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The Thermal-Moisture Dynamic
Water vapor moves in and out of a building basically in three ways: with air currents, by diffusion through materials, and by heat transfer. Of these three, air movement is the dominant force because, like most fluids, air naturally moves from a high pressure area to a lower one by the easiest path possible. This is generally through any available hole in the building envelope. Moisture transfer by air currents is very fast (in the range of several hundred cubic feet of air per minute) and accounts for more than 98% of all water vapor movement in building cavities. Thus it's very important that unintended paths that it may follow be carefully and permanently sealed. The other two driving forces are much slower processes and most common building materials slow moisture diffusion to a large degree, although never stop it completely.
In decades past, buildings did not need to restrict the flow of airborne moisture, since when the building cavities got wet they also generally dried quickly due to the "leaky" construction methods that allowed air to move freely through the building envelope. So the water vapor movement really didn't matter much until the introduction of thermal insulation. When insulation is added, the temperature of the water vapor can drop very quickly since it is being isolated from the heat of the building (in the winter) or from the outdoors in the summer if the building is being air-conditioned.
Whether from the indoors or outdoors, airborne water vapor entering the envelope of the building through holes around plumbing pipes, ductwork, wiring, and electrical outlets are some of the less obvious, yet important, points where air can move in and out of the thermal envelope. During the winter in Northern climates, any warm air entering the walls from the house cools and condenses it's water vapor inside building cavities. In the South, humid air does much the same except it comes from the outdoors and condenses inside the wall cavities during the cooling season.
The laws of physics govern how moist air reacts within various temperature conditions. This behavior is technically referred to as "psychrometrics." A psychrometric chart is used by professionals to determine at what temperature and moisture concentration water vapor begins to condense. This is called the "dew point." By understanding how to find the dew point, you will better understand how to avoid moisture problems in your house.
Relative humidity (RH) refers to the amount of moisture contained in a quantity of air compared to the maximum amount of moisture the air could hold at the same temperature. As air warms, its ability to hold water vapor increases. As air cools this capacity decreases. For example according to the psychometric chart: air at 68°F (20°C) with 0.216 ounces of water (H2O) per pound of air (14.8g H2O/kg air) has a 100% RH. The same air at 59°F (15°C) reaches 100% RH with only 0.156 ounces of water per pound of air (10.7g H2O/kg air). The colder air holds about 28% of the moisture that the warmer air does. The moisture that the air can no longer hold condenses on the first cold surface it encounters (the dew point.) If this surface is within an exterior wall cavity wet insulation and framing will be the result.
In this example, we can control two things—temperature and moisture content. The R-value of the wall cavity insulation moderates the effect of temperature across the building envelope cavity. An airtight, vapor diffusion retarder, properly installed towards the warm side of this cavity, reduces the amount of moisture entering it. Except in deliberately ventilated spaces, such as attics, these two factors work together to reduce the opportunity for condensation in a house's ceilings, walls, and floors.
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