_________________________________________________________________________________ ICF Homes of Virginia
Robust and resistant
“ One of our earliest awards was the 2012 Virginia Commonwealth award , which is given to the best concrete structure in the state ,” David explains . “ So that meant , we weren ’ t just competing with other houses ; we were actually up against bridges , commercial , industrial , and military concrete projects as well . Then in 2020 , ICF Builder Magazine recognized us with its Best Large Concrete Home in North America award , which was also great . In both instances , we were responsible for the design and build through to the completion of the project , which is a really cool element of our approach .
“ The latter was awarded for our Afton Home , which exhibits just about every feature you can include in a
Another key benefit of the ICF approach is the passive geothermal heating and cooling
concrete house . Besides the walls , the client requested radiant concrete floors with living space beneath them , and to give the property a fully insulated , bunker feel , concrete ceilings too . To enable their off-grid lifestyle , we also installed three independent heating systems and three water systems , which allow them to recycle their wastewater . I am still super proud of how it all came together .
“ In essence , we take Styrofoam blocks that are about four-feet wide and 16-inches tall and stack them from the foundation up to the second floor of the structure , so the entire perimeter of the house is a concrete wall encapsulated in insulation . We then add rebar to the cavity and pump in concrete from the top . The finished homes are immensely strong , and actually nicknamed ‘ hurricane homes ’ in some parts of the US .
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