ICFs - Insulating Concrete Forms

Here is a great article concerning the use and cost of utilizing insulating concrete forms. In certain applications, it may be necessary to use concrete -- though the life cycle cost of concrete is considerably high, other factors may make using it favorable.

For the construction of our home, we will require using concrete as a foundation. In our Zone 7a Plant Hardiness climate (minimum temps = 0-5 degrees), deeper foundations are necessary to combat frost upheaval ground forces that will push and pull on the structure. Additionally, this range in temperature will affect the comfortable living temperatures found within the home.

In order to combat extreme fluxes of living temperatures, the foundations should ideally be insulated from the surrounding earth. Also, the insulation is beneficial to the method of building with earth, in a cold environment. The insulation helps to trap solar heat passively, in order to release it back into the home when outside temperatures drop.

Insulating Concrete Forms make creating the foundation easy because the "forms" are put in place before the concrete is poured, and act as a mould for the concrete itself. We will be using these forms for the first structure we plan on building. Results will be posted as they happen.