I have finally had the opportunity to see a new building system put to use in one of my designs. The client wanted to build an addition that would not only be built solid as a rock, but one that would be extremely energy efficient. His solution is ICF’s.
This is a system that combines the insulating properties of expanded polystyrene foam with the solidity of poured concrete. In this case, we used a wall system that is a total of 11″ thick, comprised of two layers of 2.5″ thick foam surrounding a poured 6″ concrete filling. The foam is held together by plastic ties that also support any metal rods needed for additional structural strength.
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- Note the pile of building blocks – ICF’s – on the deck
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- During a concrete pour
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- Immediately after a concrete pour
The system is comprised of individual building blocks stacked together to form a single form for the concrete to be poured into. We lovingly refer to them as Lego’s…haha.
I’m including a few pictures to illustrate what the sytem looks like during construction. I hope they tell the story. If you are interested in seeing the whole series of pictures from that day go here: http://www1.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=772286017/a=7062867_7062867/
