Should I air-seal an attached, non-climate controlled garage?
BrunoF
| Posted in General Questions on
Thinking through the logic of many building science articles that I have read regarding building for my climate zone (4A) and the need for the walls to be able to dry in and out, I am questioning the need for air-sealing the exterior walls of my attached garage.
It seems like that if my garage is too tight, when wet cars parks inside there won’t be a way for all that moisture to escape and if it is cold outside perhaps it could lead to condensation. Is this a practical concern, or am I over thinking things?
Thx!
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Replies
Random thoughts –
I don’t think it’s a practical concern.
If you have a conventional garage door, it’s almost impossible to get a decent air seal, so efforts elsewhere are futile.
Venting the garage with passive vents, or a timed exhaust fan (triggered on when door closes?) combined with passive air vents, could help. Probably better for diluting toxic fumes from ICEs, fertilizers, paint cleaners, and all the other crap that gets stored in garages, without much effect on humidity.
OTOH, I’d rather have an installation crew do everything on a house the same way, rather than using different techniques on one wall versus another, so I’d probably just do the exterior walls of the garage the same as the rest of the if it’s attached.
BrunoF,
You don't really want your garage - or any other part of a house, to dry though air leakage. It's much more likely that air will deposit its moisture in the walls than move through them. If you have excessive moisture you need to ventilate the garage.