The facades, in addition to the aesthetic function, must meet other requirements: they must be impermeable to water, and insulate the interior thermally and acoustically. The typical section of a conventional facade is made up of two leaves: an exterior one, normally made of brick, and an interior one, which can be made of brick or other materials such as plasterboard. A thermal insulator is placed between these two sheets, for which materials such as polyurethane, fiberglass or rock wool are usually used. To avoid interstitial condensation, a vapor barrier is also placed on the hot side of the insulation. Finally, a small gap of one or two centimeters is necessary to allow water vapor to vent and not soak the insulation, rendering it useless.

The thickness of a façade wall does not respond so much to the needs of stability or resistance as to the need for mass for acoustic insulation and space to house the insulation and its air chamber.

Light facade

The light facades function as a skin hanging from the building. As their name indicates, they are light, and do not contribute to the stability of the structure.[7]​

Due to their low mass, they are poor noise insulators, so they are not applicable for buildings that require quiet environments, such as residential use. They also do not usually work well as thermal insulators, generally requiring extra spending on heating or air conditioning. However, their low weight, their great capacity to allow light in, and their speed of assembly make them ideal for skyscrapers and a wide variety of public spaces.

They are made up of three elements:

Depending on whether the "facade skin" is continuous or interrupted at each slab, light facades can be classified as "curtain walls" or "panel façade",[7]​ respectively.}.

Currently, many materials are used for the manufacture of light facades. But in recent years there has been notable growth in the following materials:

Each of these materials has different methods and designs for their implementation, which makes them ideal materials for the construction of facades with modernist designs. Additionally, they are facades resistant to hostile environments, however, they require constant maintenance for their durability.

Heavy facade

This category covers all traditional facades, whether exposed brick, plastered, clad, stone, wood or others, in addition to ventilated and prefabricated ones.

They are similar to curtain walls. They also consist of uprights, crossbars and enclosures but, unlike the previous ones, the uprights are anchored to factory walls, and the enclosure pieces are heavy: usually stone or ceramic plates.

As there is an interior enclosure sheet (usually made of brick), the plates do not need to have a watertight joint, and during assembly they are separated from each other by a few millimeters, allowing the thermal insulation to ventilate through these slits. This type of facade is usually used in institutional buildings, because it offers a high quality of finish.

They are facades composed of wall modules that are made in the workshop, being assembled together on site. Depending on the level of prefabrication, façade walls can even be assembled with the windows or door already installed. The most used material in prefabrication is concrete, although the use of wood and other more modern materials such as GRC is also widespread. The joining systems between the different modules are already incorporated into the pieces themselves, so they are usually dry joint constructions.

The advantages of this method lie in greater quality control, as the parts are manufactured in the workshop, and in a very fast assembly process that does not require much labor. For this reason in industrialized countries, where labor is comparatively more expensive than materials, it is gaining popularity.

curtain wall

A curtain wall (in English curtain wall) is a façade system, generally light and made of glass, independent of the resistant structure of the building, which is built continuously in front of it.[8]​ A curtain wall is designed to resist the force of the wind, as well as its own weight, and transmit it to the floors. Generally, curtain walls are built by repeating a modular prefabricated element that includes the necessary protection, opening and accessibility elements according to needs.

The facade of a commercial establishment is its "business card." The facade of some shopping centers is the support for various advertising, promotion and animation actions.

Communication through a commercial facade is based on the AIDA model (attention, interest, desire and action). It is about the façade advancing what the establishment offers inside.[9]​ The exterior of an establishment, store or shopping center is configured by the façade, the signs, the entrance and the window. These four elements reveal your personality and business style.

It was quite common in the Georgian period for existing houses in English towns to receive a fashionable new facade. For example, in the city of Bath, The Bunch of Grapes on Westgate Street appears to be a Georgian building, but the appearance is superficial and some of the interior rooms still have Jacobean plaster ceilings.[10]​.

This new construction has also occurred in other places: in Santiago de Compostela the Casa del Cabildo was built three meters deep to match the architectural order of the square, and the main Churrigueresque façade of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, in front of the Plaza del Obradoiro, actually encloses and hides the old Portico of Glory.

