Field Water Testing of Curtain Walls following AAMA 501.2-83

FIELD WATER TESTING OF CURTAIN WALLS

(GENERALLY TO FOLLOW AAMA-501.2-83)

1. SCOPE AND PURPOSE

Field water testing is intended to evaluate the weather resistance of the as-built curtain wall, at all typical joints and interfaces of the system.

2. PREPARATION OF WALL

Completed curtain wall assembly shall be installed at least on the lower three typical floors of the building. All of this work shall be done in strict accordance with approved Shop Drawings and Technical Specifications. The Architect/Consultant will then designate an area (extent per specification) of completed wall, typically two bays in width and two stories in height, to be checked. This area should include all typical horizontal and vertical expansion joints or other conditions where leakage may occur. The indoor side of the wall in this area shall be unfinished and left open and unobstructed, permitting the full length of all joints to be examined from the indoor side.

3. PROCEDURE

3.1 Working from the exterior, the wall test section shall be selectively wetted,

progressing from the lowest horizontal joint, then the intersecting vertical joints, then

the next horizontal joint above, etc. The water shall be applied using the Type B-25,

#6.030 brass nozzle with ?” FPT (as manufactured by Monarch Manufacturing

Works, Inc., Philadelphia, PA 19134). The nozzle shall be used with a ?” hose and

shall be provided with a control valve and a pressure gauge between the valve and

the nozzle. The water flow to the nozzle shall be adjusted to produce 30 to 35 psi

water pressure at the nozzle inlet.

3.2 With the water directed at the joint and perpendicular to the face of the wall, the

nozzle shall be moved slowly back and forth above the joint, at a distance of 300mm

from it, for a period of five (5) minutes for 1 ?meters of joint while an observer on

the indoor side of the wall, using lights if necessary, checks for any leakage and

notes were it occurs.

3.3 If no leakage occurs during the five-minute test, the next 1 ?meters of joint shall be

wetted for five minutes, and testing continued until the entire test area is covered.

Note: For this testing, water leakage is defined as any water that appears on any interior surface, that is not contained or drained back to the exterior, or that can cause damage to adjacent materials or finishes. Water contained within drained flashing, gutters, and sills is not considered water leakage. The collection of 15 ml of water during a 15-minute test period shall be considered water leakage.

3.4 If water leakage occurs and the source of the leakage cannot be identified, the

following sequences shall be followed:

3.4.1 Allow the wall to dry. All joints of every kind within the test area shall be

completely and tightly covered, on the outdoor side, with a waterproof

adhesive masking tape. (Work from top to bottom).

3.4.2 Starting at the bottom of the prepared area, the masking tape shall be

removed from the lowest horizontal joint for a distance of not more than 1 ?

meters from one end of the joint, including the joint intersection or corner at

that end, and this exposed length shall be subjected to the nozzle spray as

described in 3.2.

3.4.3 If no leakage occurs during the 5 minutes test period, this length of joint

shall be considered satisfactory and shall remain uncovered. If leakage has

occurred at any point, the joint shall be re-taped at such points to prevent

further leakage during the subsequent checking of joints adjacent to, or

above it.

3.4.4 This process shall then be repeated on all joints and joint intersections

within the designated area, using increments of exposed joint length not

exceeding 1 ?meters and always working upward on the wall.

Note: The tape should not remain on finished metal surfaces any longer than necessary, especially where subjected to strong sunlight, as this may make

its removal difficult and may also cause staining. It is recommended that in

no case should the tape be left in place more than 24 hours.

4. REMEDIAL WORK AND RE-CHECKING

4.1 Where leakage has occurred, remedial works shall be proposed by the contractor,

and joints shall be made water tight in a manner acceptable to the

Architect/Consultant. Remedial work involving the use of curing-type compounds

shall be allowed to set for one week before it is re-checked for leakage.

4.2 After all necessary remedial work has been completed, and the required curing time,

if any, has elapsed, all repaired joints shall again be checked, following the same

procedure as before (Section 3). Should leakage still be found, further remedial

measures shall be taken, and checking shall be repeated until all joints in the

designated area are found to be satisfactory.