House Wrap (Tyvek)

Hey all,

Soon I'll be wrapping my house in preparation for windows, doors, and siding.

I was at a big-box lumberharwareflooringtool store recently and noticed that the "house brand" house wrap looked a lot like it was made out of platic tarp type material. The Tyvek stuff was different.

Does anyone have any compelling evidence to use the 50%-more-expensive Tyvek?

I'm fine with spending $150 on the Tyvec as opposed to $100 on the "house brand" if it functions better...I'm just not sure.

Until I looked closely, I figured they probably came out of the same manufacturing plant but just got a different name printed on them. Now, I'm pretty sure that's not the case.

Thanks!
Clem

tyvec is a breathable fabric if I'm not mistaken, lets moisture out - but not in. Plastic just sweats

House brands should be identical, at least everyone I saw was. I used house brand for the most part. I only looked at Lowes and Home Depot brands.

Like I say...the house brand (Lowes, in this case) is NOT the same product as Tyvek as of two days ago at my local place. Side by side in the same rack...

I figured they were the same until I looked closely. Tyvek is a smooth paper-like product. Lowes looked like a big roll of low quality (read: thin) tarp.

Maybe other house brands are identical...I'll check into that at HD and Menards...

Clem

I useed the Lowe's brand on the Garage Majal, no problems. The most important thing you can do: properly seal around the window and door opening flashings with that 4" wide sticky foil covered tape and tape the sheets together tightly where they overlap. Extra time and care spent here saves a lot of aggravation later.

I just looked at remnant I have and I can say definitively that the Lowes house brand IS, or was, the same as Tyvek. Check a different Lowes as stock does vary.

+1 to the sealing around windows and doors with the sticky tape. it makes a huge difference. This tape can also be used as noise reducer on cars.

Yeah...they must have recently made a change...or it could be regional, I suppose.

Interesting the difference.

Thanks for the discussion all!

Yes, I plan to have this house tighter than the proverbial drum as far as weather is concerned. It should be very efficient to heat/cool.

I'll get a helper and do the best job I can on the house wrap, to include taping the seams, any holes that happen during installation, windows, etc. It's going to be goooood!

Thanks again!
Clem

You can now buy siding material that already has the tyvek applied and all you have to do is tape the seams.

I wrapped my house in 1" foam boards on top of the Tyvek and then taped the foam seams. This is in addition to my interior insulation. Along with energy efficient windows and energy efficient heat/ac so that now my 5300 sq foot house in Texas usually has elec/gas bills of less than $200. I've only had 2 bills over that and both times I had large groups of family here for 2 weeks or more of the month.

Just goes to show you, if you build a better house wrap, the world will beat a path to your store.

I was in a Lowes near me this evening (Texas) their house brand Tyvek right next to real tyvek, They were the same so it must just be your store or region. Or maybe it's just mine so I'd say keep looking, it's out there and it's the price makes it worth the search

In my experience I used store brand wrap in an application that tyvek, according to all I spoke with, and the description in this web page (http://bct.nrc.umass.edu/index.php/publications/by-title/housewraps-felt-paper-and-weather-penetration-barriers/) would have handled well. The store brand I used failed miserably much to my, the homeowner, and the occupants of the duplexes chagrin. Me and store brands don't get along. I would go with cost effective before cheap. Time and materials for repairs are expensive.

Having worked for companies that competed against Dupont for years, I would seriously doubt that Tyvek is the same as a store brand. Dupont is very possessive of their products. Looking the same doesn't mean it is the same. But, I could be wrong. If it was only going to cost $50 more, I would buy the Tyvek.

I recall an article in Fine Homebuilding a few years back that did a study on house wrap. They said it did not lower utility bills. Personally, I don't buy this. I would go with house wrap every time. They obviously haven't seen some of the houses I've lived in. I can take a switch plate off the plug next to my place at the breakfast talble and feel a breeze coming in. Stupid bay windows!

Thanks again all,

Good point on Dupont not undercutting themselves.

