I've been building ICF homes for 20 years.Some of the issues I've encountered is that some architects don't consider the thickness of the walls when designing the homes.Walls are 1 foot thick and it can make rooms feel smaller.Also window sizing is important with a thicker wall.A 24" x 48" window may look ok in a traditional build,But in an ICF wall it looks like you're looking into a tunnel.I always tell my clients to make the window sizes as big as they feel comfortable with.And we have taken a custom of house wrapping all of our ICF homes,not because of foam deterioration,but because of water infiltration in behind the siding and finding it's way into the ICF joints and eventually leaking in a window(It only happened once)but after the wrap,never happened again!
A year ago I was in Missouri ( near you) and I was researching ICF and saw your videos. I looked forward to your uploads every week. A year later and I just moved to Missouri and just poured my very first ICF home. I've got a long history of standard wall forms and have poured everything from countertops to garages and NEVER did I EVER think a whole house including gables, could go up and be poured so fast and easy. Thanks for your videos showing real life diy examples. And the "what went wrong" videos are extremely helpful. Congratulations on a beautiful home.
My first thought about the UV exposure was like it's not a big deal because I'm using a siding so it would get covered. But then you mentioned windows and the tape not sticking. Thank you for that advice, you guys just saved me a massive headache down the line!
Love this. I wish every build series on youtube would make this video. Hoping to one day build myself a small icf home and when people share their mistakes or what they'd do differently is some of the most valuable info out there. Taping the new clean block is a great idea I hadn't heard yet.
At 5:40, you said simple round ductwork would have worked. I have seen guys take the foam that they cut out from that hole, and stuff it back inside the thin round duct to make it stronger. That way it will hold up against the gravel that is dropping on it from 8' to 12' or so above. In your case, the ductwork is near the top of the pour, so the gravel did not damage the duct, since it did not fall as far. Regarding the Lite Deck, it would be nice if they designed it with wider metal to make it easier for folks to affix ceiling drywall after the pour.
Great video, thanks for the insight. I wouldn't sweat your problems. We started our ICF house in November. The only thing I hired out was my footings. They poured them 4" too far/wide in all directions and 2 interior footings for my load bearing walls were poured 5" out of square. We had to stretch our house 4" and it has been causing more problems than I realized in the design. I should have made them tear it up but didn't have the heart to ask them too. Love your view, congrats on your build. Torey
I am planning to build an ICF home on a gently sloped lake lot in NE TN next year and your insights are beyond helpful! I appreciate hearing your comments about everything pro and con. I self-contracted the building of my stick-built custom home 17 years ago and it went ever so smoothly. I understand that self-contracting an ICF build myself is a whole different story and what I learned then may not be as helpful for this type of building. I'll just found your channel and will be watching your building process carefully over the next few months. Thanks!
Congratulations - beautiful and strong building! Thank you for the update! This is a big favor to all of us planning ICF projects. We are in process of designing a relatively small (~1600 sqft), flat roof ICF home in South Florida. Planning on using InsulDeck for the roof and FoxBlocks for walls. The roof is to be sloped at least 1/4 inch per foot with 3 inch concrete on the top. The roof will be sealed to become water proof. Walls are 12 feet tall and the idea is to use modern drop ceiling to cover air ducts, electricals and provide for lights. Hardy board for the outside finish. I wish I could share a few renditions of the project.
I'm looking at similar, though not a flat roof because I'm moving to NY. You might want to look into concrete densifiers for your roof. It uses salt to react to the concrete and close up pores. Not sure if it would make it waterproof enough for daily Florida rain storms, but it never has to be reapplied like other sealers. You should also look into a product called EcoSpan. It is an ICF roof/ceiling product like Insuldeck, but uses metal trusses which would make it easy for you to run your air ducts, electrical, and lighting through if you didn't want to do a drop ceiling.
Using a XYPEX additive to the concrete while it's being mixed creates a waterproof concrete mixture. It's what they use in concrete water tanks. It takes a few wetting events (rain or using water hose) to active the crystallization properties that seal the concrete but once done, its waterproof.
I used LiteDEck for my home. I used use metal strapping over the LiteDeck before installing drywall. I used low slope insulation to create slope on the roofs. Beautiful home.
My ICF sales person suggested that I paint the blocks for UF protection. It worked great! They were exposed in a desert climate from October to august with no issues.
Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and thoughts. We recently purchased a lot on the outskirts of Kimberling City, Missouri and are excited about the possibilities. There are so many things to consider for our Table Rock lake lot build. Thanks again!
Built with Nudura blocks this last year. Definitely agree with putting in more sleeves into the walls. Also agree with wrapping blocks with house wrap that sun gets to.
I'm in the process of planning an ICF build. Your video is super valuable to those of us in the process. I'm sorry to hear about the issues, and hopefully, long term they'll fade as you grow to love your home.
Just came across your videos. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. One important consideration is termite protection under the foundation walls. Termites & similar critters will go through styrofoam like butter. It is important treat it for the same. The same goes for finishing on inside concrete walls.
Great job. For extreme weather protection, might someday plan for exterior roll shades to protect the windows. I’ve been thinking to do that to help on the rare very hot days to help save on electricity as my compressors run wide open.
Haha, the master bedroom on the rental house in Austin that my boyfriend lives in has the metal shades. There's a light switch next to his bed that operates them. Funny thing is, that window looks out onto the enclosed patio/atrium. I guess it's for privacy if you have guests over?!
Great info. Just finishing an ICF house with structural steel roof framing embedded and welded into top of ICF walls. Stuccomax was great on exterior - lots of compliments - chemically bonds to the foam Used windows without fins placed in center of walls. Agree with placing pipe through walls before concrete is poured for access through walls. Wish I had lined up more residential subs with commercial experience as many residential sub contractors uncomfortable with concrete and steel construction.
I've missed most of your videos but am so happy that I watched this one. You answered questions I had and some I hadn't thought of. Great work and thank you for sharing.
Just discovered your channel. Thank you for this video. We are planning an ICF house in about 2 yrs and am grateful to hear actual owner testimony. Will watch all your prior videos as well, just subscribed.
Great information I learned about ICF from some of my patients who are Air Force Red horse squadrons who actually do all the building like the Navy Seabees and they told me all about ICF I moved to another part of Florida for my career and I'm looking at building and ICF home I can't have a basement cuz the water table so I'm really liking your top deck so I think I'm going to do like you say and use the conduct and also I'm going to raise one wall a little higher than the other to create the slope trying to surprise the wife and kids with a brand new custom built home out here hopefully they like ICF they probably won't even know
Great video, thanks for sharing these tips, it realy shows that no build is perfect, we need to be very involved in any build. I'm currently finishing a 10ft high deck designed to hold a small 15x26 tiny home in west Texas and will now be considering this style of construction. My other choices are wood and light steel. God bless you two.
wow. I appreciate you doing this. I'm glad you still like the ICF, but, I feel your pain...particularly on the "avoidable" stuff. Thanks for putting this out there, and I hope as time goes on, the boo-boos mean less and less, and the rock-solid house means more and more....cheers!
