Construction
ICFs are currently manufactured from any of the following materials:
- Polystyrene foam (expanded or extruded — most common)
- Polyurethane foam (including soy-based))
- Cement-bonded wood fiber
- Cement-bonded polystyrene beads
Concrete is then pumped into the cavity to form the structural element of the walls. Usually reinforcing steel (rebar) is added before concrete placement to give the concrete flexural strength, similar to bridges and high-rise buildings made of concrete (see Reinforced concrete). Like other concrete formwork, the forms are filled with concrete in 1-foot to 12-foot "lifts" to manage the concrete pressure and reduce the risk of blowouts.
After the concrete has cured, the forms are left in place permanently, for the following reasons:
- Thermal and acoustic insulation
- Space to run electrical conduit and plumbing. The form material on either side of the walls can easily accommodate electrical and plumbing installations.
- Backing for gypsum boards on the interior and stucco, brick, or other siding on the exterior
Read more about this topic: Insulating Concrete Form
Famous quotes containing the word construction:
“When the leaders choose to make themselves bidders at an auction of popularity, their talents, in the construction of the state, will be of no service. They will become flatterers instead of legislators; the instruments, not the guides, of the people.”
—Edmund Burke (1729–1797)
“There is, I think, no point in the philosophy of progressive education which is sounder than its emphasis upon the importance of the participation of the learner in the formation of the purposes which direct his activities in the learning process, just as there is no defect in traditional education greater than its failure to secure the active cooperation of the pupil in construction of the purposes involved in his studying.”
—John Dewey (1859–1952)
“The construction of life is at present in the power of facts far more than convictions.”
—Walter Benjamin (1892–1940)