Windtight and Waterproof Breather Membranes
Partel has developed an integrated range of breather membranes to facilitate achieving a continuous windtight and waterproof barrier within the external building envelope. These high-performance membranes are water resistant, but vapour permeable, suitable for both on-site and also in offsite construction methods.
Where are breather membranes installed?
Installed on the outer side of the insulation within external wall and roof structures these vapour permeable membranes have a dual purpose; protecting the building structure and insulation from penetration of external environmental impurities such as wind, rain and dust, while also allowing surplus moisture vapour within the building structure to escape into the atmosphere.
What to consider when choosing a wind tight breathable membrane?
- Resistance to Water Penetration: The membrane should act as a second line of defence against rain water penetration, both during construction and after completion. The specified waterproof breather membrane should carry either a Class W1 or W2 resistance to water penetration.
- Resistance to Water Vapour: This a measure of a membranes ability to allow vapour to pass through. The lower the Sd value, the quicker the vapour permeable membrane lets moisture disperse to the outside; helping prevent the risk of interstitial condensation.
At Partel, we embrace innovation and focus on developing new products to meet and exceed the requirements of ever-changing building regulations, as well as utilising new technologies. For instance:
ECOFOIL EXO, our low emissivity reflective membrane is ideally suited to timber frame panel construction. With one of the lowest emissivity values in the market of ࣘ≤ 0.05, and a cavity R-Value of 0.78 m2K/W it can be utilised to optimise the achievable U-value of a project.
EXOPERM MONO 150, our WRB leader integrates 2 performance technologies – Monࣘolithic Technology and Spunbond Technology – resulting in a 3-Ply sarking roof underlay and wind barrier with market-leading tensile and tear strengths. It is also incredibly vapour open with a SD-Value of 0.07m.
We provide comprehensive technical support for all our windtight systems. Our experienced technical team are always on hand to advise which of our wind tight breathable membranes would be most suitable for your project requirements.
