Jul 6 2006
Once dampness gets into a house, it opens the door for its two close companions – mold and rot.
DELTA-DRY stops wet and damp from moving through the wall from the outside. Importantly, it also works to get rid of any moisture in the wall that may originate from inside the house. How it accomplishes this is by creating two independent air flow gaps. This is new -- no other product does it.
But now there’s a new weapon against these common foes of the homeowner, in the form of an innovative house wrap product.
At the PCBC builders’ show in San Franscisco June 21, building expert Dr. Achilles Karagiozis introduced a new class of house wrap called DELTA®-DRY. A solid, impermeable plastic "barrier" that's wrapped around the house before the brick or other finishes go on, DELTA-DRY is entirely different from the soft "breathable" house wrap often seen on new homes under construction.
"It’s a significant improvement," says Dr. Karagiozis, Senior Research Engineer at Oak Ridges National Laboratory where the new product was tested. "DELTA-DRY stops wet and damp from moving through the wall from the outside. Importantly, it also works to get rid of any moisture in the wall that may originate from inside the house. How it accomplishes this is by creating two independent air flow gaps. This is new -- no other product does it."
Manufactured by building products company Cosella-Dörken, DELTA-DRY is silver, with a raised pattern of studs and channels that make it resemble armor. These overlap and interlock for top protection against wind and weather. Air in the channels carries off moisture and ventilates the walls of the house, allowing them to "breathe" and dry. The channels also give any water that may get inside an easy way out, to a drainage track at the bottom of the wall.
"A big problem for builders is that the materials they are building with often are wet, and it’s hard to get them dry before they go in," explains Tom Fallon, vice president of Cosella-Dörken. "DELTA-DRY is the first product to tackle that problem with new drying strategies."
Because the metallic silver membrane reflects radiant heat and can’t be penetrated by wind or weather, DELTA-DRY also helps maintain indoor climates and increase energy efficiency in the home. It’s made of safe, non-biodegradable polyethylene plastic for long-term protection of homeowners' real estate investment, as well as their health.
DELTA-DRY has won rapid acceptance on the "wet" west coast of Oregon and California, where builders are using it in major condominium and townhouse projects, as well as on private homes.