Replies

1. 
   TLE_ | Feb 17, 2001 03:21am | #1

   *
   http://www.superiorwalls.com

   Terry

1. 
   bill_burns | Feb 18, 2001 05:44pm | #2

   *ron, i will use these walls on my next house. the walls in maryland, and southern pa. are from a company called weaver. they go by the name superior walls also. i watched a house go up about 8-10 years ago with these and i spoke with the owner recently. they have no complaints . i went to three more jobs to watch them install, and it is a remarkable process. gravel footers. urethane at joints, windowand door openings in place. and you can frame on them that day! the only thing you have to be careful of is to make sure not to back fill until floor is poured. also, the last one i saw had 10 foot tall basement!!

1. 
   Jon_Byrd | Feb 18, 2001 06:00pm | #3

   *I noticed they aren't in Atlanta. Is there a competitive manufacturer in this area?Jon

1. 
   Michael_Eckert | Feb 18, 2001 06:23pm | #4

   *Ron,I've also used these walls on homes and I've used the same company that Bill Burns is using. This system is far from new. The first home I used them on was in 1992 and had 23 corners with over 2400 square feet of space. I used the 10' high walls and have since used the 9' and 8' units mostly. Is it better? Yes and no. They are strong but weaker than poured concrete. They go up fast but slow down your backfill schedule. Carpenters dislike them because they have to get the floor deck installed prior to backfilling. I can't blame them because it does add an extra element of danger to an already precarious trade. The monolithic footing placed on tamped 1b stone is reliable. Walk out situations require you to trench below the frost line and backfilling with 1b's. Finishing with drywall is easier but not foolproof. The tolerances using the concrete studs faced with 1x3's is wider than wood stud walls. I generally use them if the customer requests them. Their price is close to poured concrete but changes in scheduling offsets the cost savings.

1. 
   Ron_Rosa | Feb 18, 2001 09:27pm | #5

   *Thanks for all the info. I was skeptical when I first saw them. Since they do cost as much as poured and block set ups, I would see very little advantage to using the product.

2. 
   bill_burns | Feb 20, 2001 01:18am | #6

   *ron the one advantage that i forgot to mention is that on the old job i went to see, the owner said there were no hairline cracks at all, anywhere. since the walls are precast, there is no shrinkage at the jobsite. as stated earlier, you can frame immediately, and cold weather is less of a problem, since you are not pouring footings and walls.

3. 
   Michael_Eckert | Feb 20, 2001 02:45am | #7

   *Bill,When you are ready to start your installation check the manufacturers unstructions. Cold weather installations require you to insulate the stone base with either straw bales, ridgid insulation or R-Batts. This can be a real pain in the butt since the BUILDER is responsible to insulate, not the installer. The stone should also be laced with calcite. If these precautions are not taken the stone base will heave from frost. And you will find hairline cracks no matter what anyone tells you. Don't try to sell your customers on that premise or you'll pay dearly for it. You may not see cracks on the inside of the walls due to the insulation but if you look closely before backfilling you may find one or two outside. They are a great product but not a perfect product.

4. 
   Chris_Koehn | Feb 20, 2001 04:51am | #8

   *I've used Superior Walls on four projects here in Wisconsin (including my own home) and I'll second everything Bill says, and add that in my experience the installation is only as good as the installers. I find that I need to keep on top of them to be sure they are installing square plumb and level. If I stand there with a 100 foot steel tape and a transit I get a much better job, which is unfortunate. That said, the ease with which the walls can be insulated and finished, and the 15 year warranty against any kind of leaks is pretty impressive..

2. 
   Ron_Rosa | Feb 20, 2001 04:51am | #9

   *
   OK I don't know much about them, but have seen them once or twice, so give me your opinions if you have seen them . They are made from 5000 psi concrete and come prefab with wall studs made from the same cement and 1x3, (to nail your sheet rock on). They have blue board insulation. They don't need a footing but sit right on the gravel. The floor(concrete) holds the walls from kicking in.