Composite wall problems

[KeesW]

I am having discovering real limitations with using composite walls for documentation. We are using timber framed walls with weatherboards. To calculate energy rating correctly, insulation should be included in the composite timber framed wall. However, when detailing junctions, there are wall plates, noggins, and other fixing plates, not included in the composite wall. that need to be added to the drawing to complete the details. These overlay the insulation, creating a very untidy drawing, unless we spend a lot of time converting the detail into a 2D version so that overlapping lines and redundant stuff can be removed.

Doesn't this defeat the purpose of having the clever priority based junctions and other 'time-saving' features? It is much easier to add the insulation as a 2D fill than to have to remove it where it overlaps.

Or does the AC process now expect us to create complex profiles of walls including top and bottom plates and filling between them with insulation? Does not solve the stud problem, of course, because if these are also shown, insulation still overlaps them!

I really want to know how, and if, the current Archicad approach, whilst theoretically better, actually makes our drafting more tedious when we move beyond simple walls, floors and roofs.

[Tim Ball]

I also use complex profiles a great deal and there are still limitations. When detailing timber framed walls I create complex profiles with insulation in the timber frame zone, then add the timber framing as a separate layer using a higher piriority material that cuts the insulation.

I haven't tested this using Ecodesigner so I am not sure if the combination is calculated correctly for the timber frame bridging the insulation.