THERMAL BRIDGING

The term ‘thermal bridging’ (also known as cold bridging) is used to describe a situation where a particular area or component of a building has a significantly higher thermal conductivity than the rest of the building envelope and therefore acts as a bridge where heat loss can offer. This typically occurs where there is less insulation or a break in the insulation such as at building junctions or around windows and can result in condensation and mould growth in addition to loss of heat. As modern buildings have become better insulated, thermal bridges have become more significant. Thermal bridging can be avoided or at least minimised with good architectural detailing at the design stage and with good workmanship during construction.