Building A House/Doing It Yourself/ICFs

[dmccarty]

I have not seen anyone ask these questions before, suprisingly enough, but has anyone out there built their own house?

Anyone have experiences with ICFs(Insulated Concrete Forms)?

We have been working on getting our property ready for a home. We have gone through modular houses, builders, etc., and our latest idea is to build with ICFs. I have been interested in them for over 10 years and for a variety of reasons they seem to be the best thing to build with.

On of the advantages of ICFs is that you can, supposedly, set them up and build the structure quickly. Anyone here done this? I have checked the ICF websites but they are to close to the manufactuers for more likely. Good information on them I just want different viewpoints.

The temptation for me is that with the tractor and backhoe I can do much of the foundation work myself. I have read and seen a lot of foundation work but that is the very real limit of my experience.

I really don't want to do this because of the time requirements and after the walls are up I really want someone else to finish things. I'll end up talking to some ICF builder and designers but I'm looking for other opinions.

So, has anyone gone down this road before? Pitfalls? Am I sane? Am I sane for even thinking of attempting this?

Thanks
Dan McCarty

 

[Bird]

Dan, we (three brothers) built my brother's house; start to finish. The only thing subcontracted to someone else was the concrete floor in the garage and patio and installation of the HVAC system. I was the one who knew and did the least because my two brothers used to be homebuilders in Alaska. I've only heard of the ICF, so don't know anything about them. I don't consider it any great trick to build your own house EXCEPT be very careful about that foundation. I think that's the most critical part of the job and the part that's most likely to cause you much grief and expense if you don't get it right.

Bird

 

[Boots]

Dan,

I just finished building my house (cabin) this past fall. This is a 2 level home, apartment sized (800 sq.ft.) built on a crawl space with wood siding and a metal roof. I had help from my dad when we framed the walls and rafters, and the father in law helped me run the wires. Other than that, the only thing I had hired was finishing of the sheet rock. I would have done this, but I started with one room and I gave up after it looked so bad. Oh, I also had someone lay the carpet after I purchase it. I think I saved considerable money on this house by doing it myself, and gained invaluable experience. Just keep in mind that it's going to take a long time and other parts of your life must be put on hold if you want to get finished. It really takes much discipline. It took me about 3 years to finish, although I moved in before this point.

You need to get a blessing from your banker, and insurance carrier before you start, since you have to satisfy these people. My insurance company got really stressed when the found out that I did my own wiring.

I'm glad I did it. My Dad and Grandad were both carpenters, so I wanted to do this to prove that I could, and to learn the trade. It's a personal reason, but a good one I guess.......follow in the family footsteps a little bit. Anyway, on the next one, I will likely act as my own General Contractor and hire most of it done since I now know the tricks of the trade.

I wish you luck if you go this route.

Take Care,
Boots



I think that on the next one, I will be more likely to be my own General Contractor.

 

[dmccarty]

I really don't want to do this but finding contractors that don't rob you blind around here is very difficult. I don't want to take/find the time either to do this but I might have to. 8-(

I saw what the contractor did for our friends foundation footers. Dig a trench with steps to follow the elevations and fill with concrete. That is all he did from what I can tell. I assume he used rebar but maybe not. He could have used the concrete fill material that does not require rebar but who knows. From what I have read on using rebar and concrete, there is most definately a wrong and right way. I doubt that the contractor, if he used rebar did it the right way. I have seen much of the wrong way on other sites. It ain't rocket science but you should do get it right when paying out the nose for the work.

Our current house flexs depending on soil moisture. Partly this is due to the heavy clay that is in the area but I suspect part of the problem is that the footers are not deep enough in the ground. It was likely built to code in the 70's and I know other newer homes have the same problem. I can't help think that a deeper foundation would have solved the problem.

I have looked into getting a laser level/square to help with the foundation, footers, and walls. It would help with the driveway and french drains I'm going to have to put in as well.......

That tent to live in is looking better and better!

