Rainscreen Computer Program

Abstract

Pressure equalized rainscreen walls control rain penetration by eliminating the forces which drive or draw water into a wall. A rainscreen wall incorporates two layers or wythes separated by an air space; the outer layer is vented to the outside. The performance of a pressure equalized rainscreen wall will be dependant on the leakage area of the air barrier system, the area of vent openings, the volume of the cavity, the stiffness of the air barrier and of the cladding and the leakage area of the compartment seals. The design of rainscreen is not intuitive, the RAIN computer program is a tool developed to assist practitioners in their design.