For the record:
I plan to use hardiplank siding, so the pre-backed stuff won't work for me.
I'm doing this as much for lumber preservation and "breathability" as I am draft-dodging. And I'm with you spitfirebill...it WILL tighten this house up and lower utility bills. Well...it along with windows, siding, insulation, high efficiency appliances, caulk, etc...

I'll check the other stores and their brands, but one roll of this stuff will do my whole house, so $150 for the Tyvek is probably what I'll plan on.

Thanks again!
Clem

When I built my house, I used Tyvek. No reason to tape the seams-you don't butt it up, you overlap where necessary and staple. Lots of staples. Follow the directions.....wrap OVER window and door openings, cutting an "X", then fold into the openings. On an older house, of course, unless the windows are being replaced at the same time, this is a moot point, because it will not seal as it should, around the window openings. As Spitfirebill said, there is a reason why Tyvek is more expensive. OTOH, if you're fitting to a house before residing it, anything you do will be an improvement. Just remember the house needs to 'breathe' and is a bunch of various systems. What you change on one system effects another(or others).

Any patents on Tyvek expired years ago so there is no reason other brands shouldn't work as well.

I used Hardi Plank on the rear of my house and I also used the OSB siding underneath so there's no reason you can't use the pre-wrapped siding. BTW I've never seen a "TYVEK" brand of pre applied wrap on the OSB so obviously there are other brands out there that work just as well.

I hear you can get deals on Chinese drywall these days, too!

I am familiar with Tyvek and Plastic sheeting. Dupont product or not, if it were me, I would want the properties of Tyvek and not a plastic tarp.

Plastic wrap (like plastic sheeting) won't let air through. That will trap moisture and lead to rot. Tyvek and similar are 'breatheable' and will cut down on trapped moisture.

Plastic is essential under a slab or anywhere else you want to prevent groundwater from coming through masonry, such as outside of basement walls. This minimizes 'sweating'.

Would tyvec be necessary on a block house that I plan on siding?

/stopped watching "This Old House" about the time Bob Villa signed on with Sears to promote their tools, breaking his contract with WGBH.

//yes, I watched "This Old House" instead of Saturday morning cartoons.

VanillaSky wrote: /stopped watching "This Old House" about the time Bob Villa signed on with Sears to promote their tools, breaking his contract with WGBH. //yes, I watched "This Old House" instead of Saturday morning cartoons.

Then you have missed the best shows. Tom Silva rules!!!! Bob had to have a specially light hammer, the wuss.

I went to Home Depot today and they had Tyvek and "Green Gard" or something house wraps right next to each other.

Again, the non-Tyvek stuff looked like a plastic tarp. That is not to say it is equivalent to it...but that's what it looked like.

And the GreenGard stuff specifically said it was a moisture barrier...nothing about vapor permeable or anything like that.

I'll go with Tyvek. My house needs to be able to shed moisture and humidity. I'm replacing all the sills and joists currently due to moisture over the years.

Clem

Sills and joists damaged due to moisture? Sounds to me like there is WAY too much moisture trapped under the house. Make sure there is ventilation in the foundation and outside walls so airflow can carry moisture away.You can easily see how that is done on brick walls, that's the reason for the 'weep holes' near the bottom.

Properly ventilated houses will have around 10-15% moisture content in the wood and will last pretty much indefinitely.

Yeah...my house was stewing in it's own juices, so to speak, for the last 50+ years.

That is to say, the crawlspace held water. Well...the whole lot held water really. I've remedied that with a trench, drain, and pump system to keep the standing water from being a problem. And then I'll also be adding crawlspace ventilation (I'm thinking a good cross flow system, maybe assisted by a solar "attic" fan at times).

I'm not blaming the siding for my floor joist and sill plate rot...sorry if it came across that way. I'm just saying that I'm doing everything I can to make sure I keep the house "dry" in the future.

I'm doing other stuff too, like adding eaves/overhangs to the roof.

With tyvek, make sure that you install it with the print side right side up and facing out. If you do not, it will not work properly. If I remember correctly, Tyvek is Directional.

Opus wrote: With tyvek, make sure that you install it with the print side right side up and facing out. If you do not, it will not work properly. If I remember correctly, Tyvek is Directional.

If you put it on backwards it becomes kevyt, so of course it wouldn't work.