Really informative video, thank you! I'm planning on building an ICF 1200sqft two-story house this coming spring/summer. I'm definitely going to engorge myself on the rest of your channel!
Great lessons all through the series. The lite deck garage floor was a big question for me. Sagging underneath and causing cracks? Water drainage when parking a wet car? Glad to hear it's working. Roof slope is a minor problem but worth mentioning
Thank you! Garage floor still looks great! No cracks as all. We are going to have to use epoxy or one of the sealants though to make sure that we can waterproof it for pulling in wet cars when it rains.
Thanks for the video. I wasn't looking for a house video but the magic of RUclips algorithm sent me here. I'm planning on building an ICF later this year and this video came in handy. I'm also planning on using Insuldeck so the firring strip tip will come in handy. Y'alls problem with the 24sqft bump in is why I've been staring at my cad drawing every day for the past three weeks. And yes, I keep finding minor things to tweak and change. I've done other projects in the past, completely gutted my current house, built a 20x40 pole barn, etc, and it never fails there are always things I would have done differently by the end. Really hoping I nail the ICF as close as possible though since it will be harder to adjust than a stick built home.
Yes, there is always more to learn! Thank you for watching! We have lots of other videos on our channel about building with ICF that I hope helps as well.
I was the GC on a house I built in 2004. I had 8" poured, reinforced walls on the first level. I did not check the forms well enough before the pour. I counted on the subcontractor to follow the schematics I gave him. He did not read them well. He poured them with a door opening that was too small and sagging in the middle. He also put the beam pockets in the wrong places, including two that were actually in a header! He poured the floor on a day when it was going to rain and freeze overnight, which ruined the finish because he did not cover it after troweling it. I should have supervised him better. I had to use a gas-powered wet saw as you mentioned inside the house and got covered in the mess. My hair was matted with concrete dust afterward. I had to fix it all myself because he refused to come back and fix it. Then, the excavation contractor backfilled too much at once, and the whole back wall was pushed in four inches at the top. This caused huge diagonal cracks at the corners, and I had to pay an engineer a fortune to approve it. He told me that he would call the pest-control company to have the termite barrier sprayed just before he poured the slab. He never did that even though he insisted he would make sure it got sprayed. I had to pay a lot of extra money to have the slab drilled every foot, around the edges. Then, we had to inject the insecticide into those large holes and cap them all.
We have viewed all your episodes and are planning our own build using lessons from your experience. We have had initial discussions with your concrete company used and are excited to get started soon! Thank you for the lessons you shared!
It is very quiet in the house. We have really bad storms in this part of Missouri and it is shocking that we can barely hear the rain or wind when they get going.
Thank you for this video! We are building an ICF home right now and I think it would be great to do a video like this as well when we're done. Much appreciated!
We built a new home last year. ICF was a consideration but decided against it because it was more expensive and I didn't want 12" thick walls around our windows and doors. We wanted to build a very energy efficient home so we used Zip-R12 sheathing with 2x4 framing, which gives you the same wall thickness as if 2x6 framing was used. Our home is one story with 9' ceilings on the first floor and basement walkout. We insulated the walls with closed cell foam and had 2" of closed cell sprayed on top of the ceiling drywall and blown fiberglass on top of that. R-30 wall and R-60 ceiling. Our overall experience was great but I think it also helped that this wasn't our first time building. I did a lot of research of what materials to use and where, like LVL studs on walls where they were either long hallways or behind cabinets so that we had perfectly straight walls. The best advice I can give to people who want to build is to stick to your guns on what you want and don't let contractors do things their way. The reason they want to do things their way is because it's easier and faster and not necessarily for your benefit. The small details when missed can be detrimental later.
I appreciate your video. I'm planning an off grid icf build using build block. 24x36 with single slope 4/12 roof for solar and a basement. Main floor has a mechanicals room attached on north side with lean-to roof. Figured icf decking for roof and mainfloor for the full envelope. Good tips about the windows since that's what I've been stuck trying to figure out lately. Seems like a lot of builds do wooden roof which I don't really understand.
We installed black Northstar windows. Northstar wraps the windows in a black vinyl. Looks great when windows are closed but they are not wrapped inside the the window frame and on the sides of the window. So they look bad when they are open.
John, you talk about tape not sticking to your EPS after it's been exposed to UV for more than 6 months, have you tried SIGA tape? They are a game changer when it comes to tape.
Great Build. You did a fine job. I framed million-dollar homes in the mid 1990s and I've traveled all over the U.S. for 10 years building commercial concrete structures as a superintendent foreman. Shame on your contractor for not putting in your box outs. On a roof that small, I would have had 1.5" per 8' slope. the finishers were lazy. I've poured super-flats in September. There should be no low spots unless the decking sagged after the pour.
First off… I love you guys! you are Beyond great! I’m the guy That has to tell the “homeowner” in this case that the contractor you hired to do your new home took advantage of you. I’m a 40+ year Specially contractor that fixes other contractors screw ups!!! Not a mistake! A mistake is not using PVC pipe but coring instead? Every time and I mean every time! I go on to a job site whether it be residential or commercial I just shake my head on how bad Construction technics are… Just because you have all of the greatest tools, equipment and the best materials on the market to build something? A house, landscaping, coring/saw cutting, on and on and on and especially concrete contractors they are the absolute worst! They know very little if anything on the proper protocol of preparing the ground properly prior to the pour. The foundation is everything to your new home if there’s a not done properly everything else fails. And don’t forget the brand new pick up your contractor showed up in to show you upfront how they’re gonna screw you! They spent $80,000-$100,000+ of other peoples hard earned money on. This CLUE! 90% of the time of the time often means… Your contractor doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing (exempt on how he’s gonna screw you out of money) and he has a bunch of untrained subs out working on your project that don’t have a clue what they’re doing they’re just going through the motions that they were shown by the guy that didn’t know what he was doing, but that’s OK the sheet rock will cover it! and yet he’s raking in all of your hard earned money? Sorry for ranting and Raving but after 40 years of watching stupidity it’s hard for me to take. From the time you break ground until you finish your project nearly every contractor will cut corners and screw you. Just a recap! You guys are really great! Hope everything is spelled right And punctuated right didn’t get much sleep last night thanks Keven
Took me four years just to excavate and build the 7" foundation slab and 16" thick walls for my bunker/basement. Did not want any strangers at the location. Rented steel forms for the walls, and slab and footer is one massive pour. Walls are 10 feet in height, and I had to get the ceiling slabs prefabricated. They are supported by steel beams (which I did not want). I wanted a clear span but 70x50 is too large not have supported beams or a load-bearing wall on a 5" think concreate overhead slab. I even built a elevator large enough for a fork-lift.
