Browse Forums Renovation + Home Improvement 1 May 15, 2017 11:41 pm Hi everyone, We are doing a ground floor extension to our brick veneer house and are having difficulty deciding whether to go with Hebel Powerwall or a foam cladding. Both seem to be good for insulation. One builder seems to prefer Powerwall and has suggested it is tougher than foam, but that could be because they don't do foam. However a different builder has quoted on foam. We get a bit of movement and minor cracking appearing in the bricks of our house. Being brick it isn't very noticeable but I'm conscious that a rendered finish may look terrible if it suffers from cracking. Does anyone know if either product is likely to be any better at coping with movement, or is it much of a muchness? Thanks Re: Trying to choose between Hebel Powerwall and Foam Claddi 2May 16, 2017 7:33 am I wouldn't be happy with rendered foam at ground level . . . In my opinion too easy to get damaged. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Trying to choose between Hebel Powerwall and Foam Claddi 3May 16, 2017 12:42 pm We had the same question, and some concerns about the strength of foam vs Hebel (noting that in Australia we've also had experience of people saying not to use Hebel either because it's too lightweight and easily damaged, based not on any actual experience but only their own personal prejudices - something that, regrettably, is all too common here if you dare to suggest anything other than brick). So we spent many months finding people and houses built with foam, and especially those families with children and large pets. In the end we had a sample size of several dozen (and a big thank you to all the kind people who put up with the couple of weirdos driving around knocking on doors to ask about their experiences in living with a foam house!), with Australian experiences of up to 15 years (an owner-builder who must've been one of the first in the area to use it, who used it based on his family's prior experiences with it in Europe). We didn't find one example of where damage to a foam wall had actually occurred, and this included specific incidents such as cricket ball impacts and bike crashes. The worst that we could find that had actually happened was some paint touch-up was needed (which would've been the case with rendered brick or Hebel anyway). We also drew on experiences from overseas from countries where lightweight cladding is much more common than here (the US and Europe) and where foam in particular has been widely used for decades. Again, our fears that it would be much easier to damage in practice were shown to be unfounded - plus the overseas experiences also taught us that should repairs be required, it's much easier to repair foam systems than Hebel. So after all that, we decided to go with foam; it provides better insulation (and less thermal mass exposed to the outside) than Hebel, especially insulation per dollar. I can empathise with the thought of feeling slightly uncomfortable with not having a "solid masonry" wall - there's certainly something psychological there that growing up in Australian brick houses does for you. At some level I feel the same, but I know from experience having lived in the US (where lightweight cladding is the norm) that a masonry or concrete wall means absolutely nothing different in practice. Bottom line: either Hebel or foam is significantly better than brick veneer (as I'm sure you're aware) in terms of energy efficiency and comfort, so you're going to be ahead of the curve with either option. If maximising that performance is your top priority, then go foam. If you're willing to sacrifice a little (and compared to brick veneer it really only will be a little) performance for the 'feeling' of having solid masonry, then go Hebel. Re: Trying to choose between Hebel Powerwall and Foam Claddi 4May 16, 2017 9:16 pm Wow what a great response, thanks Algernon! Re: Trying to choose between Hebel Powerwall and Foam Claddi 5May 18, 2017 11:06 am Straw has great thermal properties as well as Foam..But most remember the Story of the "The Three Little Pigs" who built from Brick, Sticks & Straw. A modern take would be, Reinforced Concrete or Reinforced Blocks, Timber Frame & Foam. I know the one that I would prefer to build with...."Reinforced Concrete or Reinforced Brick/Block work" Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Oh no! I would use a can of expandable foam ( there are some that will take render) then cut it back and render over the top 1 4144 There is nothing in the various codes and standards that puts this requirement on the builder to do. I think that is what you are asking. Don't waste time trying to get… 5 2411 |