Zip vs. Thermo-Ply in retrofit wall assembly
![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6c17a1d9c7b2827742ced4a85c8993fe?s=52&d=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.greenbuildingadvisor.com%2Fapp%2Favatars%2F200x200%2Fn.png&r=g)
I am a homeowner renovating a 100-year old foursquare in Manhattan KS (mixed-humid, zone 4). We need to remove our wall sheathing to address some dry rot issues, and are taking the opportunity to improve the envelope details and work closer to a pretty-good house.
The walls are 2×4 balloon framing with interior lathe-and-plaster and 1×12 exterior board sheathing. The cavities are insulated with blown cellulose. After repairing the rot, our plan is to add the following layers on top of the existing board sheathing:
1 – ½ Zip system panels with taped seams
2 – Two staggered layers of reclaimed 1” Polyiso (foil-faced) with taped seams
3 – A ¾” vented rainscreen gap created from 1×4 furring strips screwed to the studs
4 – Boral TruExterior beveled siding
However, on this forum I recently saw the Ox Thermo-Ply product, and am curious if it would make sense to swap the Zip panels for Thermo-Ply Green panels. This would reduce the overall weight and cost of our assembly considerably.
It looked like the primary complaint leveled at Thermo-Ply is related to using it in a structural manner, but as we will retain our existing board sheathing any shear loads should already be addressed. Also, it has a lower permeability than Zip, but with two layers of foil-faced polyiso, we’re already limited to drying to the interior.
Or is there some additional benefit from using Zip on top of the existing board sheathing that I am missing? Would it handle high winds better (we are in tornado country)?
My thanks for any advice and thoughts you can offer!
Sincerely,
Nathan Bean
GBA Detail Library
A collection of one thousand construction details organized by climate and house part
![](https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/app/themes/greenbuildingadvisor/dist/img/modules/detail-library/thumb1.png)
![](https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/app/themes/greenbuildingadvisor/dist/img/modules/detail-library/thumb2.png)
Replies
Nathan,
There is no doubt that Zip sheathing (or any other brand of OSB you care to mention) can handle high winds better than Thermo-Ply. (Thermo-Ply is foil-faced cardboard.)
That said, there may be no reason for you to worry about high wind loads -- especially if your existing board sheathing is well nailed. If you are worried about tornadoes, you should talk to an engineer.