Retrotec USACE - Manual (Page 304)

F10 ENERGY & PROCESS ASSESSMENT PROTOCOL
The testing agency is required to perform a diagnostic evaluation in 7.
accordance with ASTM E1186, whether the building achieves the air
tightness requirement or not. The diagnostic evaluation will assist the
contractor and responsible parties in identifying and eliminating air
leakage so the building meets the requirement upon re-testing. The
testing results will also be expressed in terms of the Equivalent Leak-
age Area (EqLA) at 75 Pa. The EqLA is a the equivalent area of a fl at
plate that leaks the same amount as the building envelope at 75 Pa. This
information helps those responsible for further sealing the envelope
know the approximate size of total hole area they should be seeking.
Air leaks can consist of many small cracks, or a few very large openings
or a combination of both. It is not unusual for large buildings to have a
leakage area of up to 100 sq ft (9.3 m
2 ).. It is also common for air seal-
ing efforts to be focused on the small cracks while large holes that are a
major contributor to failing the test, go unnoticed. Even if the building
achieves the air tightness requirement, a diagnostic evaluation should
be conducted to help the construction team identify additional areas of
leakage that could be sealed on the current building or similar future
buildings.
F.9 Testing Agency Guide
F.9.1 Procedure
The following sections provide useful background information that will give
the testing agency more information so that they can more easily understand
the step-by-step approach in the Air Leakage Test Form and the Air Leak-
age Test Form Guide. This protocol includes modifi cations and adjustments
needed to account for the potential for bias pressures (due to wind and stack)
that are found in high-rise buildings and unobstructed environments, and
to strike a balance between accuracy, repeatability and ease of use with a
variety of test equipment, test methods, and testing agencies. The section
titled “Technical Justifi cation for Differences with ASTM” (p. 26) documents
the main deviations from ASTM and the reasons why such deviations may
occur.
F.9.2 Application and Scope
See the “Application and Scope” under the Specifi er’s Guidance section.
The four-story building shown in Figure 1 (top left) has an enclosure that
is described by the shape (top right), and that is accessed by an exterior stair-
way with no direct interior connection between fl oors. It therefore must be