A Drywaller’s Approach to Air Sealing Homes

Air leaks through the building shell can have a significant effect on a home's durability, energy use, and indoor air quality. You've heard this before, or at least I hope you have by now. But I'm a drywall contractor. What do air leaks have to do with my work? Well, I believe that drywall can be an important part of the air barrier of an enclosure. Once I recognized this, it changed the way I do my work.

For most houses, I don't think it makes sense to consider the air barrier as a single plane. It's typically described that way, and folks get hung up about continuity, thinking there needs to be a single perfect plane on either the inside or the outside of the enclosure. In the 1980s, the Airtight Drywall Approach was developed as one answer for...