Brave you two. Great. Thank you. Every build is about managing the compromises. They are always there. Rooftop should be addressable with a post applied filler made for outdoor leveling of concrete - even though you don't want it actually level. Perhaps call a few concrete guys until you find one that knows how to deal with it - and can address quickly/thoroughly.
You can eliminate ponding by adding slope. Adhere sloped insulation to concrete and install membrane ( rubber or TPO) over the top with walk pad over areas that will see foot traffic.
Love you channel guys! Question: how did you atrach your deck ledgers to the exterior of your home? Assuming theyre some sort of galvanized or coated steel?
Thank you! We had concrete knockouts and cast in galvanized bolts during the wall pour. I think we have it one of the episodes. I will look and post below when I find it.
It was custom given our deck sizes. The steel was ordered through our ICF contractor. Definitely the way to go though- steel and concrete decks. Due to the crazy lumber prices last year we actually saved money over wood and have a product that will last forever.
@@LakeLotBuild Exactly! Did you make provisions in your deck to allow for drainage? You're in Missouri right? I'm a displaced Missouri boy living in Georgia lol
I must say that your concerns and complaints, as long as manageable and fixable, pale in comparison to my multiyear struggle to even get my ICF project off the ground 😅 You have an awesome house, congrats, and the information is going to be very helpful if mine ever actually happens!
Thanks for doing this video (and all the others), it has been super helpful to follow along on your lake build. Thanks for letting us learn from your mistakes, too! I noticed you used Fox Blocks for the walls but used a different system for the window and door bucks. Did you not like the FB buck system or did your builder just prefer his own method for that? Sorry if I missed that answer in another video.
I've done a lot of major home renovation projects and made a few mistakes as well. But often mistakes turn out to be an opportunity in disguise. We did extensive research of windows and found that Pella made the best quality windows but they are expensive. Despite the issue with the black paint based on our experience in terms of function over the long term you will be glad you used Pella. If the roof will take the extra weight load maybe you should consider adding an enclosed metal awning/sun room/green house on the top deck that you could use even in the winter. That would also increase the square footage of your home increasing its value as well.
Yes, for function Pella is great! We do hope to spend a lot of time on the roof. We have retractable awning on our lower deck. I will look into what we could do up above. Great idea.
Finding icf in south florida is a chore Finding it affordable os worst I im not looking to put my info all over the web just to get pricing nor keep up with all the questions and constant internet channels Is there a website that can tell me who sells on south or south west florida icf products I contacted build blocks but its too much back and forth and no answers or pricing Im intrested in that flooring system you got going on there but is it even meant to be installed on an incline for a roof like 3:12 pitch
I'm not an expert at anything but i do play one on TV. I used to have a concrete company. I always tell people to measure a dozen times then come back in the morning and measure another half dozen times before you order the concrete. The house looks very nice.
Thank you! You seemed to know the technical aspects of what it should be and yet you ended up with concerns. I can just imagine the horrors it will be for a novice inflicted by builders and suppliers who are trying to cheat, swindle or do shoddy work like your simply painted window issue that Pela windows cheated you for while charging you more!
Great video. We are doing a large ICF hose as well with some unique featuers, and most of the issue you discussed were things we ran into with our first one and have taken into the second one. If it makes you feel better, no matter how well you layout your penitrations, you will always miss one and have to core it. For the cost of hiring that our, you can get a diamond bit core and good hammer drill though. Just a a thought. In my case, I had two of them off by just a little and were sticking into doorways on verticle runs through the walls, so had to core an move those. Couple other suggestions. You can pressure wash the ICF foam and take all the dust off and tape will stick to it like new again. Other methods are to spay on a thin coating of latex primer or paint as well. All ways to deal with the deteriation of the foam. Good luck. By the way, you video on electrical and using rebar was great and helped me in my new build. I bent a small L on one end which makes it even faster. You go from each side, then use the L to clear the top of the stud in the lite deck. Makes quick(er) work out of it.
When we built during the pandemic it was actually the same price as wood or maybe even cheaper. If you remember lumber prices went sky high during that time. Most ICF builders will tell you that over traditional building cost, ICF will cost you about 5 to 10% more. I can tell you we've easily made up for that just on electric costs alone in the first year.
Scary stuff! I hope you all stay safe down there. The siding is actually standing seam metal roofing material. Since metal roofing is designated with a Class A fire rating, it is one of the most non-combustible roofing materials with the greatest strength to stand up to fires. As stated in the Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Standard For Safety: “1.3 Class A roof coverings are effective against severe fire test exposures."
@@LakeLotBuild we are safe, thanks! We did have a blaze rare up about half a mile away behind us with the wind blowing towards us, but thank the Lord the fire crew got to it. I walked out of the shower into the bedroom catching the bright orange flame glow and about crapped my pants though. So I guess the next weakest point would be the windows. And in that case, aluminum framed would be the best?
Yes, vinyl would not fare well in fire. Aluminum would do better I think. We also keep the trees far away from the house. If you notice on the videos, we have a good 20-30 foot tree-free zone on all sides of the house. We really didn't want tree leaves and pine needles on roof top deck but also helps with the view 😁 and of course fire danger.
Thanks for this. Bravo for algorthms eh! From Atlantic Canada 🇨🇦🍁and waiting for a long while for lumber prices to decline😳 and labour availability to increase😑 with the ICF extension project. Two extenstions actually but would start with one, see how the contractor conducts himself and experience, as with you both, to as to see what things to pay attention to for the 2nd ICF extension. So, I have subscribed so keep tabs on your ICF experience and suggestions. Stay safe, 😷💉👍🙏🇨🇦
I’ve been following your build and love the roof top idea so much that we incorporated it into our plans as well. I’ve watched several of your videos and heard your disappointment with the water proofing not being water proof. But I haven’t heard if you found any solution? Because we are attempting to do almost the same thing, I really appreciate any advice you have on the xypex and overall waterproofing of your deck top roof. Thanks!
Our main problem was the incorrect slope. If you can get the slope correct then you will save yourself a lot of trouble and heartache. We have finally waterproofed the roof after trying two other elastimeric paints that did not do the job. We used a product suggested by a roofer that is used on basketball courts and roofs. It is a paint on silicone membrane. So far so good. Don't bother with the elastomeric, just go for the silicone.
