ARCHITECTURE EHLINGER & ASSOCIATES SECOND QUARTER 2005 gold. As you can see from the sketch, the Piazza is filled with vehicles of tourists who come to visit and admire the palace and the gardens. This is one of the simplest and grandest of all of the Palazzos, and well worth seeing.

RILEM Tube Testing

E&A has recently added RILEM Tube Testing along with Thermal Imaging to determine when a cladding surface, such as stucco or EIFS (Exterior Insulation & Finish System: synthetic stucco), is too porous and thus absorbing too much water. RILEM Tubes are about 6" long, with an interior diameter equal to that of your little finger, hold 5 ml of water, and have a reservoir that holds an additional 3 ml at the bottom end either at right angles to the tube or on axis, with a flange at its bottom to which one applies a roll of putty to stick it to the cladding surface. One extended and the wings added by then fills the tube with water from a rubber successor architects; Luca Fancelli, bulb device and times how long it takes The design of the Palazzo Pitti (Pitti Ammanati, G. and A. Parigi, and Ruggeri. (up to an hour) the cladding surface to Palace) in Firenze () has been The rear has a wonderful cortile and absorb the water, if at all. attributed to Brunellesci, and to Alberti as overlooks the Boboli Gardens. It was well. This palace is the largest in , erected piecemeal over many years except for the Vatican. It was designed for beginning in 1458 (12 years after , who thought of himself as Brunellesci’s death) with the major Cosimo dé Medici’s rival, and thus was completion in 1640. Minor remodelings thought to have been a vain and silly old continued after that. With so many man at the time. different architects, it is a wonder that the The Brunellesci design for the Medici final effect is so harmonious and Palace that had been rejected by Cosimo is integrated. probably the model for the Pitti Palace, The palace typifies the Renaissance although Brunellesci may have had nothing Palazzo style. It is of astylar treatment, to do with it. More than likely, it was Luca where the masonry is incised and sculpted Fancelli, a student of Alberti’s, that to look rugged. The arches are of designed it, although the grand scale of horseshoe style, with the same incised the building is why many people associate treatment of the stone. The windows were the design to Brunellesci, even though it by Ammanati, and the lions heads below RILEM (Reunion Internationale des was never listed by Brunellesci as one of the sills were added much later. Laboratoires D’Essais et de Recherches sur his works. It is thought that the Pitti is The palace became the Grand Ducal les Materiaux et les Constructions) — is certainly a lot grander and larger than the residence and is partly occupied by the the European equivalent to ASTM Medici Palace, and that it was intended to famous picture gallery, remodeled for (American Society of Testing Materials), make the Medici look insignificant.. Ferdinand II (1640-7) by P. Cortona. The with headquarters in Paris. RILEM tube The original design only contained the Baroque paintings were displayed in testing is a simple method to determine if central block. The lower stories were elaborate stucco frames painted white and the cladding on the walls absorbs water

