Thermal imaging cameras have been used in court cases where, in the case of building problems, the infrared camera has been used to establish the facts of the case.
One such case was an Italian dispute concerning moisture ingress and mould formation in a brand new apartment building.
The inhabitants of the apartments felt that the building construction was flawed but the building contractor blamed the inhabitants for not ventilating the apartments.
The use of a thermal imager provided evidence in the case to settle the dispute. The court hired a thermal company that specialises in thermographic analysis and research of water infiltration.
The company discovered some significant heat leakage and thermal bridges, a thermal bridge is an area with less insulation.
“Heat follows the path of the least resistance. Often heat will short circuit through an element that has much higher conductivity than the surrounding material. This is called a thermal bridge”.
Eviana Faccin, thermography consultant at Multites
The company found that there was a direct link between the mould formation in the building and the thermal bridges picked up by the thermal camera.
The camera proved that mould formation was due to flaws in the building’s construction and ended the court case. This meant that the building contractor was to blame for the mould in the apartments and even if the residents were not ventilating properly, it is the contractor that was to blame in this case.
The use of a camera with a wide angle 45۫۫۫۫ lens allowed all parts of the building to be captured. This meant that while the company were carrying out the thermal survey for the court they could easily capture all the essential parts of the building in one thermal image.
Written by Sara Thomson