I buidlt our home with icf. But only the basement and 1st floor. Conventional framing for the 2nd floor due to the walls not aligning, with the lower walls. Cant agree more about using metal ducting or pvc/ abs pipes placed in the walls at all of the appropriate places. Measure twice all of the window/ door openings for plumb, square. Ensure the windows openings are properly braced and supported before the pour. Run 4" pvc pipe under the slab for running electrical or plumbing lines from the house to shop. Avoid using 90' angles and use connected 45' to make pulling the wire or lines easier. Lots of other changes too many to list as well. Still love the home and the natural coolness in the summer and comfort in the winter.
By the way regarding tape on styrofoam... I'm surprised that you used tape rather than liquid flashing. Some of that newest stuff, especially the roller applied STPE flashing is amazing from what I've read, and I wonder how well it'd work on degraded EPS compared to tape.
I’ll say it again your house looks incredible. One product we used on our ICF for sticking our Term Termite barrier to the ICF wall was SHURTAC by Polyguard. It also works great for peel and stick flashing around windows although we went with liquid applied flashing. It paints on the foam and remains tacky for several hours. Hope this makes you feel better but our biggest mistake we found after building 4 Owner builder homes was finding good contractors. Our ICF build and our last house we will ever build except maybe for our kids😅 we made the mistake of subing out our Slab and not fully vetting the company. I would tell them to tighten the mix and no sooner would I turn around and it would be wet again. Once they started to finish it I realized why they needed it so wet. They had no clue about proper screeding. That said we had shrink cracks in the slab as it cured within hours. Lesson learned we were going to do it our selfs in sections over time but wanted to get the walls stacked before hurricane season. It takes longer but doing it yourself is much better then using bad subs. Our 20 x 16 Carport, 16 x16 porch, 20 x 16 boat garage all completed DIY has no cracks and no puddling after 3 years. DIY all the way unless you know for a fact the sub is worth it and not just because there salesman says they are go view 2 or 3 jobs for your self. I’ll shut up now 😤
Yes! We have done many things DIY that we would have rather hired out (drywall, HVAC, electrical) but sometimes the subs don't do any better than we would do ourselves so it's better to just watch some RUclips videos and give it a go!
I know a guy that works for CMHC that told me it takes 4 house builds to get it perfect. He was only truly happy with the 4th. I can sympathize about the concrete , not so much for the contractor (in this instance), but the supplier that I'm sure had our concrete for my garage floor (28x32, 5" slab) on the truck for WAY too long, and also had accelerator in it on a hot day. The guys were trying to work it and were walking on it within 20 minutes of it being poured! I ended up in court with the concrete company, only paying half in the end. Had to put another 3" on top. You could land a cargo plane on that floor now 😉
@@LakeLotBuild Exactly what I tell my two boys. 'Back in my day' we didn't have RUclips...it's a lot easier to DIY now, and you can start your life without a mortgage.
Wow, I’m building a concrete house in Thailand and it’s been challenging mostly because the folks here don’t know why I wanted to use so much rebar! 😂😂😂 my wife and I have had some doozy arguments. Our cultural beliefs are so different and I’ve had to explain everything about concrete forming and rebar so she can translate to the builders my requirements. I commend you both for seeming to get along quite well during your build. At least in this video! 😂🙏😂🙏
I've been building ICF homes for 20 years.Some of the issues I've encountered is that some architects don't consider the thickness of the walls when designing the homes.Walls are 1 foot thick and it can make rooms feel smaller.Also window sizing is important with a thicker wall.A 24" x 48" window may look ok in a traditional build,But in an ICF wall it looks like you're looking into a tunnel.I always tell my clients to make the window sizes as big as they feel comfortable with.And we have taken a custom of house wrapping all of our ICF homes,not because of foam deterioration,but because of water infiltration in behind the siding and finding it's way into the ICF joints and eventually leaking in a window(It only happened once)but after the wrap,never happened again!
Great advice. Thank you!
Hi where are you located? I am interested in hiring a qualified contractor..
Excellent tip, how did you attach the wrap?
Where are you located? I'm interested in hiring one as well.
What exactly do you mean by house wrapping?
A year ago I was in Missouri ( near you) and I was researching ICF and saw your videos. I looked forward to your uploads every week. A year later and I just moved to Missouri and just poured my very first ICF home. I've got a long history of standard wall forms and have poured everything from countertops to garages and NEVER did I EVER think a whole house including gables, could go up and be poured so fast and easy.
Thanks for your videos showing real life diy examples. And the "what went wrong" videos are extremely helpful.
Congratulations on a beautiful home.
Thank you so much for watching! We are glad you are along for the ride. I would definitely build in ICF again!
We built our ICF home in 1998. Love it. There's nothing better .
This video is full of gold nuggets, thank you folks.
My first thought about the UV exposure was like it's not a big deal because I'm using a siding so it would get covered. But then you mentioned windows and the tape not sticking. Thank you for that advice, you guys just saved me a massive headache down the line!
Love this. I wish every build series on youtube would make this video. Hoping to one day build myself a small icf home and when people share their mistakes or what they'd do differently is some of the most valuable info out there. Taping the new clean block is a great idea I hadn't heard yet.
Great info. Every project has lessons learnt. Your mistakes mentioned are smaller than peanuts. Great job
Yes, we are grateful our problems are small. Great point.
At 5:40, you said simple round ductwork would have worked. I have seen guys take the foam that they cut out from that hole, and stuff it back inside the thin round duct to make it stronger. That way it will hold up against the gravel that is dropping on it from 8' to 12' or so above. In your case, the ductwork is near the top of the pour, so the gravel did not damage the duct, since it did not fall as far. Regarding the Lite Deck, it would be nice if they designed it with wider metal to make it easier for folks to affix ceiling drywall after the pour.
Great Video, thanks for sharing! We're looking forward to the next episode!
Thank you very much for the information. I am building my own ICF wall house now. It's what my wife and I wanted. Thanks again
Thank you for making this, I am planning on building an ICF home in Arizona.
Thanks for this video. We are just now getting ready to break ground on our new home. It will be ICF so your tips are all greatly appreciated!
Great video, thanks for the insight. I wouldn't sweat your problems. We started our ICF house in November. The only thing I hired out was my footings. They poured them 4" too far/wide in all directions and 2 interior footings for my load bearing walls were poured 5" out of square. We had to stretch our house 4" and it has been causing more problems than I realized in the design. I should have made them tear it up but didn't have the heart to ask them too. Love your view, congrats on your build.
Torey
Oh my gosh, I am so so sorry to hear that. It sounds like a nightmare. I hope that everything works out and you all get to enjoy your new home.
I am planning to build an ICF home on a gently sloped lake lot in NE TN next year and your insights are beyond helpful! I appreciate hearing your comments about everything pro and con. I self-contracted the building of my stick-built custom home 17 years ago and it went ever so smoothly. I understand that self-contracting an ICF build myself is a whole different story and what I learned then may not be as helpful for this type of building. I'll just found your channel and will be watching your building process carefully over the next few months. Thanks!
