ETX ICF

01/17/2024

Going to get a little nerdy for everyone this morning. The two pics are taken at my personal home.
Specs:
6” core Nudura ICF vs 2x4 spray foam
Outside Temps have ranged from 7 degrees (this morning) to a high of 23. This is over almost a 5 day period. 2 of those days never got over 18 degrees and only one day of sun.
Both temp readings were taken at the same depth from the interior.

While an 11 degree difference is pretty substantial, what a lot of people don’t account for is the heat/cool escape of spray foam compared to a mass core. The concrete will hold temps and keep the variance down to a minimum. Spray or optima (blown fiberglass) will not. This is the reason why you CAN NOT compare R-values between the two building methods.

The spray foam temps were taken on a separation wall between the conditioned attic space and the garage attic. This is on the South side. The ICF temp was taken from a north facing exterior wall. Temp differences would be more drastic if I could compare them equally.

We are working on designing our next home and will definitely spend the extra $7-10k on ICF. Only this time, it is getting an InsulDeck roof which is concrete and EPS foam as well. Can’t argue efficiency and strength for that much more spent.

Have a happy chilly Wednesday everyone! 🥶

01/05/2024

12” core walls pumped✔️
Cleaned and primed walls ✔️
Waterproofing finished ✔️
Tomorrow will be dimple mat and then the backfill process starts.

Don’t ever let anyone tell you that a basement can’t be built in East Texas. With proper geo testing and attention to detail on waterproofing, we can build anything sub-grade!

2,000 sqft walkout basement for Kyle Johns Homes. It has been a pleasure working with one of the top builders in this area!

12/28/2023

Another basement we are pumping this morning on Lake Palestine. This has been an interesting but fun project!

12/13/2023

20x45x12’ pool house we just finished. The customer wanted a pool house and a storm shelter so we made it happen.

Starting on a walkout basement at Lake Palestine once our 12” Nudura blocks get here tomorrow. Give us a call if you’re looking for an ICF home, basement, or retaining wall. We even do DIY consults.

10/24/2023

Excavation, waterproof basement construction, backfill, dirt work, and slab. We took care everything. I guess basements in East Texas are a thing because we have another one coming up for KJ Homes.

10/24/2023

Getting another 110 yards this morning. This is the 6th pour in 7 days. We have been trying to beat the wet season and couldn’t be any more happy with our guys.

09/22/2023

I wanted to wish one of our own guys good luck this weekend at the Chattanooga Ironman. Seth Cooke is one of our lead guys and there aren’t many, if any, that can out work this man. Go get brother!

09/20/2023

300 yards down this morning and we are finishing up some waterproofing on this basement so we can start backfilling.

09/05/2023

We have missed posting a few pours from scrambling around. We have mud hitting the ground in a few minutes on the first 20k square feet of paving. 120k of paving to go on phase 1. Hope everybody had a great Labor Day!

07/25/2023

Finishing up the last 10k sf of this driveway this morning. Completed pics and drone footage will be up next week.

07/24/2023

Another busy week starting off. We are getting ready to build a basement. All dirt work, excavation, concrete, underground utilities, and ICF in one contract. What builder wouldn’t want that?!!

07/22/2023

Anyone who may be on the fence about building with ICF and/or just don’t know enough about it should read this article. There have been several comparisons against other building methods and this is one of the better breakdowns. ICF is definitely catching traction now that people have finally figured out its advantages over traditional building. Far more superior in every aspect.

Evaluate ICFs Versus Wood or CMU May 3, 2022 | How-To Articles The major question everyone is posting regarding building materials and wall assemblies is related to cost, specifically the initial capital costs for the options of building with ICFs versus traditional wood framing or concrete block. T...