Net Zero Homes and ICFs
July 8th, 2010 | Project Showcase, Unique Applications, Unique Trends
Net Zero Buildings
A net zero building is a building that offsets all energy use by creating energy as well so by the end of it all there is an energy use of net zero. Now frequently at trade shows or talking with people in general about the future of green building and the new way to build homes, I always cringe at the people who jump right into wanting to create energy without taking the necessarily steps to use less in the first place.
Net Zero homes usually have a setup, through solar or wind, to create energy to offset any they use. However, the concept makes use of the most important part of creating energy.
YOU HAVE TO USE LESS ENERGY.
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I can’t imagine the size of a wind turbine, and cost of a solar panel (about 285 sq feet at $16-$30 thousand dollars) to generate the amount of electricity that is needed to power an average (14,400 watt-hours per day) home. That’s why ICFs are an ideal building system for net zero, they will reduce energy needs.
ICFs and Net Zero
That’s why insulated concrete forms have always been a great option when our customers want to built a net zero home. They reduce your energy so the owner can create a surplus of it and actually sell it back to the energy company!
Here is our Hyde Park example below, one of the first net-zero homes in the country to use ICFs and a first in New York. General contractor Bill Reilly of Hyde Park, New York, became interested in ICFs in the early 1990’s, but he never went any further with it at that time. However, when he started planning to build an energy efficient home for himself, ICF construction came to mind again. As a contractor with 40 years of experience, Reilly wanted to build the house himself and make it extremely energy efficient.
New York Energy Efficiency
The result was the most energy efficient house in the state of New York. With a geothermal HVAC system and photovoltaic cells on the roof to generate electricity, Reilly pays nothing for electricity. Part of the reason is that he is able to re-sell the excess electricity he generates back to the utility company. But would never be able to do that had he not built with insulating concrete forms.
Quick Facts about the Hyde Park Net Zero home in New York
- One-story house with walkout basement
- 6,300 conditioned square feet
- 3,160 finished square feet
- HERS rating of 93.4 by Energy Star
- Highest Energy Star Rating to date in New York State
- Stone and vinyl exterior finish
- Asphalt shingle roof materials
- Climate Master Tranquility 27 geothermal heating and cooling system
- 70% smaller than it would have been with traditional construction
- Projected utility costs: Zero dollars
- 11″ iForm insulating concrete form
Intersecting ICF “T” Walls
April 27th, 2010 | Product Announcement, Unique Applications
T-Form ICF Configuration
Reward’s product line includes an 11″ T-form that provides a 6 inch concrete core for both the intersecting wall and the longitudinal wall. This insulating concrete form configuration will make the construction of a T-wall more efficient by eliminating cutting and bracing in comparison to manually constructing a T-wall with only straight forms.
Save Time with ICFs
The T-forms are shipped with both long and short sizes so that the forms will continue to be overlapped creating a running bond pattern.
Also, the 11″ T-form has additional plastic ties and EPS foam support at the back side of the wall intersection to reduce the bracing requirements.
When stacking forms, the T-form should be treated similarly to 90-degree corner forms. The corners and intersecting walls locations are defined by the plan design. The corners and T-forms should be placed at this location according to the plan. Then the forms are stacked to the middle between the corners and T-forms. Flip and alternate every other T-form course from long to short creating a running bond and eliminating a common seam at the T-intersection.
Reinforcement of T-Form
Place horizontal reinforcement with a 2′-6″ bend on each end at each T-form course. These bars should alternate each direction in the longitudinal wall at every other course and have a proper lap splice with the horizontal rebar in the wall. Concrete flowing around the corners of the intersecting wall will create great concrete pressures on the intersecting T-form and therefore the amount of bracing at this location must be taken into consideration.
When placing concrete at the T intersection, aim the concrete flow down the longitudinal wall letting the concrete flow itself into the intersecting wall. Have the concrete in the T-form wall build up slowly. Do not have the concrete flow from the intersecting “T” to the longitudinal wall.
To see full Details of the T-Form and the other forms offered by reward please see our comprehensive online ICF Technical manual
Order a bundle or two of T-Forms and see how much faster you can build with Reward ICFs.
Project Showcase: Waterside Concrete Curing Time
November 24th, 2009 | From the Field, Lets Get Technical!, Project Showcase, Unique Applications
As a followup to the previous post I wanted to highlight some additional in the field research Parks ICF Wall Systems was able to do to verify the notion that insulated concrete cures faster than exposed concrete with freezing cold temperatures outside.
During the Waterside Towers project, Parks ICF participated in a study that helped scientifically prove that concrete curing times are greatly accelerated in cold weather when placed in ICF forms versus when left exposed. The field tests showed the concrete reached the required 2,000 psi compressive strength in just 2 days versus 4-5 days with exposed concrete. Mr. Petersburg of Shield Engineering worked hand-in-hand with us on the project as a third-party engineering representative as we continued with sample testing on each floor before the flooring system was placed. Through this testing, Parks ICF was able to accelerate the project schedule by 10 to 15 days and help keep the other crews continuing with minimal down time.