Congratulations - beautiful and strong building! Thank you for the update! This is a big favor to all of us planning ICF projects. We are in process of designing a relatively small (~1600 sqft), flat roof ICF home in South Florida. Planning on using InsulDeck for the roof and FoxBlocks for walls. The roof is to be sloped at least 1/4 inch per foot with 3 inch concrete on the top. The roof will be sealed to become water proof. Walls are 12 feet tall and the idea is to use modern drop ceiling to cover air ducts, electricals and provide for lights. Hardy board for the outside finish. I wish I could share a few renditions of the project.
Sounds amazing!!!
I'm looking at similar, though not a flat roof because I'm moving to NY. You might want to look into concrete densifiers for your roof. It uses salt to react to the concrete and close up pores. Not sure if it would make it waterproof enough for daily Florida rain storms, but it never has to be reapplied like other sealers. You should also look into a product called EcoSpan. It is an ICF roof/ceiling product like Insuldeck, but uses metal trusses which would make it easy for you to run your air ducts, electrical, and lighting through if you didn't want to do a drop ceiling.
Using a XYPEX additive to the concrete while it's being mixed creates a waterproof concrete mixture. It's what they use in concrete water tanks.
It takes a few wetting events (rain or using water hose) to active the crystallization properties that seal the concrete but once done, its waterproof.
Very insightful and could save people big headaches, nice of you to make this video!
This has been very valuable as my wife and I are planning to build in ICF in the next couple years; thanks for the introspection!
I used LiteDEck for my home. I used use metal strapping over the LiteDeck before installing drywall. I used low slope insulation to create slope on the roofs. Beautiful home.
Even with the issues you've built a wonderful house. Thank you for sharing.
Great video, you two are so cute together, an amazing team. Thanks for sharing and sssooooooooooooooo sorry you had those problems.
Appreciate your candidness thank you both so much
That gap under the stairs.. perfect spot for a safe.
My ICF sales person suggested that I paint the blocks for UF protection. It worked great! They were exposed in a desert climate from October to august with no issues.
Smart!
Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and thoughts. We recently purchased a lot on the outskirts of Kimberling City, Missouri and are excited about the possibilities.
There are so many things to consider for our Table Rock lake lot build.
Thanks again!
Welcome to Table Rock! Feel free to send us and email and we can give you a tour sometime! lakelotbuild@gmail.com
Built with Nudura blocks this last year. Definitely agree with putting in more sleeves into the walls. Also agree with wrapping blocks with house wrap that sun gets to.
I’m planning a nudura build now as well, thank you for the tips
What about using the Enviro Dry coating that Nudura/Tremco has? For waterproofing and protecting the ICF (until the siding goes on).
I'm in the process of planning an ICF build. Your video is super valuable to those of us in the process. I'm sorry to hear about the issues, and hopefully, long term they'll fade as you grow to love your home.
Just came across your videos. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. One important consideration is termite protection under the foundation walls. Termites & similar critters will go through styrofoam like butter. It is important treat it for the same. The same goes for finishing on inside concrete walls.
Marvin has coastal series windows with Storm rating..
thank you so much for preparing and sharing this video and your lesson's learned. These types of videos are priceless. Hope you enjoy your house
Great job. For extreme weather protection, might someday plan for exterior roll shades to protect the windows. I’ve been thinking to do that to help on the rare very hot days to help save on electricity as my compressors run wide open.
I have seen that on vacation homes especially and it is a great idea.
I only know of the shades, as very common in Europe for energy savings. My father-in-law had it done.
Haha, the master bedroom on the rental house in Austin that my boyfriend lives in has the metal shades. There's a light switch next to his bed that operates them. Funny thing is, that window looks out onto the enclosed patio/atrium. I guess it's for privacy if you have guests over?!
I've missed quite a few of your videos, I gotta go back and catch up!
Great info. Just finishing an ICF house with structural steel roof framing embedded and welded into top of ICF walls. Stuccomax was great on exterior - lots of compliments - chemically bonds to the foam
Used windows without fins placed in center of walls. Agree with placing pipe through walls before concrete is poured for access through walls. Wish I had lined up more residential subs with commercial experience as many residential sub contractors uncomfortable with concrete and steel construction.
So true! Your house sounds great!
I've missed most of your videos but am so happy that I watched this one. You answered questions I had and some I hadn't thought of. Great work and thank you for sharing.
BTW, I also live abroad and understand your desire to build a stronger and sturdier home, which won’t be blown away wit the next storm.
thank you for this honest feedback. Appreciate it. Looking to build a new cottage in Canada/Quebec so cold weather. 4-5 ICF crawl space. cheers
Just discovered your channel. Thank you for this video. We are planning an ICF house in about 2 yrs and am grateful to hear actual owner testimony. Will watch all your prior videos as well, just subscribed.
Great information I learned about ICF from some of my patients who are Air Force Red horse squadrons who actually do all the building like the Navy Seabees and they told me all about ICF I moved to another part of Florida for my career and I'm looking at building and ICF home I can't have a basement cuz the water table so I'm really liking your top deck so I think I'm going to do like you say and use the conduct and also I'm going to raise one wall a little higher than the other to create the slope trying to surprise the wife and kids with a brand new custom built home out here hopefully they like ICF they probably won't even know
Great video, thanks for sharing these tips, it realy shows that no build is perfect, we need to be very involved in any build. I'm currently finishing a 10ft high deck designed to hold a small 15x26 tiny home in west Texas and will now be considering this style of construction. My other choices are wood and light steel. God bless you two.
wow. I appreciate you doing this. I'm glad you still like the ICF, but, I feel your pain...particularly on the "avoidable" stuff. Thanks for putting this out there, and I hope as time goes on, the boo-boos mean less and less, and the rock-solid house means more and more....cheers!
Thank you! We are loving the house and all the problems seem behind us now.
Really informative video, thank you! I'm planning on building an ICF 1200sqft two-story house this coming spring/summer. I'm definitely going to engorge myself on the rest of your channel!
Great lessons all through the series. The lite deck garage floor was a big question for me. Sagging underneath and causing cracks? Water drainage when parking a wet car? Glad to hear it's working. Roof slope is a minor problem but worth mentioning
Thank you! Garage floor still looks great! No cracks as all. We are going to have to use epoxy or one of the sealants though to make sure that we can waterproof it for pulling in wet cars when it rains.
@@LakeLotBuild Look into something like Ashford concrete densifier. It is more natural and never has to be reapplied.
Great info...convinced us to build our ICF dream home...thanks for the tips🏠😃
We are three years in and no regrets about building with ICF!
