Continue reading]]> Here in the Philippines there are major stumbling blocks when trying to build an ICF Insulated Concrete Forms home.

The stumbling blocks are: 1. Local building code requires columns and beams; 2. Its very hard to find a concrete conveyor. Ready mix concrete companies here usually only have high pressure pumpcrete; 3. Workers need in depth training in ICF style construciton.

Americans and Canadians and other home owners coming from cold countries do require insulated homes when they decide to settle in the Philippines to be able to save on air con electricity bills. Their homes need to be insulated from the outside heat so as not to overwork their air conditioning systems.

The Philippine building code require columns and beams in contrast to the original American and Canadian ICF construction style that don’t require columns and beams since the walls are solid concrete making them excellent load bearing walls. So the easiest way around this is just to build the columns and beams but insulate them like you would an ICF wall – EPS on both sides of the solid pour topped with drywall. Make sure though that you don’t build the beams of the second floor slab ahead – you have to wait for the ground floor walls to be finished so you can just build your second floor slab beams on top of your cured ground floor insulated walls.

Another stumbling block is the unavailability of a concrete conveyor – a concrete conveyor is one that delivers liquid concrete from the truck without the pressure from pumpcrete / concrete pump. It is important that liquid concrete be delivered without the high pressure so as not to destroy the ICF concrete forms since it is made of light ICF. The solution for this if you cannot find a concrete conveyor is to just use wide ICF forms and hold it together with tie rods – a piece of metal that holds the two insulation forms and tie it outside on the plywood form surface. This will require that your drywall top needs to be pre installed and to secure your drywall – simply use long screws that await in the concrete core area so that it holds when the concrete cures. After curing, simply cut the tie rods below drywall surface level and cover it with spray EPS.

The final stumbling block is the scarcity of workers with ICF training. This is where your training ability will shine. You have to design your training in such a way that the workers will see the benefits and the rationale of an ICF or insulated home, so that they will have the ICF mindset as they slowly build the house. It is also advised that your skilled workers be of the younger age bracket as younger people are usually adept to change compared to their older counterparts.

If you are planning to build an ICF or insulated home here in the Philippines, simply email us your rough house layout and a photo scan of your lot sketch plan and a google snapshot of your lot location to finefinishcebu@gmail.com or to topcebucontractors1@gmail.com

Pleased to update to potential interested parties the recent update on this house in Valencia Negros Philippines. The second floor walls are now done. In the attached pictures below you will see how the structure now looks, just lacking the roofing and wall finishing. You can see the 2 inch EPS insulation on both sides of the beams and walls in the pictures showing the freshly poured walls and beams. A video of the actual pour will also be added later on. Enjoy the pics and the video and do let us know if you are interested in building an ICF house in the Philippines.

See the video of the pour here:

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The footing in an ICF build is a continuous footing since the entire wall of an ICF build is a load bearing wall that needs to be continuously supported. For a 2-3 story ICF house with 6 inches thick cores, footing size is prescribed to be 30 by 60 cm footing with four pieces of number 4 (US and Canada) or 12mm (Philippines) rebar reinforcements with stirrups every 30cm. The footing is prescribed to be 1 to 1.5 meter below grade.

Though not commonly practiced in the Philippines, it is prescribed to place a plastic vapor or moisture membrane barrier around your footings and below grade walls to later prevent the capillary action of concrete sucking moisture from below and bringing it up to the walls and floors, and you will wonder later on where all that moisture, algae, and mold come from. We recommend you use ready-mixed concrete from a batching plant since they have concrete that is strictly up to standard and can even be pre mixed upon request with additional waterproofing additives.

Right after the pour when your footing concrete is no longer as liquid and has started to harden a little bit usually in 2 hours, you can start to “wet set” the bent dowels for your vertical wall rebars. See bent dowels on the next illustration. Your vertical rebar is prescribed to overlap your footing dowels at least 24cm.

For 2-3 story structures your vertical rebars is prescribed to be 12mm placed every 24 inches, and your horizontal rebar be twin 12mm rebars at every horizontal edge of your ICF forms if you’re your forms are 12 inches in height. Linter stirrups for 2-3 story ICF structure is prescribed to be rectangular made of 4 pieces of 12mm rebars prescribed at 30cm in length and width to fit within the 6 inches cavity with stirrups every 10cm.

When starting your stem wall – that wall below grade that connects your foundation footing to your above grade walls – we recommend you apply a foam water proofing membrane or solution on your stem wall up to a couple of inches of your above grade ICF walls.

