Tried & True Moisture Performance
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Fullback® insulated siding is a high-performance building product with a two-decade track record of zero moisture claims, designed to allow moisture to escape effectively while maintaining its insulation value. The product, made from expanded polystyrene (EPS), outperforms other insulation types in water retention and has been rigorously tested to ensure no trapped moisture leads to mold or structural issues. Additionally, Fullback® offers various benefits including energy efficiency, impact resistance, and maintenance freedom.
Tried & True Moisture Performance
- 1. Tr i e d & Tr u e M o i s t ure Pe r f o r m a n ce
- 2. A PROVEN TR ACK RECORD... 20 YEARS, ZERO MOISTURE CLAIMS! Fullback® Insulated Siding is an industry leading building product. Its moisture performance is only one of its many industry leading features. From the product’s introduction nearly 20 years ago, it was obvious that no siding system would be suc- cessful unless it allowed moisture to escape from the wall assembly, either as water vapor or bulk moisture. Progressive Foam completed moisture testing leading-up to the launch of Fullback® Insulated Siding, and has continued to test products as the Fullback® line has evolved. DID YOU KNOW? The average family of four produces four to six gallons of water vapor Fullback® Insulated Siding was designed for superior performance: each day through activities such as cooking, • The insulation component of Fullback® Insulated Siding is manufactured from cleaning and showering. That vapor has to expanded polystyrene (EPS), ensuring that you get a high quality product that be able to escape from the home, so moisture does not accumulate and cause problems in conforms to all of the physical properties of ASTM C578. the walls. • The closed cell structure of EPS provides the insulation your home needs. • EPS also has a permeability rating of 5.0 to allow water vapor from inside your house to escape. SATISFACTION OF “GETTING WHAT YOU PAY FOR” Rest assured that you are getting what you pay for. The insulating value you pay for today will not degrade over time. Some have claimed that EPS insulation loses its R-value due to saturation or struc- tural break down. The insulating component of Fullback® Insulated Siding is proven 100 80 to not retain more than 2.75% moisture by volume when installed on your exterior Percentage Retention 60 walls.1 Because the insulation retains very little moisture and does not physically 40 degrade, it maintain’s it’s R-value over time. 20 0 Fullback® is always installed above grade, therefore rarely exposed to standing water R-Value Retention like below grade insulation is. Even when EPS is installed below grade, studies show that it is proven to perform.2 EPS Type I (1.0pcf ) 94 XPS Type X (1.6pcf ) 52 R-VALUE RETENTION 100 Proof #1: In August 2008, independent testing evaluated the field 80 Percentage Retention 60 performance of EPS and XPS insulation in a side‐by‐side, below grade 40 application following a continuous 15‐year installation period. Samples of 20 both materials were excavated from the exterior of a commercial building 0 in St. Paul, MN at a depth of approximately 6 feet below grade. Results of % Water Retention by that testing are shown in the graphs to the right. Volume EPS Type I (1.0pcf ) 4.8 XPS Type X (1.6pcf ) 18.9 These results demonstrate that EPS Type I outperforms XPS Type X in both R‐value retention and decreased water absorption. Further, whereas the in‐service R‐value of the XPS insulation is reduced by half, expanded polystyrene still delivers 94% of its specified R-value of 3.6 per inch after Specimens were tested for thermal resistance using 15 years . These long term performance advantages make EPS insulation a ASTM C518 “Standard Test Method for Steady‐State Thermal Transmission Properties by Means of the Heat preferred choice when compared to its competition. Flow Apparatus” immediately after excavation. Moisture content was determined by measuring the sample 1 ASTM C272-01 (2007) Standard Test Method for Water Absorption of Core Materials for Structural Sandwich weight at the time of removal and again after being Constructions: http://www.astm.org/Standards/C272.htm. oven dried 2 EPS Molders Association. 15-Year In-Situ Research Shows EPS Outperforms XPS in R-Value Retention. 2008. Print. EPS Below Grade Series 103.