Later....
Dan McCarty

 

[Bird]

Dan, it can get a little more complicated than it looks. And soils are different in different areas, building techniques sometimes different, etc. In this area, by far the most common thing is to build houses on slab foundations; however, my brothers were accustomed to building in Alaska and he wanted a 4' crawl space under the house, so we dug it out with a rented dozer, poured 12" x 16" footer, rebar reinforced, then concrete block for the perimeter, with concrete pads for the piers under the middle. We just used a contractor's transit for getting our elevations right. No serious problems; however, this clay soil shrinks in dry weather and expands in wet, so as long as he keeps the lawn next to the house watered, no problem at all, but he found that if he lets it get very dry, the soil shrinks away from the house, then a rain lets water run down between the concrete block and the soil and under the house. And letting it get wet under the house has meant needing to re-adjust the piers in the center (fortunately the perimeter footer has never moved). One of my employees, several years ago, built his own house on a slab foundation and he talked to lots of experts and did what was supposed to be a good job, but very shortly after moving in, part of the slab settled, pulled the fireplace chimney away from the rest of the house, etc. Very expensive repairs required.

Bird

 

[RobS]

Dan, my wife and I toured an ICF house this past fall. Wasn't our intention, just happenstance but I started talking to the builder about it and he loved working with it. Said he'd start using it for all his homes unless the owner objected. I was pretty impressed with the basement. Walls look like I-beams (sort of) and the concrete floor is poured over the base to lock it all together. I remember seeing a "This Old House" series where they used it also. You'll need the optional crane attachment for your tractor /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

We are hoping to contract our own house but will likely use conventional building systems to make it easy on everyone (bank). Good luck and keep us all posted on your decision.

Rob

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Dan:
I built my house about five years ago using "Polysteel forms" for the basement. If I had it to do over again I would have gone on up with the forms and built the main level the same way.
I hired a couple of guys to help stack and brace the forms so that I could get it done quickly. Then we poured the entire basement walls (35 yards of ready mix) in 5 hours. Talking to the guy who runs the concete pump he said the most important part is to make sure that the forms are plumb and well braced. I understand there are some new technquies for putting the blocks together that makes the operation easier.
Kelvin

 

[cowboydoc]

Dan,
I have seen the ICF's and thought about it on the last house that I built but I just couldn't be sold on the structural integrity of it. The foundation is the most important part of the house. I can't tell you how critical it is to have a solid foundation. This all varies with area to the next. If you are going to do it yourself I would have someone who knows all about the proper way for your area give you some pointers for your area. Like some others have already said I have seen some priceless houses ruined by a poor foundation and drainage.

Next make sure you take the time to have a really good set of blueprints done and think out each step of the process. I have seen alot of guys with minimal experience put A together before B and have to go back and tear it out to get B in.

Also whatever you think it will take you in time to get the house built at least double or triple that time. You will run into all kinds of delays especially if this is the first house that you've built. You never can tell about weather, materials, screw-ups, etc.
BTW there is a new place they just put up here that builds modular style homes and that is all they are using.
Good luck,
Richard

 

[dmccarty]

My current house is a slab home and it is quite common in Florida. Here in central NC, most homes are on crawl spaces and a few have basements. The basements are often done with concrete block instead of being poured.

We have looked into getting a basement. Our first house site was seleceted so we could have a drive in basement. But we were getting qoutes from 30,000 to 50,000 dollars for the basement. OUCH! So we are thinking of a crawl space!

Later...
Dan

 

[DFB]

dmccarty, from what I've seen of ICF's it seems to be well suited for a DIY. On a large foundation concrete work (forming and pouring)by tradional methods is pretty labor intensive. I feel a good concrete contractor is money well spent. That's the route I went. A transit should be used to get everything level. There is still a lot to do after they leave like breaking of form ties, plugging the holes, waterproofing. Plus footing drains and backfill. Tamping the fill for your floor. You can do all that. Dig the hole if you want. The key is to have undisturbed soil under your footings. You don't want to dig too deep. Unsettled back fill under your footings can cause big problems. If you contract the builder do your homework. They let anyone buy a nail gun. One time a handshake was good enough, Not any more, no way. If I could do it again I would stick build. that way you know exactly whats going into your house. I went the modular route and for me and my wife its turned into the worst experience of our life.