Tags: #architecture #buildingdesign #buildingmaterials #buildingscience #hvacsystem #materialsscience

A formula for early material degradation: Flue gas + fiber cement + poor design = exterior condensate + acid degradation. 

It’s easy to chalk this up to bad design and a simple wintertime condensation problem. However, the degradation is made worse by acids present in flue gases (e.g. nitric acid, sulfuric acid, hydrochloride acid). The result: an acidic microcosm that hastens material degradation. An ecological lesson courtesy of an architectural error.