High-Performance Buildings: DELTA®-FOOTING BARRIER
Energy-efficient and healthy buildings need above- and below-grade air and moisture control barriers to meet today’s building codes and sustainability requirements.
When it comes to below grade, in particular, ensuring a basement stays permanently dry requires foundation walls to stay separated from any damp soil. Otherwise, migrating moisture can reach the structure’s framing and/or interior.
There are many approaches contractors use to keep ground moisture from reaching basement foundations. But there’s only one that truly addresses the issue of moisture migrating from the footings to the foundation. And that’s with proper capillary breaks.
In this short video, certified Passive House Consultant and experienced technical services manager Krzysztof Apriasz will walk you through how to create a dry basement using DELTA®-FOOTING BARRIER as a capillary break at the footing, which will prevent moisture from entering the interior and mold growth.
About DELTA®-FOOTING BARRIER
DELTA®-FOOTING BARRIER acts as a physical barrier between the footing and the foundation wall, resisting the capillary wicking of water and upward migration of moisture from the footings into the foundation wall, also known as rising damp.
The three-ply sheet membrane is composed of a polyester needle-punched fabric, a polyethylene barrier, and an anti-slip surface layer.
The hydrophilic needle-punched PET fabric forms a strong mechanical bond with the concrete. The polyethylene middle layer creates a moisture barrier, preventing the wicking of water from the footings through to the foundation walls. And finally, the non-slip surface coating helps keep the jobsite a safe work environment.
Installation is fast and intuitive, too. Applicators simply need to lay it into the freshly poured concrete footings, smooth into place with a trowel, and form the keyway with the membrane in place.
If you’d like to learn the science behind building a dry basement with membrane capillary breaks, this blog covers it all. We break down what capillary rise is and how it occurs, why capillary breaks are needed, what problems can arise if you opt for fluid-applied dampproofing, and everything you need to know about rebars and keyways.
