Course Description
This comprehensive technical CPD course gives façade engineers and building envelope specialists a complete, practical framework for finding interstitial condensation — the hidden moisture that forms between the layers of a wall, long before any stain or mould becomes visible — using the steady-state Glaser method.
The course takes one real wall — a light-steel-frame construction with a brick-slip rainscreen — and follows the whole path: defining every layer of the assembly, gathering vapour diffusion properties, building the layer stack inside a thermal modelling programme from the inside surface out, setting twelve months of climate data, running the analysis, reading the moisture table and the Glaser diagram, and — because the wall fails the first time it is calculated — fixing it and watching it pass.
A condensation check asks a different question from a heat-loss calculation, built from the very same drawing. The thin layers you were right to ignore for heat — a membrane, a vapour-control layer, a sealed air gap — are often the layers that decide everything for moisture. This course is built around that shift in thinking.
It is unusually direct about where this calculation goes wrong. Every serious error in this kind of work is a silent one: the programme runs, draws a clean diagram, and prints a confident pass — while resting on a value that was never checked against the real product, or a membrane sitting on the wrong side of the insulation. You will learn the disciplines that catch these errors before they reach a report.
Presented by Eugene Korch (façade engineer and IAST Programme Director), the course is honest about the limits of the method it teaches too — showing exactly when a steady-state, month-by-month check has reached its edge, and a marginal result calls for dynamic hygrothermal simulation instead.
The course is built around the international condensation-assessment standard (ISO 13788), using a full UK climate dataset for its worked example — and shows you exactly how to substitute proper project data for any other location, so the method travels with you to any climate.
Included in Facade Intelligence Professional Membership (FI PRO)
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
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Distinguish interstitial condensation from surface condensation, and explain why a steady-state Glaser check is the right first tool for finding hidden moisture on the drawing before it forms on site
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List every layer of a real wall build-up for a moisture calculation, including the thin membranes and control layers that are safely ignored in a heat-loss calculation
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Source and select vapour resistance factor values correctly, choosing the conservative end of a material’s range rather than the value that flatters the result
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Build a layer stack correctly inside a thermal modelling programme, in true inside-to-out order, entering thicknesses in metres and catching the single most common data-entry error
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Handle the two special cases every real wall presents: a mixed stud-and-insulation layer treated as a uniform equivalent for moisture, and a ventilated cavity that ends the calculation before the outer cladding
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Set up twelve months of climate data correctly, including the element-type setting, the humidity class, and the return-period adjustment — and know when that adjustment reverses in a warm or dry climate
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Run a condensation-risk calculation from an existing heat-loss model without rebuilding it, and read both the surface and interstitial results before trusting either one
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Read a moisture table and a Glaser diagram to identify the exact condensing interface, the size of the safety margin, and whether a wall dries out fully every summer
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Apply the pass/fail rule correctly: that a wall may get damp in winter, but must dry out at least as much as it wets up, checked across both seasons
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Choose and apply the right fix for a failing assembly — a vapour-control layer, a more vapour-open board, or added insulation — and understand the engineering trade-offs between them
What's Covered
Part 1 — Why Condensation Forms Inside Walls, and Defining the Assembly
Interstitial versus surface condensation, and why a steady-state check is the right first tool.
Meeting the through-line example: a light-steel-frame wall with a brick-slip rainscreen that fails first, then passes once fixed.
Why every layer counts for moisture, including the thin membranes a heat-loss calculation safely ignores.
The one rule that governs a good vapour-path design: tight on the inside, open on the outside.
Part 2 — Vapour Diffusion Properties and Building the Layer Stack
The vapour resistance factor and the equivalent air-layer thickness that puts every material on one comparable scale.
Sourcing vapour data in the right order, and why the conservative end of a material’s range is the only honest choice.
Building the layer stack inside the programme in true order, and the single most common data-entry error.
Handling a mixed stud-and-insulation layer and a ventilated cavity correctly for a moisture calculation.
Part 3 — Climate Data and Running the Analysis
Setting twelve months of climate data, the element type, the humidity class, and the return-period adjustment.
Why the return-period logic reverses in a warm or dry climate.
Running the condensation check from an existing heat-loss model, and reading both the surface and interstitial results.
The moisture table and the pass/fail rule: drying must be at least equal to build-up, across both seasons.
Part 4 — Reading the Diagram and Fixing a Failing Assembly
Reading a Glaser diagram: the saturation curve, the actual vapour pressure line, and the safety margin between them.
Locating the exact condensing interface, and watching a wall’s moisture story animate across the year.
Three ways to fix a failing assembly: a vapour-control layer, a more vapour-open board, or added insulation.
The engineering trade-offs between stopping moisture getting in and letting it get out.
Part 5 — Reporting, Common Errors, and the Method’s Real Limits
What a defensible interstitial condensation report must contain, and reading a programme’s own report critically.
The most common invisible errors: a library default, the wrong element type, an optimistic value, a membrane on the wrong side, and an unchecked bracket cold spot.
The genuine limits of a steady-state method, and when to call for dynamic hygrothermal simulation instead.
How this fits alongside the area, line, and point heat-loss methods you already know.
Your Instructor
Programme Director, IAST Eugene Korch
Eugene is a façade engineer and educator with extensive experience in building envelope design and technical specification. Through the Institute for Architectural Science and Technology (IAST) and Facade Intelligence, he delivers CPD training to architects and construction professionals across the UK. His teaching approach emphasizes practical application and accessibility, making complex technical subjects understandable for design professionals.
Course Schedule
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Course Overview
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Course Objectives
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How to Navigate the Learning Materials
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Introduction Video
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Lecture
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Technical Seminar with Q&A
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Post-Lecture Reading List
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Certificate: Download & Share
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About this course
- £120.00
- Practice test questions
- CPD Certificate: 2 hrs
- Interactive 3D models
Who Should Enrol
This course is designed for:
Façade Engineers building foundational and practical skill in interstitial condensation analysis.
Junior Façade Engineers developing hands-on modelling competence, start to finish.
Architects and Architectural Technologists specifying multi-layer wall build-ups.
Envelope Designers and Façade Specialist Contractors working with rainscreen and framed wall systems.
Building Envelope Consultants reviewing or producing condensation risk calculations for regulatory submission.
Building Physics Consultants working across multiple modelling programmes and climates.
Project Managers and Design Managers overseeing façade packages where moisture compliance is a deliverable.
Course Details
Format: Self-paced online course with video lectures.
Duration: Approximately 65 minutes.
CPD Points: 2 hours structured CPD / 2 Learning Units.
Access: 12 months from enrolment.
Certificate: CPD certificate issued upon completion.
Prerequisites: Recommended — a working understanding of basic U-value calculation (covered in our foundational courses).
What Makes This Course Different
One real wall, watched fail and then pass: the same light-steel-frame and brick-slip build-up carried from a clean failure to a verified pass.
Honest about the traps: the silent errors — an unchanged library default, a flipped element type, an optimistic material value — that a modelling programme will never flag for you.
Built on ISO 13788, worked in one real climate: a full UK worked dataset, with a clear method for substituting your own project’s location.
Built-in verification at every stage: a discipline of cross-checking that catches an error before it reaches a report.
Honest about the method’s limits: a clear account of where a steady-state check needs to hand over to dynamic hygrothermal simulation.
Join the Facade Intelligence Professional Membership (FI PRO)
Membership fees start from £320 per year
Gain access to all upcoming seminars and a wide range of the most sought-after short courses.
Corporate discounts are available for teams of 10 or more.
For a bespoke quote, please contact our team at [email protected].
