Careful product selection and good communication make a successful retrofit
A leaky screw-down roof on the Portsmouth Abbey School’s 35,000-squarefoot ice rink in Portsmouth, R.I., led Paul Jestings, director of operations and project manager, to contact John Brooks of Advanced Building Concepts, Middletown, R.I., for a complete building retrofit. After evaluating the building’s needs, Jestings and Brooks determined that the ice rink required several updates, including a new roof, new lighting, new boilers and new roof insulation.
The Project
Based on his experience with a wide variety of retrofit applications, Bill Beals, district manager of North Olmsted, Ohio-based Therm-All Inc., was selected for the insulation job. The building, which was constructed in the 1960s, contained minimal 3-inch fiberglass insulation with a vinyl vapor retarder. After examining the interior condition of the ice rink, Beals noted that the job would require insulation with a higher R-value. Additionally, Beals suggested using a vapor retarder with a low perm rating, and one that would help foster a bright interior appearance.
The project wasn’t a straightforward case. In addition to the roof leak, the purlins were rusted. Initially, Jestings considered sandblasting the purlins to solve the rust problem, but concerns of heavy snow loads arose. After consulting with a structural engineer and conducting weight load tests, Jestings decided to completely replace the purlins. As Beals notes, this proved to be a unique challenge in prescribing an insulation solution. “Because all the purlins had to be torn out, we were somewhat limited in our options for the insulation retrofit,” he says. “When we considered the need for a high-R system, coupled with the use of the building, the OptiLiner roof system was an easy win.”
The Products
The OptiLiner system for roofs and walls uses a series of 1-inch galvanized steel straps to support a bright white or black polyethylene fabric that serves as the low-permeance vapor retarder. The fabric sections are custom fit for each bay, which allowed for a swift installation, and for the roof cavities to be completely filled with uncompressed insulation. Toledo, Ohio-based Owens Corning’s EcoTouch Insulation with PureFiber Technology for Certified R Metal Building was used in the liner system and Owens Corning’s PROPINK L77 PINK Fiberglas Unbonded Loosefill blown-in insulation was used to fill cavities between the draped insulation under the new roof and the OptiLiner system.
Brooks underscores the match between the job’s needs and the system’s benefits. “Because we were working with an ice rink, we had to keep the cold in and the heat out, which isn’t usually the case; the condensation points are inverted,” he explains. “We looked at multiple insulation systems, but OptiLiner was the only one that would maintain the cold-in/heat-out balance, provide maximum R-value and ultimately achieve the thermal breaks we were looking for.”
Jestings agrees, saying, “We looked at other similar products on the market, but we felt OptiLiner offered the best insulation values and provided better thermal breaks than any other product. OptiLiner was the clear choice.”
The Installation
The retrofit process proved to be unique. The first order of business included melting the ice, which was done by turning off the refrigeration below the concrete floor slab. The erector, Midmass Construction Group, Auburn, Mass., then removed the old roof and purlins, and began rolling out the EcoTouch insulation after the new purlins were in place. The replacement roof and insulation were installed simultaneously.
Next, the OptiLiner system was installed from the interior of the building by Itchy and Scratchy Insulation, Wiscasset, Maine, after which PROPINK L77 PINK Fiberglas Unbonded Loosefill was blown in to fill the roof cavities.
The renovation, which began in April 2014, also included the installation of high-efficiency LED lighting and high-efficiency gas condensing boilers, manufactured by Allendorf, Germany-based Viessmann Group. Jestings collaborated with UIC Energy, Wallingford, Conn., to create custom lights suited for the rink. “We needed lights that would be well-matched for our purposes, so they had to be reliable, long-lasting and somehow protect against hockey puck damage,” he says. UIC Energy created an exclusive energy-efficient prototype with special guards adhered to each light fixture. Additionally, Jestings purchased new Viessmann boilers to better regulate temperatures in the heated spaces throughout the building, such as the locker rooms.
Though it wasn’t a simple job, it was completed seamlessly due to the products used and the collaborators involved in the project. “We’ve worked with Advanced Building Concepts for about 20 years now,” says Jestings. “John Brooks and his team are organized, they pay close attention to detail and we always come in under budget. The quality of their work is unparalleled.”
Brooks echoes a similar sentiment about Jestings and his team, and about Beals’ work. Brooks notes: “Bill from Therm-All was instrumental in developing the insulation and vapor barrier specifications for the project. His knowledge and expertise were critical in providing the owner and design team with the comfort that the system selected would exceed the unique requirements of the project. Throughout the process, Bill was attentive and proactive in answering questions and concerns from the owner, as well as finding solutions to a few hurdles that we encountered during installation.”
The Portsmouth Abbey School ice rink was completed in October 2014 and now has a brighter, more inviting appearance that will benefit the school’s hockey players. In addition to the new roof, boilers and lighting, Jestings is also pleased with the value of OptiLiner and the system’s ability to meet the unique requirements of the ice rink. “At the start of the project we were really worried about the thermal breaks,” he explains. “In a hockey rink, if you don’t have a good thermal break between the steel, condensation begins to occur. When condensation occurs, water droplets drip down and land on the rink, which leads to ice buildup. In turn, ice buildup could cause injury or interference in a hockey game, so having uniform, quality insulation is key to maintaining a first-class ice rink.”
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Bridget Jammoul is the marketing specialist at Therm-All Inc., North Olmsted, Ohio. For more information, visit www.therm-all.com.
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Portsmouth Abbey School Ice Rink, Portsmouth, R.I.
General contractor: Advanced Building Concepts, Middletown, R.I.
Erector: Midmass Construction Group, Auburn, Mass.
Insulation installer: Itchy and Scratchy Insulators, Wiscasset, Maine
Components supplier: Foremost Buildings, Jefferson, Wis.
Custom lighting: UIC Energy LLC, Wallingford, Conn.
Insulation: Therm-All Inc., North Olmsted, Ohio,
www.therm-all.com
