In this photo, a worker is installing 2 x 12 braces
Openings in ICF walls are created for doors and windows and
roughed in with plastic V-Buck. They are hollow plastic pieces that take the
place of rough window openings. They will be filled with concrete during the
pour and thus represent a thermal weak point in the wall. That is, they provide
no insulation, just a solid hunk of concrete around all openings that permit
heat to enter and leave via conduction.
That’s one of the weaknesses of ICF construction. Because of this I only
installed on window in the basement. One of the other openings in the ICF
foundation is the garage door where bridging loss is not a major issue (unless
the garage is heated). The third opening
is between the basement and the garage, again, not an area where bridging loss
should be significant.
The photo below shows braces on one inside corner of the
basement wall.
Contributing editorDan Chirasis a renewable energy and green homes expert who has spent a lifetime learning life’s lessons, which he shares in his popular blog,Dan Chiras on Loving Life. He’s the founder and director of The Evergreen Institute and president of Sustainable Systems Design. Contact him by visitinghis websiteor finding him onGoogle+.
