ICF Installer Testimonial
Kris Wudtke from Portal Construction talks about his experience working with insulated concrete forms (ICFs). Click here to watch the video.
ICF vs Wood: 6 Reasons to Choose ICF
Over the past several years, dramatic increases in lumber costs have left the construction industry looking to other building material alternatives, such as insulated concrete forms (ICFs), in place of traditional wood-frame construction. ICFs are a building system that uses Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam blocks that stack together to act as a hollow wall with ready-mix concrete poured in between to build reinforced concrete walls. (Go back to the basics in this blog post "ICF Construction: An Introductory Guide to ICFs for Designers and Architects") This level of air-tight construction gives ICFs their reputation as an ideal alternative to traditional stick-built or wood-frame construction, but there are also many other benefits that outshine wood framing and insulation. Let’s take a look at the differences between insulated concrete forms and wood-frames to learn how ICFs offer a higher level of comfort, health, safety, energy efficiency and eco-friendly benefits. How ICFs Outperform Wood There are a growing number of business owners and journeyman carpenters who are avid supporters of using alternative building methods like ICF over wood framing. My company, Up To Kode — a full-service carpentry, contracting and consulting company — prefer ICFs to all other framing alternatives. Our team specializes in building custom [...]
Using ICFs with Habitat for Humanity in Hartford, CT
In Hartford, Connecticut, Habitat for Humanity worked with volunteers and partners, ICFMA, Nudura, Euclid Chemical, Tilcon, and more as part of the NRMCA Build With Strength initiative to build a new, long-lasting home using insulated concrete forms and fiber reinforced concrete. Watch video here.
Habitat For Humanity Residential Project – Joplin, MO
The ICFMA and Nudura partnered with Habitat for Humanity to build a new home for Charles Timothy Peay. Charles is an army veteran living in Joplin, MO. Habitat for Humanity International, the ICFMA and the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association plan to build fifty ICF homes across fifty states in the next five years. Watch the video here.
Weather the storm with an ICF safe Room
Now is the time to take precautionary steps towards the utmost security of your home and family in the event of extreme weather occurrences, say officials observing climate change. Recent survey findings show that most homeowners are worried about the ability to cope with the damage caused by severe storms, hurricanes, tornados, and flooding. Safety is the main preoccupation, but so are the costs associated with destruction and loss. “One answer that solves many issues is to opt for the strongest impact-resilient house available, or at the very least a safe room within your home built using Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF)” says Martin Clark at Nudura, a leading manufacturer of insulated concrete forms. BENEFITS OF BUILDING A SAFE ROOM WITH INSULATED CONCRETE FORMS (ICFS) ICF safe rooms can be incorporated into a home. Safe rooms are created by building any room with ICF walls, pouring a “concrete lid” on top, and installing a steel door. Walls built using ICF have proven to withstand winds up to 250mph (402 kph) and protect against flying debris as demonstrated in the impact test provided by Nudura and ABC Domes & Texas Tech University. A safe room is also great as a storage area for your [...]
