Rainscreens & Architectural Cladding for Moisture Management

 

Moisture is a huge element that engineers, and architects combat to keep a building structurally sound. Without placing protection systems such as rainscreen siding and moisture barriers, the quality and aesthetics of your building can be compromised. In addition, excessive moisture may pose environmental threats and cause legal concerns for your project. 

What Are Rainscreens and Cladding Materials?

In a nutshell, rainscreens and cladding systems are designed to keep moisture from entering the building envelope. A key component in moisture management is to prevent water from penetrating into your walls. The right rainscreen siding keeps your building dry and minimizes instances of mold and moisture damage. 

Apart from repelling rainwater, an exterior cladding system incorporates ventilation and a drainage cavity (air gap), a water-resistive barrier, insulation, and adds to your envelope structure. Keep in mind that good rainscreen performance also includes having the ability to handle water when it does penetrate this layer. 

Additionally, property owners shouldn’t ignore expansion joint covers & systems. These joints are placed in areas of a building where movement from high winds are highly probable. Their placement is especially critical in building seams or where building materials are linked in several intersecting points. A good expansion joint system has a minimal gap size and is flexible enough to allow parts of the building to expand, contract, and move while keeping the connections intact. From the appearance standpoint, expansion joint covers need to blend well and not detract from the intended design.

Choosing The Best Cladding For Moisture Management

A rainscreen system is a great way to protect your building from moisture damage. And for your external cladding materials, you have various choices. By consulting with the right construction and building materials supplier in NYC, you can have options that would work best with your intended exterior building products.  

Your choice is dependent on different factors, which include:

Ease of installment. If your rainscreen siding material requires extensive labor resources for it to be correctly installed, the timeline of your project will be increased and therefore higher expenses. Among your cladding choices, composite cladding is the easiest to install. Different architectural louvers and facades all have varying degrees of difficulty when it comes to installation. 

Visual appeal. Because rainscreen cladding takes up a huge amount surface area in your exterior, it greatly impacts the overall visual appeal of your building. But apart from their visual impact, you also have to consider the longevity of your recommended products. For instance, some sun shading louvers can be big collectors of debris. This unclean look overtime can detract from the long term visual appeal. 

Durability. Apart from aesthetics, the quality and functionality of your exterior building products should be long-lasting and resistant to wear. Special metal coatings can help with wear resistance and product lubricity. 

If you ask any architectural building supply company in NJ, having a durable rainscreen system and cladding is important in protecting your building from moisture-inducing elements. Most qualified architectural product specifiers stay up to date with innovations can add value to your intended design. With the right building envelope consultant in place, you can specify moisture control systems that will last for years to come.