CONCRETE HOMES AND HOME BUILDING

Source:www.stonediamondtool.com Date:2019/9/16 Read:298

Learn how using concrete and ICFs for concrete home construction can slash heating and cooling costs, improve your comfort and safety, and help preserve the environment

Concrete homes are known for their durability and cost-saving features. With ICF construction, homeowners are finding that they can design a concrete home to look just like a wood-frame house, but they garner many other added benefits by choosing to build with concrete.

If you firmly believe in the adage that your home is your castle, then why not build a true fortress—one that can withstand nearly any assault Mother Nature can dole out without sacrificing the comfort and design flexibility of a traditional home? In fact, more and more homeowners are doing just that, for reasons ranging from reducing escalating heating and cooling costs to allaying fears of being in the path of a hurricane or tornado.

WHAT ARE ICFS?

While some of these homes use traditional concrete wall systems, such as concrete masonry and concrete cast onsite in removable forms, the most explosive growth is in the use of insulating concrete forms, or ICFs, for building both foundation and above-grade walls. These easy-to-erect, stay-in-place forms are made of high-density plastic foam and filled with fresh concrete and steel reinforcement to create a super-insulated thermal sandwich that's airtight, quiet, and highly resistant to fire and strong winds.

ICF forms are made of various types of foam insulatio and come in THREE basic configurations:

Block Systems

A typical block unit is 8" to 16" tall, and 16" to 4' long. They are hollow-core blocks that stack and interlock like Legos.

Panel Systems

These are the largest ICF system and units are 1' to 4' tall and 8' to 12' long.

Plank Systems

These are 8" to 12" tall, and 4' to 8' long.

The main difference between the panel and the plank systems is the assembly method.

Within these basic categories are many different ICF products, differentiated based on the structural configuration they form (such as a flat wall, post-and-beam, or grid system),how the forms attach together, how finishes attach to the wall, thickness, and insulating values.

From a builder's perspective, ICF systems offer numerous advantages over other types of concrete wall construction:

· The foam forms are lightweight and easy to erect; bracing and alignment systems are provided by most manufacturers.

· Because the forms remain in place, contractors can build concrete walls in less time-in as little as a day for a typical house foundation.

· The insulating forms protect the concrete from temperature extremes, permitting concrete to be placed at below-freezing temperatures and extending the construction season by several months in cold climates.

· The pre-insulated walls eliminate the need for additional insulation and the labor cost of installing it.

· Exterior siding and interior drywall can typically be attached directly to the form faces, with many ICFs incorporating integral attachment systems.

WHAT DO ICF HOMES LOOK LIKE?

Concrete Homes look exactly like "stick built" homes. Insulated Concrete Forms (icfs) are stacked and braced-then concrete is poured inside the forms. The icfs have nailing strips that allow the typical interior finishes and exterior treatments such as siding, stucco, stone and brick to be applied. This allows your home to assume any architectural style, from victorian, to colonial to ultra-contemporary, and not look like an underground basement. Because of concrete's strength and moldability, you can use icfs to create any size or style of home imaginable. The foam forms are easy to cut and shape as desired, permitting customized architectural effects difficult to achieve with wood-frame construction, such as curved walls, large openings, long ceiling spans, custom angles and cathedral ceilings.

WHERE ARE ICF HOMES BEING BUILT?

Although it's almost impossible to spot a concrete home, since the walls are often hiding beneath a traditional façade of brick, stucco or lap siding, chances are good that at least one is located right in your own neighborhood. Many of these houses are custom built, but more builders are beginning to erect entire subdivisions of concrete homes.

According to the Insulating Concrete Form Association (ICFA), ICF homes are being built all across North America, in virtually every U.S. state and Canadian province. In the Northeast, upper Midwest and Canada, ICF homes are allowing homeowners to achieve greater energy efficiency and eliminate cold drafts. Along the Eastern Seaboard and Gulf Coast, ICF homes are valued for their resistance to hurricane-force winds. In the Southwest, ICF homes keep their occupants much cooler in the summer. And on the West Coast, ICF homes provide safety from earthquakes and fires.

In Canada, the growth rate of ICF homes is exceeding even that of the U.S., spurred by government programs to encourage the construction of more energy-efficient housing. According to the Cement Association of Canada, approximately 128,000 ICF homes have been built in North America since the early 1990s, and the growth of ICF use has been steadily increasing at a rate of close to 40% annually.

ICF construction also transcends all affordability levels, from modest starter homes to luxury estates. In many communities, local ready-mix concrete associations and ICF distributors are partnering with Habitat for Humanity to donate both forms and labor to build affordable ICF homes. Fox Blocks, for example, donates its forms or offers special programs available for distributors who wish to participate in Habitat projects in their communities.