- 3. QUALITY THAT IS “CUT-AND-DRY” ABOVE THE COMPETITION Fullback®'s superior performance is “cut-and-dry”. EPS is non-hygroscopic and does not readily retain moisture from the atmosphere. Its closed-cell structure reduces the amount of moisture retained into the insulation material. WIND-DRIVEN Proof #2: Further testing of the Fullback® system revealed that it does not trap or retain moisture in wind driven rain testing (ATI Report 43722.03-120-40). A wall assembly with Fullback® was sub- jected to one hour of wind driven rain at a velocity of 25 mph with RAIN a water application rate of 5 gal/sq foot/ hour (8" rainfall per hour). Thirty minutes after the application of the water, the 8' by 8' wall as- sembly showed that it only retained 4.3 ounces of water. One hour after testing the wall assembly retained only 1 ounce of water, and DID YOU KNOW? Water from wind-driven rain and snow after 24 hours all of the moisture had evaporated from the wall. can enter the wall system through leaks in the building en- velope. Your siding needs to protect the wall from exterior sources of bulk water. Proof #3: The EPS Molders Association commissioned a similar ASTM C578 Minimum Performance Properties study by Intertek EL SEMKO, an independent test laboratory. Inter- FREEZE-THAW EPS Compressive R-value, F-Ft2- Moisture Content, tek conducted environmental cycling tests on 1” thick specimens of Type Strength psi b/BTU Volume % EPS product Types I, II, and IX, using ASTM C1512, the Standard Test I 10.0 3.6 4.0 Method for Characterizing the Effects of Exposure to Environmental Cy- CYCLES II 15.0 4.0 3.0 cling on Thermal Performance of Insulation Products. ASTM C1512 was IX 25.0 4.2 2.0 developed specifically to evaluate building foam insulation under exposure to moisture and freeze-thaw cycles. After ASTM C1512 Environmental Cycling It is important to note that the use of other ASTM procedures (such EPS Compressive R-value, F-Ft2- Moisture Content, Type Strength psi b/BTU Volume % as those designed for concrete) to evaluate the effects of freeze-thaw I 13.7 3.7 2.7 conditioning on foam insulation has led to confusion. Reporting the results of tests designed for other materials and applications is inac- II 21.6 4.0 1.7 curate and unsuitable.3 IX 32.0 4.4 1.6 FULLBACK® INSULATED SIDING PROVIDES PEACE OF MIND With nearly 20 years of experience and proven performance, you can rest assured that Fullback® is the right insulation for your home. Third party research has evaluated the performance characteristics of Fullback®, and here is what they are saying: NO MOLD OR Proof #4: A 2007 Architectural Testing Institute(ATI) research study (Report No. 74575.01-201-27) of an eight hundred square job MILDEW in Minneapolis, MN revealed that there was no cracking, breaking, or crumbling of the foam. After seven years on these apartments, the average moisture content was determine to be 1.4% (well below the ASTM C578 4% maximum). Upon removal of the product there was no evidence of staining, mold or mildew - supporting the claims that Fullback® won't trap moisture in your walls. 3 National Advertising Divison (NAD) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc. Dow Chemical Company & EPS Molders Associa- tion Take Part in NAD Self-Regulatory Forum; NAD Recommends Dow Chemical Discontinue or Modify Some Claims. 14 Oct. 2005.
- 4. Proof #5: Craig Drumheller, Senior Energy Engineer with the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Research Center, recently completed a one year field study4 on the effects different DRIEST WALL SYSTEM cladding systems have on the moisture performance of wood-framed walls. In this study, he com- pared Fullback® Insulated Siding with eight other wall assemblies (including vinyl siding and fiber cement siding) and concluded that: • “Insulated Siding provides both thermal and Vinyl Siding Moisture Content Sheathing- North Stucco w/One 15# Felt hygrothermal benefits in light framed wall con- Stucco w/Two 15# Felt Stucco w/Air Gap struction. The thermal resistance of insulated Manufactured Stone siding provides a double benefit: reduced Stucco w/Plywood Fiber Cement Siding heat flow in the wall assembly, thereby saving Percent Moisture Content Insulated Siding Brick energy, and a higher wall cavity temperature, resulting in increased drying capacity.” • “The wall pair with insulated vinyl siding had the lowest all-around sheathing moisture content values.” Although EPS provides a high level of moisture resistance and breathability, recommended design practices for 2008 2009 walls should be followed in the selection of vapor and moisture barriers for severe exposures. 4 Drumheller, S. Craig, and Charles G. Carll. Effect of Cladding Systems on Moisture Performance of Wood-Framed Walls in a Mixed-Humid Climate. National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Research Center. Fullback® INSULATED SIDING HAS EVEN MORE TO OFFER! Fullback® Insulated Siding is time tested to be an extremely effective home insulation product. Customers enjoy many other benefits as well. • Increased Impact Resistance • Superior Energy Efficiency • Termite Resistance • Straighter Lines and Symmetry • Maintenance Freedom • Environmentally Friendly • And much more! To learn more about the many great benefits of using Fullback® Insulated Siding, please visit www.progressivefoam.com or contact a Progressive Foam customer service representative by calling 1-800-860-3626. Inventors of Insulated Siding. Makers of Fullback®. 6753 Chestnut Ridge Road • Beach City, Ohio 44608 Phone: 800.860.3626 330.756.3200 Fax: 330.756.3206 www.progressivefoam.com