Does housewrap have to breathe?
Tim writes from Grass Valley, California: “I am planning on residing my house. My current wall configuration is this: Drywall, kraft faced r-13 insulation, tar paper over the studs and then 3/8 inch siding. I want to install a house wrap combo vapor barrier over my existing siding and then reside with cement board siding. Will this cause condensation in the wall? Does a house wrap have to breathe?” Answer: Owens Corning does market housewrap. PINKWRAP® housewrap is a woven polyolefin fabric engineered to be a weather resistant barrier. PINKWRAP housewrap reduces air infiltration through residential and commercial exterior side wall construction while permitting trapped moisture to escape from the wall to the exterior. As a result, the product is considered to be “breathable.” I recommend checking with the manufacturer of the housewrap you describe for additional information about that product.
