Clear as mud

For some of us, the vocabulary of the building world may be somewhat foreign. I am building this blog entry around a few words who's definitions may be unclear, or concepts may not be fully understood.

Building Envelope - This is the perimeter of the home that contains the foundation, walls, ceiling, windows, and doors. It contains the areas of your home that need to be conditioned for comfortable living. The building envelope is the protective layer between your home and the outside.

Retrofit - To modify something, such as a building, by adding new parts. Retrofitting your home with new insulation means to put insulation where there was no insulation before, such as exterior walls, or to put additional insulation over top of the insulation that is already there, such as in attic spaces.

Vapor Barrier - Materials, (often plastic sheets or treated papers), that restricts the movement of water vapor through the building envelope. A Kraft faced fiberglass batt has a paper vapor barrier attached to it.

Please feel free to comment on any of the above, or let me know if you have specific questions that you would like answers to. I have posted helpful photos on our Flickr page to illustrate this entry.