Browse Forums Owner Builder Forum 1 Sep 04, 2009 10:58 am I have finally received a construction certificate and the serious work has commenced. We are looking to build a very energy efficient house taking advantage of good solar orientation to minimise the long term operating costs. We are building on a generally level block of land oriented 4 degrees west of North at the rear. We have been waiting for more than 2 years to commence building because of some zoning issues. Our build will include the following:- Slab on Ground Construction. Insulated Concrete Formwork Walls. (good for insulation, strength and sound reduction) Double Glazed Thermal Break Windows with low e glass, Low Solar Heat Gain glass for West & East windows, Overhanging eaves for shading the North Windows. Solar HWS Solar PV Panels A Trombe Wall An Energy Recovery Ventilation System to provide ventilation as the ICF build provides a very tight building envelope with minimal air leakage. The ERV will also pre heat incoming air in winter time by using warm air from trapped between the sarking and the slate like roofing tiles as a heat source for the heat exchanger. This arrangement allows fresh air outside air to be preheated rather than directly using air from within the roof space. The roof will be a dark slate color but be insulated using one of the bubble/foil products. My daughter and her Fiancee are both architects so fortunately we have had them to handle the design issues. The general house layout comprises a Single Story Northern wing and a Two storey Southern Wing connected by a link corridor. Between the two wings are East and West Courtyards so that irrespective of the wind direction we will always have a sheltered outdoor area. The eastern Courtyard is about 6m wide and 15m long. The width of the courtyard permits good solar access to both wings of the house. The western courtyard is much shorter but overlooks parkland. The next house to the west is about 400m away. The Northern wing contains the Master Bedroom with en-suite, Study, Kitchen, Dining, Living and Laundry. The southern wing contains the Main entry, 2nd Living/Music Room, Powder Room, Double Garage and Workshop and upstairs there are 3 bedrooms, study and a bathroom. At this time we are building the Northern wing of the house while waiting for a zoning issue to be updated before we can commence building the southern wing. I am planning to do as much work hands on as is possible. I have spent about 20 hours on a dingo trencher and have now installed all the storm water and sub-soil drainage. Excavation of the building platform is just about complete. This means the long journey has only just begun. Re: ICF Owner Build about to get out of the ground. 2Sep 04, 2009 12:34 pm very interested to see some of your designs, or perhaps you have a blog going? which company are you using for the blocks? i initially wanted to use the system but i found with the added weight of the concrete walls it was required to have an additional reinforcement of the footings hence higher price, still working on quotes myself but i may end up using external foam cladding which is just as good without the thermal mass. also where abouts is the house going up? -Nathan 2nd-Fix | Blog Building with Desyn Homes previously with the insolvent [url=https://www.facebook.com/7NewsAdelaide/videos/1162546323776021/]Endeavour Homes[/url] Re: ICF Owner Build about to get out of the ground. 3Sep 04, 2009 1:04 pm Hi Nathan, After looking at all the various types of ICF's I decided to go with one of the flat panel systems that give a constant thickness concrete core. The one I am using is Formcraft from WA. If you do build with reinforced concrete walls the design codes actually recognise that the wall can supplement your foundation. I think the relationship is that a reinforced masonry wall can use the same foundations as a brick veneer wall. Something however to check with your consulting Engineer. I also looked at one time at using foam cladding but think the benefits of the ICF far outweigh the additional costs. I was also worried that movement in whatever frame you used to support the foam would show up as cracking in the the render over a period of time. I have also seen a lot of cracking in render over aerated concrete type blocks and panels. If you are owner building dont give up on checking out the ICF options. There is plenty of useful information on the web particularly from the U.S. for example:- http://www.greenbuildingtalk.com/Forums/tabid/53/view/topics/forumid/4/Default.aspx I am building near Wollongong which is a temperate zone so a lot of the things we are doing would not currently be classified as essential but I expect they might be considered much more standard in 20-30 years time for our climate zone. Re: ICF Owner Build about to get out of the ground. 4Dec 30, 2010 6:42 pm Hi there, I and my partner have read with great interest your post dated 04 September 2009 in which you described the progress you had been making on building an energy efficient house. What struck us was how similar your own specifications were to ours. My name is Terry Abraham and my partner Teddy and I are about to commence building a highly energy efficient three story house in Melbourne with a roof garden and sunroom. We too are using ICF and intend to install an Energy Recovery Ventilation System along with solar panels for electricity, evacuated tubes for solar hot water and a water harvesting system. We are also double glazing the entire building and triple glazing the rear master bedroom to ensure the highest possible rate of soundproofing given our proximity to busy Chapel Street. Given the similarities between our projects we would be most appreciative if you were willing to share some of your experiences with us. For example, how effective has the Energy Recovery System proven to be? What brand did you choose? How expensive was it to purchase and install? Similarly, which ICF product and company/system did you choose? How much did it cost per square metre? Have you opted for double glazing all throughout? If so, what company did you choose and what did it cost? We have other questions as well and would be very interested in linking up with you to compare notes and to learn from someone who has gone before us with regards to such an eco-friendly and energy efficient building. My direct email address is terryabrahamuk@yahoo.co.uk I really hope you have the time to respond to this post and look forward to hearing back from you asap should you be willing to do so. Many thanks Terry Abraham. Good questions but the best answer will be obtained by visiting (ie: interviewing) a couple of house designers and/or builders and ask them. You may find it challenging to… 2 3206 Hi everyone, Looking for some advise. We are about to build an above ground pool in our backyard. There is a private sewer line running under the pool at 1.6m… 0 11731 Hi, I'm new to this forum so I hope I'm doing this post correctly. Please advise if it's not. I've just bought my place. The inground pool has a marble lining that has… 0 13636 |