Insulation built-in with ECO-Brick building style
A local builder has started putting up homes with the non-traditional building material.
| Matthew Claxton |
| Langley Advance |
Friday, September 26, 2008
|
Gong green is something, it seems, everyone wants to do these days, including homebuilders.
Langley builder Bratco, led by partners Scott Plante and Rolf Terlaak, is trying to do its part with a product called the ECO-Block, a brand of what is known as an insulating concrete form.
Bratco recently completed a home in Walnut Grove made entirely from the blocks, as a demonstration project for the material.
"You could never tell it's a concrete house from out here," said Plante.
ECO-Blocks start as a collection of styrofoam panels. Two of them, held apart by plastic supports, form part of a wall. More block units can be stacked on top. Then concrete is poured into the space between the two panels and seals to them. Steel rebar adds structural strength to the walls.
It creates a sturdy cement structure that is sealed inside and out against cold, heat and noise, said Plante.
There are a number of ecological advantages to using the concrete construction, Plante said.
First, there is much less wood used in an ECO-Block house compared to traditional housing construction.
He also noted that all the parts of the styrofoam and plastic blocks that aren't needed - for example, bits that are cut away to make windows and doors - can be simply carted away and recycled. The amount of waste from the construction was lower than normal because of that, Plante said.
Getting the house built wasn't much more complicated than building a standard home, said Plante.
The framing portion doesn't go quite as fast as hoped.
"It is a little bit longer," Plante said.
On the other hand, the exterior siding could go on as soon as a segment of wall was up. That cut down on other time constraints.
The framing for the Walnut Grove project took about two weeks longer than normal, but by the time it was finished, they were right on schedule, Plante said.
Putting in window frames and other components is a little more complex than normal, but getting the wiring in was a snap.
The builders just used small electric chainsaws to cut grooves in the inner surface of the styrofam layer and laid the wires in those.
The real savings for the home come in energy once it's complete, Plante said.
According to the ECO-Brick firm, it cuts energy use by about 50 per cent compared to a normal home. Furnaces can be smaller and come on less frequently.
Owners pay for that energy efficiency up front. It costs about 10 per cent more to building using ECO-Bricks than with standard wood-frame construction.
Plante estimates it will take about five years for homeowners to get their money back through reduced heating and energy costs.
"I do hope that the technology takes off," Terlaak said.
He wants the government to bring in more energy efficient building codes, and is looking forward to updates to B.C.'s code that are expected to contain a number of strict requirements along those lines.
Terlaak said the advantages of insulating concrete forms don't just extend to housing.
One of the five projects with ECO-Bricks already completed by Bratco was a commercial building for a concrete firm.
Terlaak said many commercial and industrial buildings going up these days are created using tilt-up concrete construction. Those buildings are often uninsulated, and Terlaak believes they bleed energy. He would like to see them replaced in the industry by insulated concrete forms construction.
The showcase home built by Braatco is currently for sale with ReMax.
The 3,875 square foot building is on the market for $850,000.
The Schacter Team - Langley Real Estate