Field Testing Unvented Roofs with Asphalt Shingles in Cold and Hot-humid Climates
BSC TO5 Task 7.1 Field Testing Unvented Roofs with Asphalt Shingles in Cold Climates - Bolingbrook, IL 60440 BSC TO5 Task 7.1 Field Testing Unvented Roofs with Asphalt Shingles in Hot-Humid Climates - Friendswood, TX 77546 To understand the long-term moisture performance of unvented roof assemblies with fibrous insulation, the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America team Building Science Corporation built and monitored test roofs in two climates: a cold-climate test house in Bolingbrook, Illinois (Chicago area; zone 5A), and a hot-humid test house in Friendswood, Texas (Houston area, zone 2A). The Chicago-area test bed had seven parallel experimental rafter bays. The assemblies included a control vented compact (cathedral) roof, a dense-pack cellulose unvented roof, and an unvented roof with a "diffusion vent" (a strip of vapor-permeable gypsum sheathing at the ridge to allow drying). The interior finish was gypsum wallboard (GWB) with latex paint. The other four bays were top vent roof assemblies, which have a polypropylene breather mesh between the roof sheathing and the asphalt shingles to allow ventilation drying of the assembly from underneath the vapor-impermeable shingles. Two of the four "top vent" roofs were fiberglass batt and two were dense-pack cellulose roofs with either interior GWB or open to the interior. Wintertime moisture-related failure was accelerated by providing interior humidification (22.2 degree C [72 degree F]/50% relative humidity [RH]), which is known to be an extreme interior loading). Data were captured over 8 months, including a winter and the following spring and early summer.
- Research Organization:
- DOE Open Energy Data Initiative (OEDI); Building Science Corporation
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Multiple Programs (EE)
- Contributing Organization:
- Building Science Corporation
- DOE Contract Number:
- FY15 AOP 1.9.1.19
- OSTI ID:
- 2204219
- Report Number(s):
- 5512
- Availability:
- OpenEI.Webmaster@nrel.gov
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Field Testing Unvented Roofs with Asphalt Shingles in Cold and Hot-Humid Climates
Technology Solutions Case Study: Field Testing an Unvented Roof with Asphalt Shingles in a Cold Climate