Like Building with LEGOs

The rebar was set in the footers of the main house and the ICF assembly has begun. Each ICF panel is essentially styrofoam (which accounts for their high efficiency rating) with some plastic, so they are very lightweight. The edges are modular and they connect to each other like LEGO bricks, and then they are easily cut for doorways and windows. A rebar framework reinforces the panels and holds them in the correct position while concrete is poured into them resulting in a solid concrete wall.



Now you can really see the home taking shape as the walls are put into place. The wide opening you see in the photo above is the french doors that open to the back patio. With the ICFs to help us envision the layout, we've begun to think about furniture placement and where to put the wood-burning stove and 52" plasma TV (I wish!). One problem we ran into with the basement is that the ceilings need to be taller than we expected due to the steep grade of the hillside where we placed the main house. We are now expecting 10' ceilings in the basement to accommodate any Wookiee visitors.

As is evident from the photos, the kids are loving the construction site and refer to it as their "playground." What is somewhat less evident is that the children no longer have any clean white socks.