ICF vs. CMU - Wall surface area

ARXX Steel ICF blocks are 9 times the size of standard cinder blocks (concrete masonry units), but are about 1/3 the weight, creating a labor advantage of over 27 times. In other words, move one ARXX Steel block into place in the wall and you've done 1/27 of the work required to move 9 CMUs into place, and this does not consider the mixing and troweling of mortar. Plus, you have eliminated the need for a subcontractor and material for furring out studs, subcontractor and material for insulation, and another subcontractor and material for sealing/wrapping the building. And, with ICFs, you don't need to stop every 4' feet to grout/fill the wall, as you do with CMUs.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• ICF vs. CMU
• Carolina X Wall
• RDV Contracting
• ICF Construction
• ICFs
• Triangle PolySteel
• ARXX
• PolySteel
• insulated concrete forms
• green building
• fast exterior wall assembly
• building efficiency
• construction efficiency

[carolinaXwallvideo]

Oh, the six weeks off the job were spent waiting for the CMU and hollow core guys. It only took them a week of that six weeks to install the walls of 5000 sqft custom ICF home. The owner rarely, if ever, heard HVAC cut on in the 90+ days of an NC summer. If the name superior wasn't trademarked by another concrete wall brand, I think it'd be appropriate here.

[carolinaXwallvideo]

I'm not sure what you're meaning by put together and tracked down. You clearly have not seen our steel tie form, which is preassembled, ties on 6" center. We had one blow out in 50,000 square feet of wall, and that was only because of a perimeter haunch cut out of the forms for hollow core planks. The only thing I see blocks have going for them is that they are cheap (in more ways the one) and they make decent parting walls in building interiors. I'm not sure superior is the right word.

[carolinaXwallvideo]

...waiting on other trades. Plus, the up to 26 man CMU crew was clearly outpaced by our 8-9 member ICF crew. People who think ICF is idiot proof probably would not do a great job with advanced framing. How many houses could we point out with conventional construction are poorly built? Nevermind that ICFs are inherently insulated, and furred out, with one crew. CMU walls require additional crews to come in and do that. We have well trained crews, just like any other assembly requires.

[carolinaXwallvideo]

Sorry about your ICF experience. It seems like you maybe have had a bad day, and want to blame it on ICF. Your choice, but you're not painting an accurate picture, you're telling about a couple of projects you have seen. Block installation goes bad, too. This particular application, block had to be reinforced and poured on the interior of the building.  It was 50,000 sqft. of exterior wall, and a less interior corridor CMU surface area. Our ICF crew spent fully 6 weeks off the job.

[ajacob87]

and don't leave out the fact that those blocks have to be put together and tracked down. Then you can install the rebar. Block has been, and still is the superior choice for a superior building.

[ajacob87]

i have seen icf installed and it is no faster than a cmu wall. it is actually slower, you left out the fact that it is not easy to use around doors and windows and most importantly the fact that you have to pour it. When icf is poured the walls buldge out of plumb swelling into the outer wall cavity and and creating a modern day leaning tower. also i saw icf being laid out in a footer for a pour the next day a rain overnight caused the foam forms to float down the footer!