What kind of vapor barrier will American Ingenuity dome have?
Approximately one quarter of the energy consumed by an air conditioner is used to extract water vapor from inside the house. Water vapor easily passes through most building materials and is readily swept into homes through joints, seams and through the attic. The E.P.S. insulation that A.I. uses provides a good vapor barrier. And the A.I. building system provides for an air tight house. During the US Dept of Energy Study on energy efficiency in housing designs, the blower door test showed the American Ingenuity dome to be 56% tighter than the conventional test structure and 29% tighter than the Dow house. To see if air was passing through walls of the dome, tests using infrared were performed. Thermal irregularities in the dome were shown to be insignificant. Per the manufacturer of the E.P.S. that American Ingenuity uses, “the E.P.S. is closed cell and will not absorb more than 2.5% of water based on volume”. E.P.S. is often used as flotation for docks because it will not absorb water
