I took a field trip today to the quaint little town of Ionia, home of the World's Largest Free Fair! The Ionia Free Fair!
Although I wasn't there for the fair today!
I received an email last week from Jake with R Value Homes that they would be doing a "pour" today! WooHoo! My chance to watch how they pour Insulated Concrete Forms!! It's just kind of queer the things I get excited about these days!
I met Jake at the Michigan Energy Fair. Jake is a Team Hybrid member and he is an expert in Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF's). I have been very interested in learning more about the process of building with ICF's and reporting it back to the ECO All Stars!
So off we went with camera's in tow to Ionia Michigan ....
Gary Smith always refers to ICF's as Legos for Big Boys! I must agree with his description. That is exactly what they remind me of!
This is the building block of an ICF foundation. These are Build Block brand which these crews prefer to use for several different reasons. They like the BuildBlock connection system which gives them less blow outs and the walls plumb better than other brands -- "Laser Straight Walls," Adam Bearup says.
This photo demonstrates the walls assembled and ready for pour. Notice the bracings that are set up on the walls. This will keep the walls in place while pouring and while the cement cures. The bracings also double as a walkway for the crew as they do the "pour."
And now the pour! 
I thought my picture was better but you'll get the idea. (Jake has a better picture on his website if you want to see the pumper truck better!) Sitting behind Jakes truck is a Pumper Truck with this great big boom that the cement gets pumped through. The cement is transferred to the pumper truck and they operate the boom remotely to move it to where they need it. Now I understand how they do the upper stories on homes now! This thing is a huge monstrosity!
In this photo you can see the cement being "poured" into the ICF's. The gentleman in the yellow shirt has a vibrating bar that vibrates the cement down the forms and helps get rid of air pockets. This is a very important step in the process.
I recommend using crews like Jake's that have experience in building with ICF's. There is a right way and a wrong way to work with the forms. Through experience Jake has thorough knowledge of the process and that prevents future problems.
Jake includes 30% Fly Ash in his cement mix. Fly Ash is a by product of the coal process. The addition of Fly Ash makes this cement a "green" product by utilizing a by product that would normally be a waste material.
This was a very interesting process to watch today. The pour took about an hour. As they were pouring the new homeowner came by to watch. I had a chance to talk to him about why he choose ICF construction for the basement. He said didn't know much about ICF's but someone mentioned how energy efficient they are and he started checking into it. He said he heard with ICF's you can "Heat with a candle!" I love that!
Now that he is doing it he says everyone is telling him it is the only way to go!
They will be setting a modular home on this basement foundation. He and his wife are very excited! He asked me questions about Wind Generators and now he is going to check into that also!
The photos below are courtesy of Jake's R Value Homes Website, they were taken by Chris from Zero Energy Homes.
These pictures are a great demonstration of the difference between an stick built home and a ICF built home. These are neighboring homes and the pictures were taken at the same time of day. Notice the studs and framing in the picture on the left. I would not want to pay that homeowners energy bill! This answers the question of why the building "envelope" is such an important part, if not the MOST important part, of the building system.
From R Value Website we get the answer to the question:
What are the main benefits of building an ICF home?
There are too many to list, but some of the more significant benefits include: Up to 80% energy savings, significant noise reduction, excellent indoor air quality, very secure in severe weather, higher resale value, and long life expectancy. Call us for a further explanation of these benefits.
I hope you have enjoyed the field trip and like me, have a better understanding of what the ICF's are about!
Make it a Great Day!
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Nice post. Interesting photos. Thanks for sharing.