Thanks for the video. I wasn't looking for a house video but the magic of RUclips algorithm sent me here. I'm planning on building an ICF later this year and this video came in handy. I'm also planning on using Insuldeck so the firring strip tip will come in handy. Y'alls problem with the 24sqft bump in is why I've been staring at my cad drawing every day for the past three weeks. And yes, I keep finding minor things to tweak and change. I've done other projects in the past, completely gutted my current house, built a 20x40 pole barn, etc, and it never fails there are always things I would have done differently by the end. Really hoping I nail the ICF as close as possible though since it will be harder to adjust than a stick built home.
Yes, there is always more to learn! Thank you for watching! We have lots of other videos on our channel about building with ICF that I hope helps as well.
Thanks for your feedback honesty, it helps a lot for us who want to build an ICF house.
I was the GC on a house I built in 2004. I had 8" poured, reinforced walls on the first level. I did not check the forms well enough before the pour. I counted on the subcontractor to follow the schematics I gave him. He did not read them well. He poured them with a door opening that was too small and sagging in the middle. He also put the beam pockets in the wrong places, including two that were actually in a header! He poured the floor on a day when it was going to rain and freeze overnight, which ruined the finish because he did not cover it after troweling it. I should have supervised him better. I had to use a gas-powered wet saw as you mentioned inside the house and got covered in the mess. My hair was matted with concrete dust afterward. I had to fix it all myself because he refused to come back and fix it. Then, the excavation contractor backfilled too much at once, and the whole back wall was pushed in four inches at the top. This caused huge diagonal cracks at the corners, and I had to pay an engineer a fortune to approve it. He told me that he would call the pest-control company to have the termite barrier sprayed just before he poured the slab. He never did that even though he insisted he would make sure it got sprayed. I had to pay a lot of extra money to have the slab drilled every foot, around the edges. Then, we had to inject the insecticide into those large holes and cap them all.
Oh my goodness! I am sorry you had such a difficult experience. Wow!
Ty so much for uploading video, I am going towards ifc w/ roof so this helps, I plan on sloping my roof but good to know
We aren't building with ICF, but always interesting to learn about the pros and cons of different building methods and materials. 👍😊
Thank you for your video. Much appreciated. In the event of our tornado will your windows survive?
They are not hurricane windows so probably not, but the rest of the structure can withstand 200 mph winds.
Bravo!!! Very informative and knowledge people truly need. Thank you!!!!
We have viewed all your episodes and are planning our own build using lessons from your experience. We have had initial discussions with your concrete company used and are excited to get started soon! Thank you for the lessons you shared!
Thank you so much! It is always so wonderful to receive messages like yours. We wish you the best of luck on your build!
My question would be about the quietness from outside noises and sturdiness. Seems to meet both goals on that.
It is very quiet in the house. We have really bad storms in this part of Missouri and it is shocking that we can barely hear the rain or wind when they get going.
Thank you for this video! We are building an ICF home right now and I think it would be great to do a video like this as well when we're done. Much appreciated!
Awesome advice , thx so much & wishing you guys all the best ! Be safe & well 👍⚾️
any chance of getting total cost breakdown including the lot? Great job!!!
We built a new home last year. ICF was a consideration but decided against it because it was more expensive and I didn't want 12" thick walls around our windows and doors. We wanted to build a very energy efficient home so we used Zip-R12 sheathing with 2x4 framing, which gives you the same wall thickness as if 2x6 framing was used. Our home is one story with 9' ceilings on the first floor and basement walkout. We insulated the walls with closed cell foam and had 2" of closed cell sprayed on top of the ceiling drywall and blown fiberglass on top of that. R-30 wall and R-60 ceiling.
Our overall experience was great but I think it also helped that this wasn't our first time building. I did a lot of research of what materials to use and where, like LVL studs on walls where they were either long hallways or behind cabinets so that we had perfectly straight walls.
The best advice I can give to people who want to build is to stick to your guns on what you want and don't let contractors do things their way. The reason they want to do things their way is because it's easier and faster and not necessarily for your benefit. The small details when missed can be detrimental later.
Thank you! Wonderful video for the rest of us!
Great job sharing the hard information for the benefit of others.
I've been familiar for ICF for a long time and wondered why I never saw an ICF roof, this design is amazing and I hope to build my house like yours
Concerning the UV exposure, could you paint the areas?
Yes. That is something we have heard others have done to reduce UV problems.
@@LakeLotBuild
House paint? I've seen paint that was mixed to the wrong color at Home Depot for dirt cheap.
I appreciate your video. I'm planning an off grid icf build using build block. 24x36 with single slope 4/12 roof for solar and a basement. Main floor has a mechanicals room attached on north side with lean-to roof. Figured icf decking for roof and mainfloor for the full envelope.
Good tips about the windows since that's what I've been stuck trying to figure out lately. Seems like a lot of builds do wooden roof which I don't really understand.
Yes, we are so glad we went with the concrete roof! Best of luck on your build. It sounds great!
We installed black Northstar windows. Northstar wraps the windows in a black vinyl. Looks great when windows are closed but they are not wrapped inside the the window frame and on the sides of the window. So they look bad when they are open.
John, you talk about tape not sticking to your EPS after it's been exposed to UV for more than 6 months, have you tried SIGA tape? They are a game changer when it comes to tape.
Great Build. You did a fine job. I framed million-dollar homes in the mid 1990s and I've traveled all over the U.S. for 10 years building commercial concrete structures as a superintendent foreman. Shame on your contractor for not putting in your box outs. On a roof that small, I would have had 1.5" per 8' slope. the finishers were lazy. I've poured super-flats in September. There should be no low spots unless the decking sagged after the pour.
Great advice. I ordered 5 windows wrong.. lol had to have someone cut them. Im Really glad I sleeved all my penetrations.
Ugh! I'm so sorry about the windows. It is remarkable how many things can go wrong when building a house. 🤣
First off… I love you guys! you are Beyond great! I’m the guy That has to tell the “homeowner” in this case that the contractor you hired to do your new home took advantage of you. I’m a 40+ year Specially contractor that fixes other contractors screw ups!!! Not a mistake! A mistake is not using PVC pipe but coring instead? Every time and I mean every time! I go on to a job site whether it be residential or commercial I just shake my head on how bad Construction technics are… Just because you have all of the greatest tools, equipment and the best materials on the market to build something? A house, landscaping, coring/saw cutting, on and on and on and especially concrete contractors they are the absolute worst! They know very little if anything on the proper protocol of preparing the ground properly prior to the pour. The foundation is everything to your new home if there’s a not done properly everything else fails. And don’t forget the brand new pick up your contractor showed up in to show you upfront how they’re gonna screw you! They spent $80,000-$100,000+ of other peoples hard earned money on. This CLUE! 90% of the time of the time often means… Your contractor doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing (exempt on how he’s gonna screw you out of money) and he has a bunch of untrained subs out working on your project that don’t have a clue what they’re doing they’re just going through the motions that they were shown by the guy that didn’t know what he was doing, but that’s OK the sheet rock will cover it! and yet he’s raking in all of your hard earned money? Sorry for ranting and Raving but after 40 years of watching stupidity it’s hard for me to take. From the time you break ground until you finish your project nearly every contractor will cut corners and screw you. Just a recap! You guys are really great! Hope everything is spelled right And punctuated right didn’t get much sleep last night thanks Keven
Great tips, Thank you!
