House Sheathing, Part 2
Hello All, I posted recently about concerns about adherence to all the Zip Tape rules, and was looking for other options. You all were very helpful. In discussing our concerns with our architect, he said that Zip is fairly forgiving even if the tape isn’t rolled right away or fully and that with our rainscreen, we would still be okay.
I ended up calling Huber because I also wanted some info on their Advantech wall sheathing (as it’s a similar price point for the non T&G product as plywood). The guy was very helpful. He said the Advantech sheathing can sit out, untaped and unwrapped, for 500-days, but we’d want to put a wrap on it before adding siding since it’s not an air barrier. So, that sounded pretty good (especially since it’s a fully resin impregnated product).
He also said when I asked about issues with Zip tape (and specifically setting the warranty issues aside) that overdriven nails will be fine if they don’t go more than 1/2 of the depth of the sheet (so, 1/4″ for a 1/2″ sheet), and he also said the tape would probably be fine if it wasn’t rolled for a month or so, but there could be adhesion issues if moisture or dust got behind it. The most important thing is not not have wrinkles or fish-mouth on the tape.
SO, long-winded intro, but now I’m sort of maybe leaning towards Advantech wall sheathing, letting it sit until we are ready to do wall insulation, and then tape and wrap w/Tyvek Commercial at that point.
Does anybody who knows more than I do have any concerns about this approach (aside from cost)? I know I’m all over the place here, sorry about that!
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Replies
BnBnVT,
The big disadvantage is you lose the ability to use the sheathing as your primary air-barrier, which is one of Atvantech's main plusses. Sheet WRBs are poor air barriers, and difficult to detail properly. Whether you use an additional house-wrap or not, I would tape the sheathing.
Malcolm-
You would have thought the Advantech sales guy would have gotten the main plus of using their sheathing as an air-barrier ..
begreener,
Yet again I think I've misunderstood the OP.
"I’m sort of maybe leaning towards Advantech wall sheathing, letting it sit until we are ready to do wall insulation, and then tape and wrap w/Tyvek Commercial at that point."
I think they intend to tape the Advantech, and also use Tyvek Commercial.
Deleted
This doesn’t make any sense, I think the advantech would be basically the same price as zip. Don’t overthink it, just use zip if you are leaning this way and be on site for a day while it’s taped or tape it yourself, or hire a worker to do exactly what you say for a day or two and make it perfect. It is extremely easy to apply if you are diligent and don’t have a bunch of random people doing little sections. Just do it all at once. Do your horizontal first, then vertical.
I think your scaring yourself into a worse buildup
We probably are. We generally fall into the analysis paralysis category of people, and this seems like such a huge decision that we don't want to get wrong. I just need to tell myself RAINSCREEN, and take a chill pill. I think we also need to try to guide the contractors, which is a bit more difficult than one would expect. Thanks all!!
ZIP tape application is really easy to learn and pretty fast once you get the basics figured out. Some of the botched tape jobs really boggle my mind, and it's really easy to do a great job if you slow down a tiny bit and take some care. I've actually found that the tape gun is faster, but much harder to learn and also hard to keep from "steering" the tape (which is wrinkle city).
Like many things in life, you waste a lot more time by rushing and having to do rework (or doing it twice) than just taking the extra time to do it properly and move on to the next task.
Taping is pretty fast. Rolling it is even faster. Smooth the tape with your hand or a plastic squeegee/spreader as you apply it, and it will stick well enough to keep moisture and dust out until you roll it. Lay down about two feet with a little tape tension, smooth it with your hand, lay down two feet, smooth it, keep moving. But then why not go back and roll all the applied tape and call it done?
Don't be afraid. It's a skill, but it's an easy skill that anyone can learn.