Homes built with insulated concrete forms

[Anonymous]

Is anyone's home built with this? We have bought a nice lot where we will be building our new home. My husband doesn't want a wood house. He is is from Europe and he wants a more solid home. He calls the houses here in VA cardboard homes. My inlaws visited last summer and they kept commenting about how noisy our home was (2004 construction) and how it sounded like it was going to fall down during a particularly windy storm. Any experience with ICF? Thank you!

[Anonymous]

We built a home in new England using off for the basement...generally down here basements are CMU due to labor costs. Vertical construction here is generally wood, not sure why you would want concrete. Often custom homes will space joists at 12-14 inches as opposed to 16 for sense if rigidity. We also used 2/6 framing with foam and an interior 2/4 studded wall system, and insulated all interior walls and floors for added sound protection.

Production homes wouldn't have any of that and might feel different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone's home built with this? We have bought a nice lot where we will be building our new home. My husband doesn't want a wood house. He is is from Europe and he wants a more solid home. He calls the houses here in VA cardboard homes. My inlaws visited last summer and they kept commenting about how noisy our home was (2004 construction) and how it sounded like it was going to fall down during a particularly windy storm. Any experience with ICF? Thank you!

Not many offerings here, and as a result it's $$$ with questionable quality due to lack of experience. How long ago did your husband move here? Usually the cardboard attitude is replaced with "yeah, it kinda makes sense" after few years. Just build with 2x6 exterior walls and good windows. Having said that, even after 20 years in US I still hate double-hung windows...

[Anonymous]

I used to work in the industry. Great product but very few builders. Be very cautious of the form material as it may cause toxic gas is burned.

[Anonymous]

I call Europe a cardboard continent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used to work in the industry. Great product but very few builders. Be very cautious of the form material as it may cause toxic gas is burned.

This is OP, yes, I agree, and that is what makes me leery. So few people to give reviews on builders that use ICF. I know they are commonly used in other states like California and Florida. I have yet to meet a person that has their homes built with this in VA. Our current home is solid and well built, but after 10 years, our home has settled and it now creaks and it sounds scary when the wind blows hard. When we have family and they stay in the rooms in the basement, they hear every step taken in the kitchen. I know it is not unique to our home, all older wood homes make lots of noises. I get where he is coming from, and I know that for the not so extreme weather in NoVa, wood is fine. But he really wants something more solid this time. I just think choosing a builder will be a gamble.

[Anonymous]

I believe there is a recently constructed concrete home on the corner of Nutley St and Windover Rd in Vienna. It is a mediterranean style and you can drive by to get the home number. With that info, you can search Fairfax County to see who pulled the building permit.

[Anonymous]

If I understand what you are talking about I think a house is going up on Huntington Parkway in Bethesda with this. I had been wondering what it was!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I used to work in the industry. Great product but very few builders. Be very cautious of the form material as it may cause toxic gas is burned.

This is OP, yes, I agree, and that is what makes me leery. So few people to give reviews on builders that use ICF. I know they are commonly used in other states like California and Florida. I have yet to meet a person that has their homes built with this in VA. Our current home is solid and well built, but after 10 years, our home has settled and it now creaks and it sounds scary when the wind blows hard. When we have family and they stay in the rooms in the basement, they hear every step taken in the kitchen. I know it is not unique to our home, all older wood homes make lots of noises. I get where he is coming from, and I know that for the not so extreme weather in NoVa, wood is fine. But he really wants something more solid this time. I just think choosing a builder will be a gamble.

Try reaching out to NRMCA or PCA which are the trade orgs for the industry. They have local contacts and a list of homes in each area. NRMCA is in silver spring.