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Cork insulation; a complete illustrated textbook on cork insulation ...

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208 CORK INSULATION<br />

ing capacity. It costs more to make both sides of a building<br />

wall equally straight and smooth ; but if the latest, approved<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> specificati<strong>on</strong>s are to be carried out, this point must<br />

be given necessary advance attenti<strong>on</strong>.<br />

The <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> specificati<strong>on</strong> usually followed for many<br />

years was to apply the first layer of <strong>cork</strong>board to the new,<br />

clean building wall in a bedding of Portland cement, then<br />

apply the sec<strong>on</strong>d layer to the first in a bedding of Portland<br />

cement, or in hot, odorless asphalt, and then finish the insula-<br />

ti<strong>on</strong> off with Portland cement plaster, applied in two coats.<br />

Thus surfaces to receive <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> had to be <strong>on</strong>ly reas<strong>on</strong>ably<br />

smooth ; but failures of <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> applied in this way, espe-<br />

cially in ice storage houses, became sufficiently numerous, as<br />

the years passed, to finally justify active investigati<strong>on</strong> of the<br />

subject by manufacturers and important users; and the fail-<br />

ures of <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g>, aside from those due to poor materials and<br />

workmanship at the time of installati<strong>on</strong>, were traceable to<br />

moisture in the <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g>, which collected after the <strong>cork</strong>board<br />

had been in service for some time and which in time caused<br />

disintegrati<strong>on</strong> of the <strong>cork</strong>board through the decompositi<strong>on</strong><br />

of the resin binder in c<strong>on</strong>tact with water or which caused<br />

more rapid disintegrati<strong>on</strong> from alternate freezing and thawing<br />

of moisture in the <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g>. These investigati<strong>on</strong>s c<strong>on</strong>clu-<br />

sively dem<strong>on</strong>strated that this moisture found its way into<br />

the <strong>cork</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> through two distinct and different sources.<br />

When water is precipitated <strong>on</strong> the plastered surface of<br />

an insulated cold storage room, by the c<strong>on</strong>densati<strong>on</strong> of moisture<br />

out of the air against a cool surface, a part of such water<br />

is absorbed by the plaster by capillarity, which tends slowly<br />

to disintegrate the plaster while placing a porti<strong>on</strong> of this<br />

moisture <strong>on</strong> the surface of the <str<strong>on</strong>g>insulati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> directly behind the<br />

plaster. The <strong>cork</strong>, unlike other materials, will not take up<br />

this water by capillarity, as previously explained, but such<br />

water may find its way into the <strong>cork</strong>boards by gravity, travel-<br />

ing through small interstices or voids between the particles<br />

of <strong>cork</strong> bark used in the manufacture of the <strong>cork</strong>board. While<br />

manufacturers now understand and appreciate that the modern<br />

<strong>cork</strong>board product of maximum worth must be compact and<br />

free from voids to the greatest possible extent, yet it would

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