The facades, in addition to the aesthetic function, must meet other requirements: they must be impermeable to water, and insulate the interior thermally and acoustically. The typical section of a conventional facade is made up of two leaves: an exterior one, normally made of brick, and an interior one, which can be made of brick or other materials such as plasterboard. A thermal insulator is placed between these two sheets, for which materials such as polyurethane, fiberglass or rock wool are usually used. To avoid interstitial condensation, a vapor barrier is also placed on the hot side of the insulation. Finally, a small gap of one or two centimeters is necessary to allow water vapor to vent and not soak the insulation, rendering it useless.

The thickness of a façade wall does not respond so much to the needs of stability or resistance as to the need for mass for acoustic insulation and space to house the insulation and its air chamber.

Light facade

The light facades function as a skin hanging from the building. As their name indicates, they are light, and do not contribute to the stability of the structure.[7]​

Due to their low mass, they are poor noise insulators, so they are not applicable for buildings that require quiet environments, such as residential use. They also do not usually work well as thermal insulators, generally requiring extra spending on heating or air conditioning. However, their low weight, their great capacity to allow light in, and their speed of assembly make them ideal for skyscrapers and a wide variety of public spaces.

They are made up of three elements:

Depending on whether the "facade skin" is continuous or interrupted at each slab, light facades can be classified as "curtain walls" or "panel façade",[7]​ respectively.}.

Currently, many materials are used for the manufacture of light facades. But in recent years there has been notable growth in the following materials:

Each of these materials has different methods and designs for their implementation, which makes them ideal materials for the construction of facades with modernist designs. Additionally, they are facades resistant to hostile environments, however, they require constant maintenance for their durability.

Heavy facade

This category covers all traditional facades, whether exposed brick, plastered, clad, stone, wood or others, in addition to ventilated and prefabricated ones.

They are similar to curtain walls. They also consist of uprights, crossbars and enclosures but, unlike the previous ones, the uprights are anchored to factory walls, and the enclosure pieces are heavy: usually stone or ceramic plates.

As there is an interior enclosure sheet (usually made of brick), the plates do not need to have a watertight joint, and during assembly they are separated from each other by a few millimeters, allowing the thermal insulation to ventilate through these slits. This type of facade is usually used in institutional buildings, because it offers a high quality of finish.

They are facades composed of wall modules that are made in the workshop, being assembled together on site. Depending on the level of prefabrication, façade walls can even be assembled with the windows or door already installed. The most used material in prefabrication is concrete, although the use of wood and other more modern materials such as GRC is also widespread. The joining systems between the different modules are already incorporated into the pieces themselves, so they are usually dry joint constructions.

The advantages of this method lie in greater quality control, as the parts are manufactured in the workshop, and in a very fast assembly process that does not require much labor. For this reason in industrialized countries, where labor is comparatively more expensive than materials, it is gaining popularity.

curtain wall

A curtain wall (in English curtain wall) is a façade system, generally light and made of glass, independent of the resistant structure of the building, which is built continuously in front of it.[8]​ A curtain wall is designed to resist the force of the wind, as well as its own weight, and transmit it to the floors. Generally, curtain walls are built by repeating a modular prefabricated element that includes the necessary protection, opening and accessibility elements according to needs.

The facade of a commercial establishment is its "business card." The facade of some shopping centers is the support for various advertising, promotion and animation actions.

Communication through a commercial facade is based on the AIDA model (attention, interest, desire and action). It is about the façade advancing what the establishment offers inside.[9]​ The exterior of an establishment, store or shopping center is configured by the façade, the signs, the entrance and the window. These four elements reveal your personality and business style.

It was quite common in the Georgian period for existing houses in English towns to receive a fashionable new facade. For example, in the city of Bath, The Bunch of Grapes on Westgate Street appears to be a Georgian building, but the appearance is superficial and some of the interior rooms still have Jacobean plaster ceilings.[10]​.

This new construction has also occurred in other places: in Santiago de Compostela the Casa del Cabildo was built three meters deep to match the architectural order of the square, and the main Churrigueresque façade of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, in front of the Plaza del Obradoiro, actually encloses and hides the old Portico of Glory.