ICF and 21st Century Construction

How did a foam cooler re-invent 21^st century construction? It started from Werner Gregor in 1965, when he noticed a kid, packing a foam plastic cooler, which keeps the drinks cold, with sand for his sand castle (LLC, Summit Publishing). Shortly after, Werner Gregor started his company “Foam Form” in Oakville, Ontario. His observation catapulted ideas, which make constructing residential and commercial buildings faster, easier and cheaper. 

ICF stands for insulated concrete form, and was first patented in 1968. The popularity slowly grew through the 1970’s until today. As other construction materials got more expensive, such as lumber, ICF became an increasingly better economical solution. Modern ICF forms are extremely durable. Due to their concrete design vs. traditional wooden framing, ICF homes can resist high winds and floods. A terrifying, real life experience happened to the Sochacki family, in their coastal home in New Jersey, U.S.A., during hurricane Sandy on October 20, 2014. They hid in their ICF coastal home through the whole hurricane and came out unscratched (StrongHomes). The extremely high winds did only cosmetic damage to the house, and the huge waves and flooding which lifted and floated entire homes away, had no effect on Sochacki family (Quad-Lock). This is real world proof of ICF durability, which exceeds that of wood frame construction.

Furthermore, in Chicago, IL after testing ICF for the US Armed Forces, it exceeded all expectations. It was capable of withstanding a 50-pound military-grade TNT blast from as close as 6 feet (Build Green World). It suffered small cracks no more than 2 millimetres wide to the front face. While behind the wall, there was no deflection or structural damage to the wall. In another test, it took 4 shots from a Barret 50-calibre anti-materiel rifle to penetrate the wall (Precise Forms, Inc). This is due to the expanded polystyrene insulation absorbing the impact as it compresses against the concrete wall. The concrete, which has great natural compression properties, then stops the impact. For most of us, this is more than enough durability and impact resistance for our homes. It is more than capable of protecting against flying debris during high winds or tornadoes.
  
ICF’s amazing properties come at a practical cost. The average $300,000 home, if built from ICF at an additional cost of $21,000, can save over $100 a month from its energy bill. This means that the additional cost of ICF will pay for itself before the average person pays off the mortgage for the house. In addition, an ICF home has great resale value, especially with green enthusiasts, who want to help out the environment and save on energy costs (Quad-Lock). ICF not only lowers your heating and cooling costs, but due to its incredible durability, also lowers your home insurance costs.

ICF stacked and reinforced, with concrete pumped into the form (Bukovy, Deborah).

Lowering your energy consumption is great for your wallet, but it is also great for the environment. Expanded polystyrene, which is used in ICF, is free from CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons) and HCFCs (Hydrochlorofluorocarbons), which are being phased out by the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer as of 2030 (The British Antarctic Study). Getting your home built from ICF is a step forward in the right direction for a greater economic and environmental pay-off.

Overall, concrete construction has taken a leap forward with ICF to help with construction time, durability, energy costs and environmental benefits. From sand to concrete – all this starting from a kid on the beach building sand castles.

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Dmitri Babisin - July 15, 2016

Citation

Build Green World. “BGW111 - ICF Servives 50lbs TNT Blast (blast Test).” YouTube. YouTube, 23 Mar. 2013. Web. 12 July 2016.
Bukovy, Deborah. Concrete Forms and Integral Wall. N.d. Concrete Homes: Affordable to Purchase and Maintain, Portland Cement Association, Portland USA. "Financial Analysis & Incentives for Insulated Concrete Forms." Quad-Lock. N.p., 1 Feb.

"Insulating Concrete Forms Come Under Fire (and Blast)." Quad-Lock. N.p., 27 May 2003. Web. 12 July 2016.

LLC, Summit Publishing. “History of ICFs.” ICF Builder. Feb. 2011. Web. 12 July 2016.
Precise Forms, Inc. “Bullet, Tornado, and Hurricane Resistant ICF Concrete Homes and Building Construction.” YouTube. YouTube, 28 Mar. 2013. Web. 12 July 2016.
“Resilient building construction: Insulated concrete forms.” Quad-Lock. 22 July 2015. Web. 12 July 2016.

StrongHomes. “Hurricane Sandy: A Story of Survival.” YouTube. YouTube, 23 Oct. 2013. Web. 12 July 2016.
The British Antarctic Study, et al. “CFCs.” The Ozone Hole. 2015. Web. 12 July 2016.