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HOUSE ICF BLOCKS FULL

The “Achilles heel” of below-grade ICF foundation walls lies in the way they are waterproofed.

Figure 3 – Conventionally formed (CF) foundation.

See Figure 3 for typical CF foundation construction. However, since all of those same advantages listed above can be true of any below-grade cast-in-place wall-whether ICF or conventionally formed (CF)-the balance of this article will be a comparison of those two types of forming methods with respect to long-term waterproofing performance only. It is not the intent of this article to indict all ICF walls, since the advantages bring genuine value to above-grade ICF walls. Excellent thermal performance (R-value).In many respects, the ICF approach is quite ingenious, with the following advantages: Figure 2 – Example of an ICF foundation under construction.

HOUSE ICF BLOCKS FULL

The process is then repeated in subsequent lifts until the full wall height is achieved. Next, concrete is placed between the two opposing insulation forms. The prefabricated ICF components are delivered to the site in panel or block form and are then stacked into place in incremental lifts. They all have their own patented nuances however, they are all prefabricated systems that tie interior and exterior expanded polystyrene (EPS) insulation forms together by means of plastic or steel ties. Nine major ICF system manufacturers in the United States were researched for this article. ICF systems are marketed for both above-grade and below-grade applications. Leaving the insulation formwork in place permanently provides thermal barriers on both sides of the completed concrete wall. Basically, ICF enables the contractor to construct a high-quality cast-in-place concrete wall by forming the wall with permanently installed insulation instead of the more conventional wood or steel removable formwork. ICF cast-in-place concrete walls are a relatively new below-grade building practice ( Figures 1 and 2). WHAT IS AN ICF WALL SYSTEM? Figure 1 – ICF system foundation detail. Unfortunately, I fear that this could become an increasingly common scenario across the country for tens of thousands of people who own a home (or any building for that matter) that was built with a below-grade insulating concrete form (ICF) foundation.

One cannot buy insurance for this particular type of problem.Ĭonsequently, all remedial costs would either come out of your house equity, your savings, little Christy’s college fund, or a combination thereof.

All warranties have long since expired, if there were any at all.

The problem could go undetected for many years until it reaches its advanced stages.

Let’s further imagine that the insidious nature of this problem is threefold: In both cases, full disclosure laws would compel the homeowner to eventually spend the money to correct the problem in order to market the house. Or even worse, imagine that you have just recently purchased a 20-year-old house and therefore have no equity against which to borrow, only to learn about the same costly problem. Try to imagine that you are a homeowner in the 20th year of a 30-year mortgage, and suddenly you learn that you have to spend tens of thousands of dollars to fix a serious problem with your house.

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