November 12, 2021

Idaho presents some difficult weather conditions, which means your house needs to be ready for the hot, cold, and everything in between. Insulated concrete forms, also known as ICF blocks, are becoming something more popular for homes that need to withstand more extreme weather conditions. 

Simply put, an ICF block is a form that is filled with concrete to help insulate your home once finished. These blocks are made of polystyrene foam and they snap together almost like Lego’s to create your foundation walls. Once your walls have been formed they are filled with concrete to create your foundation. 

One benefit that people tend to look for when choosing ICF blocks is that they can cut some time off of the total construction project. ICF blocks allow finishing products like drywall to be attached directly, cutting back on time to prepare and build walls for drywall. ICF blocks are also already taking the responsibility of insulation, so there is typically no need to install insulation in the home, which cuts back on another time consuming step. 

While installing the blocks is slightly more expensive than regular wood, having ICF blocks can generally help cut the cost of your energy bills in half. These blocks help eliminate any type of draft that could be coming into the home, which helps eliminate the need for energy to heat or cool your home at all times. 

ICF blocks last a long time with minimal maintenance needs. Studies have shown that ICF blocks last around 100 years and rarely need maintenance. These homes also have shown to do well in natural disasters such as flooding and large seismic activity.

An additional benefit that those who live in ICF homes have said that the homes are very quiet, someone stating that they barely heard a tornado that was about 5 miles away from their home. 

While some may decide to stray away from ICF blocks due to their initial cost, it can be a great choice for long term savings and reduction of your energy footprint. These blocks are a great choice to keep warm during the cold seasons, and cool during the hot seasons, and they save you some money while doing so.