Price & Spec
What is a Rainscreen Facade System and What Are Its Benefits?
A rainscreen facade system is more than just an aesthetic feature; it is a crucial component of a building’s performance and durability. This system consists of an outer cladding layer designed to act as a shield against the elements, while allowing air to circulate behind it. This circulation helps moisture to dry out, preventing damage to the building’s main structure and contributing to a high-performance building envelope.
Key Elements of a Rainscreen Facade
A rainscreen facade is made up of four critical layers, each with its unique role:
- Structure: The backbone of the system, supporting the cladding and handling structural loads. Typically, this is made from steel or timber studs, or masonry materials.
- Weather Barrier (Membrane): This layer keeps water out of the building while allowing vapor to pass through, ensuring that moisture doesn’t get trapped inside.
- Air Cavity: Provides a capillary break and continuous airflow for rapid draining and drying of moisture, a crucial feature for preventing condensation and ensuring the longevity of the structure.
- Rainscreen Cladding: The outermost layer deflects 99% of rainwater and protects the weather barrier from UV damage, ensuring the facade’s durability and effectiveness.
Together, these layers form a robust building envelope that enhances the building’s performance, aesthetics, and sustainability. Each layer performs an essential function, and the system is designed so that no single layer has to bear too much responsibility on its own.
The Benefits of Rainscreen Facades
- Better Moisture Management: Keeps rainwater away from the weather barrier, reducing the risk of leaks and water damage.
- Better Ventilation: Helps the wall drain and dry when moisture does enter, reducing the risk of condensation and humidity build up in the cavity. In the summer, the cavity vents keep the building cooler through the
chimney effect—a passive, natural convection ventilation. - Better Durability: Unlike sealed systems, a rainscreen facade does not rely on UV exposed wet seals, which can degrade over time and leak. The open joints of the cladding allow for a dry, durable system.
- Better Insulation: The open-air cavity allows for a continuous layer of external insulation, reducing thermal bridges and helping to keep the structure warm, which in turn reduces the risk of condensation and mould growth within the envelope.
The Pressure Equalisation Effect
Traditional sealed face facades expect the outer cladding to hold back all water and wind loads, creating a strong pressure differential in the cavity. This can result in water being sucked into the cavity if there are any openings or cracks in the facade.
Alternatively, rainscreen cladding, with its open joints, allows wind pressure to quickly equalise in the cavity. This means that most of the wind pressure is transferred back to the weather barrier, where there is little to no rainwater. Without water on the surface, water can’t be sucked through.
Addressing the Challenges in the Cladding Industry
The cladding and facade industry has faced significant challenges over the past few decades, from the combustible cladding crises to leaky building syndromes, and more recently, increased thermal efficiency requirements and issues with condensation and mould growth.
When we overprioritise a single aspect, we risk overlooking others and creating more problems. For example, a non-combustible membrane may not be the best at keeping water out of a building, which is its primary purpose. Similarly, perforated membranes may offer great permeability but fall short in keeping water out.
An externally insulated rainscreen facade is the best known way to overcome these industry issues.
Thermal Performance of Rainscreen Facade Systems
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Introducing Velo Facades
At Sculptform, our new product Velo Facades aims to bring clarity and a holistic approach to building envelope solutions. By focusing on the entire system, from the outer cladding to the internal structure, Velo Facades ensures that every aspect works in harmony. This results in buildings that are not only thermally efficient but also durable, sustainable, and healthy.
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