This article was published by Logix Brands Ltd. (link below) who is soley responsible for its content. Because of this, BASF can not vouch for the validity of any facts, claims or opinions in the article. The story is being rebroadcast here to simply raise awareness.
Wood or insulated concrete forms (ICFs)?
It’s a critical decision for any builder. But with the clear benefits of Insulated Concrete Forms coming to light (from better energy efficiency to durability, reduced labor costs and more), more builders are choosing ICFs than ever before.
This is exactly why the award-winning Will Gonell of Gonell Homes chose to build with ICFs for his “Chateau Nectar” project, a French baroque mansion in Vaughan, Ontario.
This particular project was the receipt of many awards (including the CHBA 2017 Custom Home Builder of the Year Award and the 2017 Best in American Living Awards) and has even been featured in magazines like Renovation Contractor and Canadian Contractor.
This blog post will look at Gonell’s decision to build with ICFs (and Logix ICF, in particular) and how it impacted the final build.
Why GC Gonell Chose ICFs
According to Gonell, “It becomes easy to sell on something you believe in to be the best choice for the client. I now have a bit of a niche when it comes to mainly working with ICFs. This is something I don’t see myself changing any time soon.”
The Chateau Nectar project was no exception. This particular home was designed to look like a French chateau, with high ceilings (some as high as 26 feet), large openings and an overall feeling of grandness.
The home is nearly 20,000 square feet and was a $6 million dollar project, with many materials ordered overseas from Poland and Spain.
Here are some of the benefits that Gonell noted when building with ICFs:
- A Faster Build. Every builder knows that time is money. Gonell completed the project two weeks faster by building with ICFs. Indeed, ICFs are known to cut labor costs in half, even though it’s commonly thought that building with wood is both faster and cheaper. This is not actually the case.
- Major Cost Savings. With the high ceilings and open spaces, this project would have been much more expensive if another type of material was used to build it. The choice to build with ICFs was a much more economical choice.
- Elimination of Steel Support Beams. Gonell was able to replace steel support beams with ICF beams instead.
- Predictability of Construction Costs. The average build is often unpredictable in terms of cost. Gonell found that ICFs result in few (if any) unexpected costs, resulting in a much more predictable build.
Why Gonell Chose Logix ICF
The homeowner played a massive decision in choosing Logix ICFs over other ICFs brands. The homeowner wanted to create a home that would be his “legacy.” In line with this, the homeowner put in time into researching the best option and found that Logix had the best ICF block for this project.
Much of this decision had to do with the R-28 rating and overall performance of the Platinum Series block. In fact, Logix Platinum Series was the only block like it available at the time.
Wrapping It Up
Building with insulated concrete forms is on the rise.
With better energy efficiency, greater durability as well as a faster and more predictable build, it’s clearly to see why both builders and homeowners alike are navigating to insulated concrete forms over wood.
Content Provided by: Andy Lennox, President at Logix Brands Ltd. www.logixbrands.com