ASTM E96 - Water Vapor Transmission
ASTM E96 is an essential test for determining the water vapor transmission rate. This type of analysis is vital to help prevent situations that could allow moisture in places you don’t want it, like inside a wall cavity, which could lead to corrosion, rotting, or other detrimental conditions.
Water-resistive barrier testing like this can also be helpful with forecasting how materials will stand up to water damage. ASTM E96 contemplates environmental exposure that is widely important in determining how buildings stand up to pressure over time.
As a third-party testing agency, ICC-ES works with stakeholders to determine water vapor transmission rates and more for building materials. There are two basic methods for performing this test, the Desiccant Method and the Water Method are provided for the measurement of water vapor transmission rate (WVTR). In these tests, the desired temperature and side-to-side humidity conditions, with resultant vapor drive through the specimen, are used.
ICC-ES provides critical testing and assessment for a range of commercial products including water resistive barriers (WRB), water resistive coatings, roofing underlayments and vapor retarders such as spray foam insulation. Here is a full list of products for which we test:
Products:
- Water Resistive Barriers (WRB)
- Paper
- Plastic Films
- Water Resistive Coatings
- Roofing Underlayments
- Vapor Retarders such as Spray Foam Insulation
- Foams
- Fiberboards
- Gypsum
- Plaster Products
- Wood Products
- Plastics
