Moisture related challenges in the Greenlandic building sector – results from a survey

The building industry is booming in the larger cities of Greenland; there is a need for housing, and the building stock is in urgent need of renovation, mainly due to the combination of extreme weather conditions and the lack of tradition to maintain buildings. The harsh climate with short summers and long periods of cold weather combined with occasionally high wind speed and precipitation makes it difficult to prevent moisture during the construction phase, causing high drying costs. These challenges highlight the need for guidelines on how to handle moisture especially in the construction phase, both at renovation or when erecting new buildings. To prepare the guidelines, a survey was carried out aimed at building professionals in Greenland. Focus was on identifying construction work challenged by the conditions in Greenland including geography and seasons. The feedback gave an overview on the main challenges and what kind of solutions that do or do not work, showing that handling of moisture in the construction phase is not the only problem. Further, the survey gave feedback on challenges related to specific technical solutions, e.g. crawl spaces, and what kind of information is missing in relation to moisture-safe construction in Greenland. As key-points, focus should be on project design, improved competences, handling of building materials and components at the building site, and explainable guidelines for specific solutions and building types.