From the July 10, 2004 edition of the Austin American-Statesman

A house as solid as its foundation
Using concrete building method creates strong, energy-efficient home
By Kimberly Garcia
Special to the Austin American-Statesman

Before Sanjiv Lakhanpal decided to build a new home, the engineer at Advanced Micro Devices Inc. did a little research.

While looking at plans for houses, he came across a construction method that intrigued him: insulated concrete forms.

Instead of wood or steel studs, the exterior walls are made from concrete poured into polystyrene forms. The finished house looks like any other, but its concrete walls are resistant to fire, termites and mold. It is also cheaper to heat and cool than a traditional house and strong as a rock.

"I liked that it was resistant to termites, that it is energy-efficient and can stand up to tornadoes and storms," Lakhanpal said.

But when Lakhanpal's home is done later this year, the brick and stucco exterior will look no different than those of its neighbors in the Overlook at Lewis Mountain development in southwestern Travis County.

The concrete technique has been around since the mid-1960s but took hold slowly. There were about 10,000 such homes in 1997 and about 50,000 now, according to the Insulated Concrete Form Association.

Because the homes are highly insulated, they're more popular in areas with extremely cold or hot weather.

Texas is the state where the method has been most widely used. Joseph Lyman, executive director of the association, said 5,000 structures were built last year in the state using insulated concrete, and more than 80 percent were residential.

"Texans are looking for energy efficiency and the security of withstanding the forces of nature," Lyman said. "ICF homes sell really well in the corridor from San Antonio all the way up to Dallas, including Austin."

There's also an environmental appeal.

"ICF homes keep us from cutting down so many trees and filling up so many landfills," said Terry Hickman, a former mayor of Point Venture who lives with his wife, Colleen, in a 3,500-square-foot insulated concrete home on Lake Travis. "That alone is a good thing."

But Rich MacMath, an architect with Austin Energy's Green Building Program, says there is a downside: The production of portland cement, which is used to make concrete, is a contributor to global warming.

"People who say ICFs are good for the environment don't include the making of concrete," MacMath said. "Concrete has an environmental impact that should be accounted for."

Still, MacMath said insulated concrete homes do reduce energy costs, making it a green building product.
"There's no perfect sustainable building system, but there are some benefits to ICFs," he said. "You've got total insulation across the whole wall. The problem is, ICFs are much more costly than other alternatives."

Insulated concrete houses cost 1 percent to 5 percent more than conventional methods. Proponents say the money can be recovered through energy bills, which are 20 percent to 30 percent lower than for wood-frame homes. They can be lower still if builders install energy-efficient roofs, windows and doors, Lyman said.

The Hickmans used to live in a 1,500-square-foot wood-frame home. Hickman said that although his new home is more than twice as large, his heating and cooling bills have been similar.

"ICF homes are a great concept. I wish they were more accepted," Hickman said. "They are worth the additional cost in the long run."

That type of endorsement helped sell Lakhanpal on building an insulated concrete house. He decided to go with a product produced by American PolySteel LLC, one of nearly 50 brands of insulated concrete forms sold in the United States.

But before he made his final decision, he ran it past a friend and former co-worker, Joe Bailey.

"He brought it by and asked me what I thought," Bailey said.

Bailey was so intrigued by the concept that he began to think of the business possibilities. Last October, Bailey opened Poly-Steel of Austin, a local sales office of American PolySteel.

"If he (Lakhanpal) hadn't been out there pulling for it, I might not have started the business," Bailey said.

Lakhanpal then had to convince his builder, Katz Builders Inc., that insulated concrete was the construction method they should use.

In their 22 years of building homes, Joel and Lucy Katz had never built such a house, and doing so provided some challenges.

Architectural plans had to be modified to account for the thicker exterior walls. Electricians and plumbers had to be consulted to plan for holes in the walls for main lines. Air-conditioning and heating contractors were also brought in.

"We brought the whole team together . . . to brainstorm and figure out how we are going to do this," Lucy Katz said. "You have to do this in advance, because once you pour the concrete walls, it's not quite that simple to go back and make changes."

Joel Katz said a key element was getting a contractor with experience in insulated concrete construction. He got the reference he needed from Bailey.

Matt McCoy, a partner with South River Construction in Wimberley, has helped build several insulated concrete buildings in Central Texas, including a dormitory for a Greek Orthodox monastery south of Blanco. He also lives in an ICF home in San Marcos with his wife and two children.

"ICF homes are just very quiet, comfortable homes to live in," McCoy said. "There's no dogs barking and street noise. There's no hot and cold zones. As a builder, I really enjoy the performance in both strength and stability, and in energy efficiency. I enjoy building structures that are going to last a very long time."

Last month, McCoy poured the walls for the Lakhanpal house. The interior framing started going up two weeks ago.

Joel Katz said there has been little problem with the Lakhanpal house other than a rainy June. "So far, nothing has caused us heartburn," he said.

Now that he has experience, Katz said he would recommend other clients consider building insulated concrete houses.

"What you want to do is build the best home you possibly can," he said. "ICF is definitely one of the materials I would consider."