weep holes in the correct location.
	B.	To allow the mason to install through-wall flashing.
	C.	To allow the brick veneer to dry and to allow for mortar to be dropped into the air space without causing water intrusion.

What's your BuildIQ: Mold Prevention - Walls