Building with Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs)

we used sips for our home. unfortunately the company we used happened to experience 'a chemical problem' during that time period that showed up the following year, after our house had been mostly finished. the problem appears as 'waves' of shrinkage in the panels and has ruined the interior sheetrock of our home, putting the finishing on standstill. even though the panels were guaranteed for 10 years, the company has not made good (due apparently to lawsuits with the chemical company) and most contact with us has been refused. to repair this on our own would cost us between 40,000 and 100,000. I would encourage you to research this product carefully before purchase.

--Molly Mercer

How about building your own SIPS? It doesnt look
difficult

I don't know if this product is available in your area as I only
represent this product in the Arizona area. (see below).At the
National Home Builders Show this past spring in Albuquerque this
product (www.thermoblock.com) was given the product of the show
because it is very different from the other similar products of its
kind. This thing looks like a Leggo block.When Katrina went through
Mississippi there were five homes in various stages of
construction. After the varying levels of storm surge the owner
went back to their homes and pulled the interior walls up above the
water line to look for damage. They found no mold, mildew or water
infiltration. I tested this out by putting one of these Leggo type
blocks in a bucket of water for a week. It weighed the same as when
I began.If you build with a special type of polyurethane block you
can achieve an R-38 value with absolutely no out gassing and
excellent ease of construction. This is no ordinary ICF product.
Building with this construction system in some will also yield a
25% discount off contractor pricing from a very high quality window
company. Quality windows are very important in preventing energy
loss. This product will add roughly $2,000 to the cost of
construction. There are obviously some variables here.This
technology also has a Class One fire rating, lower insurance costs
compared to stick construction and a STC 52 sound barrier rating. I
talked to an insurance company and the rating versus a sandwich
shop with no frying and built with stick was 9.57 vs. 1.57. i don't
have a second opinion as yet on the insurance issue but this news
certainly pointed in the right direction.Thermal efficiency is
illustrated In a 5,175 sq/ft home in Cave Creek, AZ. using this
technology. The owner runs his home at 68%, which would be too cold
for most of us. This home only lost 3 degrees (68 to 71 degrees)
over ten days in August 2005 with a sub zero refrigerator running
full time.

I would like to know how SIP's compare to straw bale
construction in energy efficiency.

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replay with how to do that! Thanks, Ken Broome995 East Saint
Stephens RoadPrentiss, MS 39474

SIPS can be a great alternative to full log home building if
they are prepared correctly. Yes, full log homes have a thermal
mass effect, but SIPS offer even greater heat and cooling savings.
I plan to use SIPS for my walls and add vinyl log siding with faux
rock pillar corners. That should look very cool, if done right.
Vinyl log siding can be found at Parker's Midwest Distribution,
LCC. www.vinyllogsiding.com And, no, I don't work for them. I just
like the product.Thanks,Tim