Sheathing, Thermal Insulation Application Errors

90 percent of existing buildings in Turkey are uninsulated. While insulation is divided into types within itself, the size of thermal insulation reaches 9 million cubic meters in Turkey. While the number of implementing companies in the sector is over 1000, there are more than 100 companies operating. Thermal insulation is applied in 200 thousand new residences and 200 thousand existing residences every year. Thermal insulation, which is made to reduce heat losses in winter and heat gains in summer, also reflects positively on natural gas and energy bills, and reduces electrical energy consumption due to the use of air conditioners in less than half months. While it is possible to save energy, spend less money and achieve healthier living spaces with insulation in buildings, 50% energy savings are achieved in buildings with thermal insulation.

Exterior coating application techniques, which have been created with an increasing momentum in the last 15 years,are mostly focused on Istanbul and have started to spread rapidly to other provinces. In this process, exterior sheathing companies have made problems due to lack of knowledge and experience inin buildings where thermal insulation systems are applied , performance losses and some damages have been observed, contrary to the performance expected from the insulation application.
The main source of these problems is that there are sufficient number ofexperienced sheathing companiesis not. It is that inexperienced and uninformed programmers take the siding works by influencing the project owners with unfair price competition and cause problematic programs. Another reason is the problems that have occurred and will occur in the programs created with the collection heat insulation materials in the market, as well as the jacketing system application companies . The main problems seen in the sheathing application market are as follows.

Technical Errors in Sheathing Applications;

The methods that we can call the "trial and error method" are the  applications we frequently encounter in the exterior cladding market. In this framework, an application is seen with the installation of thermal insulation boards under the boards that are not dimensionally stable . Size changes as a result of thermal changes between exterior materials whose compatibility (water vapor permeability, water absorption values, adhesion and rupture values, expansion, etc. )Damage occurred due to pushing each other. In this program, whose initial cost seems to be cheap, all the expenses incurred are in vain as the damage will continue over the years and the sheathing prices are high.
In interior sheathing applications, when no measures are taken for thermal bridges, condensation occurs especially on the columns, beams and floors adjacent to the sheathing and  jamb facades, thus heat losses become inevitable. 

Sheathing Errors

1. Incorrect dowel assemblies,
2. Large opening of the dowel hole,
3. Using poor quality anchors (which become brittle at low temperatures, weak bearing strength, etc.)
4. Incomplete anchor consumption as a result of not taking into account the effects of wind on the building,
5. Shedding problems in the plaster as a result of thinning (2mm) the plaster of the thermal insulation board,
6. Failure to place the exterior cladding boards by staggering method,
7. Poor quality of the sheathing reinforcement mesh , not being resistant to alkali,
8. No net overlays in the reinforcement net program,
9. If there is a gap of 2 - 4 mm between the thermal insulation boards, this gap should be filled with mortar or plaster,
10. Insufficient resolution of the joint details of waterproofing and sheathing
11. Failure to protect parapet tops in buildings with a harp
12. Failure to correctly resolve the combination of elements such as wood, beams, porch poles and the thermal insulation system
13. The main mistakes are the use of poor quality jamb coating materials.

Detail Errors and Thermal Insulation Problems in Sheathing

1. Burying rain pipes and lightning rod lines for the purpose of order,
2. Program techniques for forming thermal bridges due to the details of balconies and building overhangs not being resolved
3. Not using profiles in dilatations or using faulty and non-ideal profiles,
4. Faulty details where rain and snow water can accumulate As a result, the water absorption of the system is the source of problems that cause damage to the  sheathing system .

Using Inappropriate Faulty Sheathing Materials

1. The use of EPS Styrofoam, which is not in the B1 fire category,
2. The thermal insulation boards are not ideal for the sheathing system;
a. Rockwool that does not comply with the standards and does not have a plaster-holding impregnation system,
b. EPS that does not comply with the standards, has not gained dimensional stability (not rested),
c. Non-standard, low-density, armored XPS,
d. Consumption of profiles with incompatible dimensions is among the problems that negatively affect the efficiency of the sheathing assembly. 

GROUND PROBLEMS

1. Dusty, dirty, oily surfaces,
2. Salt-sprayed facades,
3. Algae and bacteria-grown facades, 4. Uneven, loose floors are the sources of problems
if they are not solved before the sheathing programs .

Incorrect Storage of Sheathing, Thermal Insulation Materials

1. Heat insulation boards are stored under direct sun, unprotected against rain,
2. Heat insulation boards are stored randomly
3. Mineral sheathing boards are damaged when bent, so it is not correct to use them in sheathing programs.

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