Took me four years just to excavate and build the 7" foundation slab and 16" thick walls for my bunker/basement. Did not want any strangers at the location. Rented steel forms for the walls, and slab and footer is one massive pour. Walls are 10 feet in height, and I had to get the ceiling slabs prefabricated. They are supported by steel beams (which I did not want). I wanted a clear span but 70x50 is too large not have supported beams or a load-bearing wall on a 5" think concreate overhead slab. I even built a elevator large enough for a fork-lift.
This is very educational.
Brave you two. Great. Thank you. Every build is about managing the compromises. They are always there. Rooftop should be addressable with a post applied filler made for outdoor leveling of concrete - even though you don't want it actually level. Perhaps call a few concrete guys until you find one that knows how to deal with it - and can address quickly/thoroughly.
Thank you! Some leveling was done but still have a pretty good sized pond. We will definitely keep looking for solutions.
You can eliminate ponding by adding slope. Adhere sloped insulation to concrete and install membrane ( rubber or TPO) over the top with walk pad over areas that will see foot traffic.
Love you channel guys! Question: how did you atrach your deck ledgers to the exterior of your home? Assuming theyre some sort of galvanized or coated steel?
Thank you! We had concrete knockouts and cast in galvanized bolts during the wall pour. I think we have it one of the episodes. I will look and post below when I find it.
Found it! Around minute 11 to 12.ruclips.net/video/rcA2jvlYlLg/видео.html
@@LakeLotBuild thank you! I'll watch it asap. Where did you get the components for your deck framing? Was it 100% custom?
It was custom given our deck sizes. The steel was ordered through our ICF contractor. Definitely the way to go though- steel and concrete decks. Due to the crazy lumber prices last year we actually saved money over wood and have a product that will last forever.
@@LakeLotBuild Exactly! Did you make provisions in your deck to allow for drainage? You're in Missouri right? I'm a displaced Missouri boy living in Georgia lol
I must say that your concerns and complaints, as long as manageable and fixable, pale in comparison to my multiyear struggle to even get my ICF project off the ground 😅 You have an awesome house, congrats, and the information is going to be very helpful if mine ever actually happens!
Oh wow, thank you. Don't give up! I really hope that the rest of your build goes smooth and that you guys will be enjoying a beautiful house soon. 🙏
Thanks for doing this video (and all the others), it has been super helpful to follow along on your lake build. Thanks for letting us learn from your mistakes, too!
I noticed you used Fox Blocks for the walls but used a different system for the window and door bucks. Did you not like the FB buck system or did your builder just prefer his own method for that? Sorry if I missed that answer in another video.
As far as I know, the bucks were also made by Fox Blocks. The ICF contractor purchased them for us but I think they were made by Fox Blocks too
Tremco - fluid applied to the surface protects the EPS and provides a good surface for tape
Great to know. Thank you!
Well I built an addition on my home and where I thought I wanted the door turned out to be the exact opposite location to where I needed the door.
Oh no! I'm sorry about that. Thank you for sharing though. Building is full of misteps.
I've done a lot of major home renovation projects and made a few mistakes as well. But often mistakes turn out to be an opportunity in disguise. We did extensive research of windows and found that Pella made the best quality windows but they are expensive. Despite the issue with the black paint based on our experience in terms of function over the long term you will be glad you used Pella. If the roof will take the extra weight load maybe you should consider adding an enclosed metal awning/sun room/green house on the top deck that you could use even in the winter. That would also increase the square footage of your home increasing its value as well.
Yes, for function Pella is great! We do hope to spend a lot of time on the roof. We have retractable awning on our lower deck. I will look into what we could do up above. Great idea.
Finding icf in south florida is a chore
Finding it affordable os worst
I im not looking to put my info all over the web just to get pricing nor keep up with all the questions and constant internet channels
Is there a website that can tell me who sells on south or south west florida icf products
I contacted build blocks but its too much back and forth and no answers or pricing
Im intrested in that flooring system you got going on there but is it even meant to be installed on an incline for a roof like 3:12 pitch
You might check out Fox Blocks. That is the product we used. Our floor joists we're made locally.
I'm not an expert at anything but i do play one on TV. I used to have a concrete company. I always tell people to measure a dozen times then come back in the morning and measure another half dozen times before you order the concrete. The house looks very nice.
I assume it can't hurt for openings if you rough it a little bigger?
True. You could just fill with foam.
If you check your door will fit inside the buck, you shouldn’t have a problem. And you do that before pouring cement.
Love the ruff v roof from Canada
I am near you and considering doing ICF. We have had some expensive quotes. Do you have any recommendations?
We used ICF Walls of the Ozarks. We did almost everything else ourselves. Seamless Experts did our siding. Absolutely love them.
I’ve used sonotube with foam inside for sleeves before. No problems.
Roof slope could potentially be corrected with tapered insulation possibly
Thank you! You seemed to know the technical aspects of what it should be and yet you ended up with concerns. I can just imagine the horrors it will be for a novice inflicted by builders and suppliers who are trying to cheat, swindle or do shoddy work like your simply painted window issue that Pela windows cheated you for while charging you more!
We have learned so much in building our own home. I can absolutely see how people are cheated and end up with substandard construction. Scary!
Great video. We are doing a large ICF hose as well with some unique featuers, and most of the issue you discussed were things we ran into with our first one and have taken into the second one. If it makes you feel better, no matter how well you layout your penitrations, you will always miss one and have to core it. For the cost of hiring that our, you can get a diamond bit core and good hammer drill though. Just a a thought. In my case, I had two of them off by just a little and were sticking into doorways on verticle runs through the walls, so had to core an move those. Couple other suggestions. You can pressure wash the ICF foam and take all the dust off and tape will stick to it like new again. Other methods are to spay on a thin coating of latex primer or paint as well. All ways to deal with the deteriation of the foam. Good luck. By the way, you video on electrical and using rebar was great and helped me in my new build. I bent a small L on one end which makes it even faster. You go from each side, then use the L to clear the top of the stud in the lite deck. Makes quick(er) work out of it.