“The incredible thing about working with ICF wall systems was its workability in cold temperatures and inclement weather. Working through what turned out to be one of the coldest and wettest winters in recent memory, we’ve experienced minimal lost days versus a potential of several weeks or months with traditional construction methods.” -Ted Kuerschen, Project Manager, Waterside Condos
“One of the great benefits we found working with ICF, especially in the winter, is that weather does not slow down construction as it does on standard job sites. Rain and snow did not affect placement of ICF block or of concrete. Being insulated with the foam, the concrete was able to retain its temperature even on the coldest of days of placement. Both laboratory and field cured cylinders were cast during the construction process. It was found that standard field cured cylinders broke considerably lower than core samples obtained from the poured wall. The strength of ICF cured test cylinders, giving a more realistic indication of on-site conditions, were more closely correlated to the laboratory cured specimens.” -Nathan Petersburg, Shield Engineering
First Residential 17″ iForm Project
October 22nd, 2009 | From the Field, Project Showcase, Unique Applications
We’ve gotten some feedback from the field on our new 17” product line. This was the 1st use, for residential, of the 17” iForm, as these forms were about bought the day we released the product for sale! It’s for a home in the “Divide Ranch Community” way up on the mountains in Ridgeway, CO, built by Nick Miles Construction.
They were used for a foundation on a side of a steep hill. The engineer called for this size of ICF due to the large size of walls, the amount of back fill and the expansive soil type surrounding the building. The walls are 14 feet high and the concrete was placed in 3 lifts. Nick, the builder, said that he was “very impressed with the strength and stability of the block.”
Thanks Nick, we’ve done our research to make sure our forms remain an industry leading ICF!
We were lucky enough to meet this builder after he expressed his displeasure with a different brand of ICFs. He praised the pre-formed block and noted it was much easier in the field to work with as he did not have to assemble the forms. On a side note: Nick, had no trouble moving the forms about 50 yards from where the truck dropped them off, and the banding made them easier to move as well. Did you see the video of an ICF crew unloading a truck?
Thanks for the pictures and your feedback Nick! Would also like to thank Pat Tobin with Building Smart, LLC on his involvement with our inaugural 17″ residential project!
Currently the 17″ iForm has been a HUGE hit (pun WAS intended on that one) and we look forward to sharing more stories.
The New Standard for Sustainability. Tell the World.
- Story submitted by Pete H West/Pacific Regional Sales Manager
Welcome to aBlog By Reward
June 16th, 2009 | Common Troubleshooting, From the Field, Lets Get Technical!, Product Announcement, Project Showcase, Unique Applications, Unique Trends
Welcome everyone to the first post on aBlog by Reward…get it? It’s “a” “blog” but it’s branded as aBlog, like our insulating concrete form products iForm®, eForm®, etc. Never mind. A few things I would like to do for the inaugural post is to introduce myself as the official poster, I’m Troy.
I will be posting information from our corporate offices from our President, CEO, VP, Technical Specialists, Regional Sales Managers, and Marketing to showcase a little bit of everything we are doing, talk about some trends in the Insulating Concrete Form (ICF) industry and pass along some information and things we learn everyday while visiting our customers and greening North America 5.33 sq feet at a time.
My goal for this blog is to try to connect with people on another platform and maybe start a discussion, teach something new, or even be taught something new in the process. Our tone is casual, and my jokes are horrible, however we have to keep the flavor light or this endeavor won’t be as FUN as anticipated. This is not a discussion forum, with freedom to post abusive language or spam, as all comments will be moderated. And for the legal jargon: Reward Wall Systems Inc reserves the right to control and edit all postings. Furthermore all content written by Reward is all rights reserved 2009. By posting pictures, words, or content, you are verifying that you have permission to do so.
Also if you need in depth questions immediately answered, the best way to reach us is through our customer service department, not through aBlog. 1-800-468-6344
On to the topics.
There will be 6 major topics we will try to schedule routinely in order to cover as wide of a range as possible. Don’t see something that you think we should focus on more? Tell me please, just add a smiley face at the end of your sentence. :-)
From the Field
Common Trouble Shooting
Let’s get Technical!
Project Showcase
Unique Trends and Applications
Other
So we hope you find aBlog by Reward useful and informative and just a smidge bit entertaining. Feel free to comment, post follow-ups or even additional resources on a topic. There may be aBlog related contests and EXCLUSIVE information given out first to the community via aBlog throughout the year so be sure to come back often. We’ll talk to you soon.
Thanks and tell the world