ILFI has recently been working much more with the Passive House community, to connect the networks in both people and thought. This fall, we had an excellent Net Positive Symposium in Vancouver, held jointly with Passive House Canada, as well as a Net Positive track and class at the North America Passive House Network conference in Oakland, CA.

A key element of zero energy and passive house construction is a tight, well-insulated envelope. One product that helps achieve airtight envelopes is the Declare labeled Proclima Vana and Profil tapes. These tapes are made for an array of applications, such as taping seams of plywood to create a continuous air barrier or joining air or WRB membranes.

John Druelinger of 475 High Performance Building Supply shared the following about the Proclima tapes:

“Tescon Vana and Tescon Profil were designed by Pro Clima for building airtight, efficient, mold-resistant building assemblies. Vana is recommended for taping flat seams, while Profil’s 3-split release backing helps for taping corners, such as window frames. They are each made of durable, fleece-backed materials and utilize solid, pressure-activated, acrylic adhesive that has been third-party advance-age tested to provide 100 years of adhesion. Both Vana and Profil are suitable for interior and exterior application, are water-proof yet vapor-open, capable of 6 months UV exposure, and work without a primer on most sheathing materials. A primer is recommended only in situations where the surface being taped is very rough or porous.”

The icing on the cake is that these tapes are Declare labeled and Red List free. We have nearly 1500 labeled products today—with more added nearly every day—and an array of these are in the energy efficiency space.

Proclima products are imported into the United States by 475 High Performance Building Supply, based in Brooklyn, NY, with distribution centers on both coasts. 475 is a great knowledge resource—they have a ton of great information about detailing and installation on their website, and are available on the phone for specific technical help on applications.

Written By

Brad Liljequist

Brad Liljequist is Director of Zero Carbon Solutions at McKinstry, where he leads deep carbonization of existing buildings for public and institutional clients. He managed the zero energy and carbon elements for the ILFI Zero Carbon and Energy Ready Catalyst project, and many other zero energy/carbon projects for McKinstry. Previously, he directed the energy, carbon and community programs for the International Living Future Institute, where he played a seminal role in the creation of the Zero Carbon certification, as well as launching the Living Community Challenge. He developed the first certified multifamily Zero Energy project in the United States, zHome, as well as Issaquah Fire Station 72, winner of the national ASHRAE Technology award. He is the author of The Power of Zero: Learning from the World’s Leading Zero Energy Buildings. His work has been covered by The New York Times, the BBC, the Wall Street Journal, national NPR, The Seattle Times, Engineering News Record, Architectural Review, GreenBiz, and many other media. He was educated at Georgetown University, the University of St. Andrews, the University of Washington Evans School, and Seattle Central College.