I’m not sure if you mentioned this but how much more expensive is this type of build vs wood? Thanks
When we built during the pandemic it was actually the same price as wood or maybe even cheaper. If you remember lumber prices went sky high during that time. Most ICF builders will tell you that over traditional building cost, ICF will cost you about 5 to 10% more. I can tell you we've easily made up for that just on electric costs alone in the first year.
@@LakeLotBuild awesome. Thanks 👍
How would it do with a wild fire? I’m in Texas near where the fires were last week. What is the heat rating on the metal siding?
Scary stuff! I hope you all stay safe down there. The siding is actually standing seam metal roofing material. Since metal roofing is designated with a Class A fire rating, it is one of the most non-combustible roofing materials with the greatest strength to stand up to fires. As stated in the Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Standard For Safety: “1.3 Class A roof coverings are effective against severe fire test exposures."
@@LakeLotBuild we are safe, thanks! We did have a blaze rare up about half a mile away behind us with the wind blowing towards us, but thank the Lord the fire crew got to it. I walked out of the shower into the bedroom catching the bright orange flame glow and about crapped my pants though. So I guess the next weakest point would be the windows. And in that case, aluminum framed would be the best?
Yes, vinyl would not fare well in fire. Aluminum would do better I think. We also keep the trees far away from the house. If you notice on the videos, we have a good 20-30 foot tree-free zone on all sides of the house. We really didn't want tree leaves and pine needles on roof top deck but also helps with the view 😁 and of course fire danger.
@@LakeLotBuild yes. Well, you all did a great job! Thanks! You should become a builder!
Thanks for this. Bravo for algorthms eh! From Atlantic Canada 🇨🇦🍁and waiting for a long while for lumber prices to decline😳 and labour availability to increase😑 with the ICF extension project. Two extenstions actually but would start with one, see how the contractor conducts himself and experience, as with you both, to as to see what things to pay attention to for the 2nd ICF extension. So, I have subscribed so keep tabs on your ICF experience and suggestions. Stay safe, 😷💉👍🙏🇨🇦
Really great job, but I do not understand her when she keeps referring to working on the ruff. Does she mean the roof?
I’ve been following your build and love the roof top idea so much that we incorporated it into our plans as well. I’ve watched several of your videos and heard your disappointment with the water proofing not being water proof. But I haven’t heard if you found any solution? Because we are attempting to do almost the same thing, I really appreciate any advice you have on the xypex and overall waterproofing of your deck top roof. Thanks!
Our main problem was the incorrect slope. If you can get the slope correct then you will save yourself a lot of trouble and heartache. We have finally waterproofed the roof after trying two other elastimeric paints that did not do the job. We used a product suggested by a roofer that is used on basketball courts and roofs. It is a paint on silicone membrane. So far so good. Don't bother with the elastomeric, just go for the silicone.
@@LakeLotBuild
Thank you so much! Any chance you can tell me the product name?
Yes. Inland Coating RC 2000
Thank you!
So - what is the difference in a concrete block house and icf construction?
Icf construction has insulation on the outside and the inside of the concrete wall. It has an r factor of about r50.
Great video, very informative!
I buidlt our home with icf. But only the basement and 1st floor. Conventional framing for the 2nd floor due to the walls not aligning, with the lower walls. Cant agree more about using metal ducting or pvc/ abs pipes placed in the walls at all of the appropriate places. Measure twice all of the window/ door openings for plumb, square. Ensure the windows openings are properly braced and supported before the pour. Run 4" pvc pipe under the slab for running electrical or plumbing lines from the house to shop. Avoid using 90' angles and use connected 45' to make pulling the wire or lines easier. Lots of other changes too many to list as well. Still love the home and the natural coolness in the summer and comfort in the winter.
Some how came across your video actually enjoyed y'all
EPS does oxidize over time. Once brushed and washed, peel and stick flashing will adhere better than new. It is Expanded Polystyrene, not Styrofoam.
Great video. Thanks for sharing the wisdom learned.
By the way regarding tape on styrofoam... I'm surprised that you used tape rather than liquid flashing. Some of that newest stuff, especially the roller applied STPE flashing is amazing from what I've read, and I wonder how well it'd work on degraded EPS compared to tape.
Sounds like a great product!
Good stuff, thanks
Great informative video. We’re in the process of a building ourselves. These lessons learned are so valuable!
I’ll say it again your house looks incredible. One product we used on our ICF for sticking our Term Termite barrier to the ICF wall was SHURTAC by Polyguard. It also works great for peel and stick flashing around windows although we went with liquid applied flashing. It paints on the foam and remains tacky for several hours. Hope this makes you feel better but our biggest mistake we found after building 4 Owner builder homes was finding good contractors. Our ICF build and our last house we will ever build except maybe for our kids😅 we made the mistake of subing out our Slab and not fully vetting the company. I would tell them to tighten the mix and no sooner would I turn around and it would be wet again. Once they started to finish it I realized why they needed it so wet. They had no clue about proper screeding. That said we had shrink cracks in the slab as it cured within hours. Lesson learned we were going to do it our selfs in sections over time but wanted to get the walls stacked before hurricane season. It takes longer but doing it yourself is much better then using bad subs. Our 20 x 16 Carport, 16 x16 porch, 20 x 16 boat garage all completed DIY has no cracks and no puddling after 3 years. DIY all the way unless you know for a fact the sub is worth it and not just because there salesman says they are go view 2 or 3 jobs for your self. I’ll shut up now 😤
Yes! We have done many things DIY that we would have rather hired out (drywall, HVAC, electrical) but sometimes the subs don't do any better than we would do ourselves so it's better to just watch some RUclips videos and give it a go!
I know a guy that works for CMHC that told me it takes 4 house builds to get it perfect. He was only truly happy with the 4th. I can sympathize about the concrete , not so much for the contractor (in this instance), but the supplier that I'm sure had our concrete for my garage floor (28x32, 5" slab) on the truck for WAY too long, and also had accelerator in it on a hot day. The guys were trying to work it and were walking on it within 20 minutes of it being poured! I ended up in court with the concrete company, only paying half in the end. Had to put another 3" on top. You could land a cargo plane on that floor now 😉
@@LakeLotBuild Exactly what I tell my two boys. 'Back in my day' we didn't have RUclips...it's a lot easier to DIY now, and you can start your life without a mortgage.
Wow, I’m building a concrete house in Thailand and it’s been challenging mostly because the folks here don’t know why I wanted to use so much rebar! 😂😂😂 my wife and I have had some doozy arguments. Our cultural beliefs are so different and I’ve had to explain everything about concrete forming and rebar so she can translate to the builders my requirements. I commend you both for seeming to get along quite well during your build. At least in this video! 😂🙏😂🙏
We had had plenty of disagreements off camera 🤣. Good luck to you on your build!!! We lived for several years in the Middle East.