FL building code includes:
2603.3.1
Foam Plastic Insulation
Plastic foam insulation cannot be installed below grade.
2603.3.2
Foam Plastic Insulation
A 6 inch clearance is required between foam plastic insulation on the exterior of buildings and earth grade.
Question is…how do ICF houses get built there?
A high-performance single-family home builder shares tips from his early experience with two apartment buildings.
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Replies
well, first of all..if ya dig a foot down ya hit water. There ain't no basements in most of Fl.
And why would ya need an ICF? it hardly gets cold enough..
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Well a plan reviewer just applied that code to one of my insulated thin-shells. Just easier to ask about icf's be/c they'd face the same issues. One solution is to elevate the building so top of footer is 6" above ground. Wondered if anyone handled it differently.
My guess is they are trying to minimize pests tunneling in the foam to get to the wood portions of the structure.
Can those domes be built on slab on grade foundations?Kevin Halliburton
"The Greek comic poets, also, divided their plays into parts by introducing a choral song, ... they relived the actor's speeches by such intermissions." Vitruvious, (Book V)
fla got some of the hardest building codes around due to hurricanes, mainly dade county. Nothing suprise me. My footing only had to be 18 down and slab six inches above grade.
Lots of ICF houses down here. All I've seen are built on a regular mono slab. I haven't noticed but maybe they have a thickened edge or just keep the fill dirt away from the house.
Sphere- You're right. Not much need for heat but lots and lots of A/C. We run ours part of the month 12 months a year. Up north ICF's keep heat in, down here thye keep cool air in.
FL Building Code
1804.6.2.7 Foam Plastic Insulation
1804.6.2.7.1 Insulating concrete form material shall meet the surface burning characteristics of 2603.4. A thermal barrier shall be provided in accordance with 2603.5.
1804.6.2.7.2 In areas where hazard of termite damage is very heavy in accordance with Figure 2304.1.4, foam plastic insulation shall be permitted below grade on foundation walls in accordance with one of the following conditions:
1. When in addition to the requirements of 2304.1.2, an approved method of protecting the foam plastic and structure from subterranean termites is provided.
2. Within Type I, II, and IV construction.
3. On the interior side of basement walls.
>1. When in addition to the requirements of 2304.1.2, an approved method of protecting the foam plastic and structure from subterranean termites is provided.
Thanks Ralph. Do you know the approved methods? What do guys do there for the icf's? We can easily raise the footers 6" and be done with it, but I'm thinking ahead to other FL designs I have going where that may be less desirable.
And as my engineer from Idaho noted, in most parts of the country, they're wanting insulated foundations, so to see the opposite here is just a little unusual for us...