Surface Condensation Risk Assessment
From Selecting the Junction to a Compliant Report — A Complete Practical Framework for Surface Condensation and Mould Risk Analysis
Course Description
This comprehensive technical CPD course gives façade engineers and building envelope specialists a complete, practical framework for assessing surface condensation and mould risk at a real thermal bridge junction — and for producing a report that will hold up to scrutiny.
The course takes one real detail from a facade fragment — the side window reveal, where frame meets wall — and follows the whole path: choosing which junctions need a dedicated check, understanding the physics of dew point and mould growth, setting up a thermal model in its conservative "condensation mode," reading the result visually through isotherm analysis, calculating the surface temperature factor (f_Rsi) by hand, optimising a junction that fails, and writing the report.
A heat-loss model and a condensation-risk model are not the same thing, built from the same drawing. One cares about the average; the other cares about the coldest point in the whole junction — and mould begins to grow at a surface humidity threshold well before any water is ever visible. This course is built around that distinction.
It is unusually direct about where this calculation goes wrong. The single most common mistake — getting the plus and minus signs wrong when a negative outdoor design temperature goes into the f_Rsi formula — can silently invalidate an otherwise perfect piece of work. You will learn to catch this and several other errors that a modelling programme will never flag for you.
Presented by Eugene Korch (façade engineer and IAST Programme Director), the course is honest about the limits of the two-dimensional method it teaches, and shows exactly when a real three-dimensional junction demands more than a flat cross-section can give it.
The course uses UK standards and regulatory guidance as its worked reference framework — covering every country’s specific codes in one course is not possible — but the physics, the calculation logic, and the mathematical framework it teaches are universal, and apply to any regulatory system once you understand how they work.
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 the objective of a surface condensation risk assessment from an overall heat-loss (U-value) calculation, and recognise why the same model cannot serve both
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Select which junctions on a real facade fragment need a dedicated condensation check, using a national thermal bridge map to identify likely locations
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Understand the physics of the dew point and explain why the mould growth threshold, not the dew point, is the correct design criterion
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Explain the physical meaning of the temperature factor (f_Rsi) as a dimensionless, climate-independent property of a junction's geometry
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Set up a condensation-risk model correctly in a thermal modelling programme, including the conservative internal surface resistance convention and why it differs from the standard heat-loss value
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Read a temperature field using the visual isotherm method, checking the finish layer, the waterproofing line, and any air cavities around a window
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Use insulation and drainage measures correctly to resolve a critical isotherm passing through an installation cavity, without creating a new interstitial risk
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Use both the manual Temperature Tool and the automatic Min./Max. Temperature Tool to find the coldest point on a junction, and know why the second is more reliable
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Calculate the temperature factor (f_Rsi) correctly by hand, avoiding the sign error that is the most common mistake in this kind of work
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Compare a calculated f_Rsi against the applicable normative threshold, and optimise a non-compliant junction using insulation geometry and material choice
What's Covered
Part 1 — Why Condensation Needs Its Own Analysis, and Selecting the Locations to Check
Distinguishing a condensation risk assessment from a heat-loss (U-value) calculation.
The physics of the dew point, and why the mould growth threshold is the real design criterion.
Using a national thermal bridge map to build a list of junctions that need a dedicated check.
Choosing a worked-example junction: the side window reveal — and explaining why.
Part 2 — The Temperature Factor (fRsi) and Model Setup
The physical meaning of fRsi as a dimensionless, climate-independent property of a junction.
The minimum compliance threshold, and where it comes from in the standards.
Setting up boundary conditions for a condensation check: the conservative internal surface resistance convention.
Why the design temperatures still matter for the result, even though fRsi itself does not change with climate.
Part 3 — Visual Isotherm Analysis
Reading the dew point and mould isolines across a junction.
Checking the finish layer, the waterproofing line, and any installation cavities.
Resolving a critical isotherm passing through an air cavity: insulation versus ventilated drainage.
Part 4 — Precise Calculation and Optimisation
Manual versus automatic tools for finding the coldest point on a junction.
Calculating fRsi by hand, and the sign error that is the most common mistake in this work.
Comparing the result against the threshold, and optimising a non-compliant junction.
Proving an optimisation works by recalculating from scratch.
Part 5 — Reporting, Limitations, and Common Mistakes
What a defensible condensation risk report must contain.
The two-dimensional model’s real limitation at complex three-dimensional junctions.
The final five-question self-check before closing a project file.
How this fits alongside the area, line, and point 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
Who Should Enrol
This course is designed for:
Façade Engineers building foundational and practical skill in condensation risk analysis.
Junior Façade Engineers developing hands-on modelling competence, start to finish.
Architects and Architectural Technologists responsible for window reveal and corner detailing.
Envelope Designers and Façade Specialist Contractors specifying junctions with condensation exposure.
Building Envelope Consultants reviewing or producing condensation risk calculations for regulatory submission.
Thermal and Building Physics Consultants working across multiple modelling programmes.
Project Managers and Design Managers overseeing façade packages where condensation compliance is a deliverable.
Course Details
Format: Self-paced online course with video lectures.
Duration: Approximately 100 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 and thermal bridge modelling (covered in our foundational courses).
What Makes This Course Different
One real junction, start to finish: a window reveal modelled, checked, optimised, and written up as a real report.
Honest about the traps: the sign error that silently invalidates a condensation calculation, and exactly how to catch it.
Universal physics, worked in one framework: built around a full UK-standards worked example (BS EN ISO 13788, BS 5250, BR 497, SAP), with the underlying physics and calculation logic applicable to any regulatory system.
Built-in verification at every stage: a checklist after every workflow step, so an error is caught where it is cheapest to fix.
Honest about the method’s limits: a clear account of where a flat two-dimensional model stops being enough.
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].