2200 Houma Blvd., Metairie, LA 70001-1399 (504) 455-8911 . 3109 Ivy Ave. SW, Huntsville, AL 35805-4698 (256) 534-1900 © 2005 Ehlinger & Associates, P.C. Architects, A Professional Corporation and at what rate. RILEM tube testing was which in a properly built roof isn’t a prob- So, I had to think even harder about developed by RILEM to field test masonry lem for the interior of the attic). doing this. In order to replace the roof, (clay, concrete, and stone) water So, in order to insulate my attic prop- deck and all, I was looking at a similar cost. absorption. ASTM only has a laboratory erly with batt insulation, I was looking at But then I would still have to insulate the test where the porosity test of masonry is ripping off all of the shingles and the bat- attic, at about $0.50/SF for regular R-19 performed in a pressure chamber inside a ten boards, and replacing them with a proper batts, and I would have to wait 2 months, laboratory. There is no ASTM field roof deck (osb board or plywood) and new for the dry spell to hit, put up with the heat porosity test of masonry. Stucco is a shingling. This was quickly going beyond in my house, pray for no rain, keep an eye porous, cementitious type of cladding that the scope of work I’d planned for this sum- on workers, and expect cost overruns absorbs water in a manner similar to mer... (which are just unavoidable on a house this masonry, and is frequently classed as a I looked for another solution, and I old). type of masonry by some authors. EIFS, found it. Closed-cell Foaming Insulation. I also looked at it from the energy sav- (a synthetic stucco) if it is porous (and it Now, perhaps you’ve already heard of foam- ings perspective. This isn’t the first time now appears that it is from E&A testing of ing insulation. Do-it-yourself products, like our firm has used closed-cell insulation. In fact, for the past several years we’ve been a couple of projects), may well be classed Great Stuff, are a type of foaming insula- designing it for metal roofs, and low-slope the same, and thus the RILEM tube test is tion. Most foaming insulations are open- roofs, in both new buildings and renova- appropriately extrapolated to test it. cell, which means the air that’s in the foam communicates between the different tions. Not the sprayed foaming insulation bubbles of the foam, and the interior and I was looking at, but as pre-made panels My Old House exterior sides. that are screwed in place and taped to- In fact, most insulations allow air trans- gether. Our New Orleans office, in fact, had I live in an old house, built in 1938. mission. If you go into an attic with sprayed this insulation installed when it was reroofed Among many other problems, the house in cellulose insulation, you can see where it a couple of years back. was not insulated; at all. The previous air is being drawn into the interior of the I discovered I could realize savings of owners had sprayed cellulose insulation in house from the big dirty spots. If you take up to 50% or more in my heating/cooling the ceiling joists, but it was getting dirty a wall down that has batt insulation, you bill, even with the added square footage in and old, and was definitely not doing the can also see similar spots where the insula- the attic that would now have to be condi- job. tion is acting as a ventilation filter (you tioned. For summer months, I was looking As I’ve been renovating, I’ve been actually shouldn’t see this, because of at saving nearly $100 month. The recovery placing new wall insulation. The energy house-wrap, but nothing is ever installed time in savings looked to be about 2 years. savings have been noticeable from this, but perfectly). This air movement and filtering This is what made the decision for me. definitely not enough to make the house action reduces the effectiveness of most I made the leap. I spent about 2 weeks truly comfortable. In the long, dry spell insulations over time, as the particles and moving the boxes and boxes that had been from mid-July through August, the central dirt that replaces the air pockets reduces piling up there over the years, and then air unit can’t keep up, and often the inside the insulation value of the material. another week filling up over 30 lawn bags temperature would climb up to 80 degrees Closed-cell insulation, on the other with the old cellulose insulation. In con- by mid-afternoon. hand, doesn’t allow air transmission, nor trast, it only took the contractor 4 hours to It was definitely time to do something does it allow vapor transmission. So, in spray the attic, and a 1/2 hour visit 2 days about the attic. Now, this is a small house addition to providing a better insulation, it later to spot fill a couple of shallow spots. that I live in, about 1200 s.f. - too small for a also prevents humidity from entering the The difference was noticeable imme- growing family, so if I’m going to put any house, and acts a vapor barrier. This means diately. The temperature reading on the money into this house, I want to get some I wouldn’t have to worry about the gaps thermostat stopped climbing up to 80 in space out of it. Therefore, instead of just between the batten boards, and when I do the afternoons; it stopped climbing at all. replacing the horrible, smelly, dirty sprayed need to replace the roof, I can just pull up Even with a couple of hot walls that I in cellulose insulation with the same stuff, the shingles, and lay a new deck on top of haven’t insulated yet, the house is sud- I decided that I was going to insulate be- the old batten boards. denly comfortable all of the time. I’ve even tween the rafters, and claim what floor This was the perfect material for my gotten used to hearing the A/C turn itself space I could from the attic. attic! I wouldn’t have to replace the roof off, frequently, which is a wonderful sound. There was a problem, though. The this summer. There was only one catch - I have yet to see my first power bill roof. The roof deck of my house is made of the cost. This stuff is pretty expensive. In since the installation, but I am confident I batten boards, with gaps of up to 1/4” be- order to get an R-19 insulation value, I will be pleased. tween them. The felt and shingles are laid would need about 3 inches thick of the Closed-cell foaming insulation, which directly on them. This means I couldn’t material. The surface area of the attic I need I once considered a specialty item that I’d put batt insulation inbetween the rafters, to spray is 1000 square feet. From the pro- probably have no use for, has earned itself or they would get wet just from the mois- vider I had chosen, the closed-cell insula- a place in my book as not only a worth- ture that comes into the attic between the tion costs about $0.80/SFt/inch; that’s while product, but one I’ll be using again - shingles (a process called vapor drive - $2.40/SF. for 3 inches of it! probably under the floor next! R. Perrin Ehlinger

© 2005 Ehlinger & Associates, P.C. Architects, A Professional Corporation