When placing your ICF blocks, it is recommended to start on the corners because it is easier to cut and strap the regular blocks than the L shaped corner blocks.

The standing seam or stack joints will be connected by cutting the regular blocks and then strapping the connection with a plank as shown in the next pictures.

To prevent a blow-out when the liquid concrete blows out of your expanded polystyrene EPS forms due to excessive concrete pump pressure, it is ok to cut the pour on the stem wall up to the bottom of your windows, but the next pour schedule should not go beyond two hours for the remainder of the windows and the walls. The standard two-hour window is enough for the first batch to stiffen a bit to prevent a blow-out due to the added stacked weight of the next pour.

If at all possible, it is better to place your window or door right beside your standing seam to save time on making cut joint pieces if your standing seam is far from the window or door.
You may extend your stem wall all the way to the bottom part of your window so you can cut your pour schedules to prevent a blow-out, but the time between pours should not go beyond the standard two hours. So, your next pour schedule within the two-hour window, will be for all the way up to the top of your wall where you place your floor slab or roof supports.

When preparing your window bucks or window jambs, be sure to make an opening on the bottom of the window so you can insert the pencil concrete vibrator and so you can inspect the flow of the pour down that area. It is highly recommended you make a cross support of sticks to support your jambs on all four sides. You may use wood or foam for your window jambs and or door jambs.
Be sure to add external reinforcing planks on your jambs to hold your jambs in place as shown below.

Also, be sure to add twin rebars on all sides of your window jamb as shown below.

As you move up stacking your ICF forms, be sure to add appropriate adjustable bracings to prevent a concrete blow out. Make a multifunction adjustable bracing system that also acts as your scaffold for the guy with the concrete pump end hose who discharges the liquid concrete and for the guy with the concrete vibrator who follows the pour. Such an adjustable bracing scaffold system is shown below.

As shown above, the adjustable bracing scaffold must be able to adjust the walls before and after pour to make sure it stays plumbed to line, so your wall stays straight following your string line. So be sure to inspect your wall if it is still following your plumb lines right after the pour while the concrete is still liquid so you can still easily move it to line with your adjustable bracing scaffolds. If your stacked forms do not reach your required wall height, simply cut available ICF blocks to become height adjusters to make up for the missing height material.

Continue reading]]> Here now is the answer to make cooler homes.

Westerners mostly Canadians and Americans who like to have a vacation home or retirement home in the Philippines can now enjoy our tropical climate in their own insulated homes using insulated concrete forms on their walls.

Sometimes usually during summer the heat is just unbearable and you just want to stay cozy and cool in your homes without having to over work your air conditioner. A home with well insulated walls and ceilings is just what you need. A well insulated home will not overwork your aircon since the heat from outside is locked out, and the cold air created by the aircon stays longer inside. Imagine living in an ice bucket foam home.

How you build an ICF home is to use insulated concrete forms or ICF. These are blocks made of EPS (expanded polystyrene) foam. Inside the block is a hollow core with connectors called “webs” that allow you to tie your rebars inside the core before you pour the concrete. So after you pour the concrete – you will have a solid concrete wall that is insulated on both sides with the foam – which keeps the heat outside and locks the cold air created by your air con inside your home. This is how you keep your home cool and at the same time lower your aircon bills.

An ICF home costs more to build since your walls are solid concrete not hollow blocks. And the minimal 2 inches of EPS foam on both sides of your wall is also an added cost. A cost comparison between traditional hollow blocks home and an ICF home makes the ICF home 40-45 percent higher in cost, but in the long run you will actually get that investment back through your lowered air con electric bills since your air con will not overwork to keep cooling your rooms such as in a traditional home.

An ICF home is also a very sturdy home since the minimum solid concrete thickness of ICF walls is 6 inches – imagine 6 inches of poured solid concrete home makes a bullet proof home and a hurricane proof home.

How you insulate your roof is to do the same as your walls, thus you can have a solid concrete roof which we also call a roof deck here in the Philippines. If you want to lower your build cost by opting for a traditional metal roof, then you can just double insulate your roof by adding two layers of 2 inch EPS foam in your ceiling, one layer right under the metal roof and another layer right above your fiber cement or gypsum ceiling.

If you cannot ship the branded ICF blocks from the U.S. or Canada, we now have our own local manufacturer supplier – simply contact us, and do please note that the structural design and construction methodology of the ICF home is very different so feel free to consult with us as we have trained workers and supervisors, and the technical references to structurally design your ICF home.