Here we go again........ hurricanes.

[ONLNTM5]

Well, Dennis the Menace came through here (Dothan, AL) earlier today. I can't believe that everything was closed, even the Wal Mart Super Center! They never close! It wasn't even that bad (thank goodness), just a little bit of wind and rain. I think that the news media should just stop giving the hurricanes so much news coverage. It only encourages the hurricanes, and makes them want more and more attention. I’ll bet that if they would just stop the coverage completely, that the hurricane activity would drop significantly, and maybe even stop altogether

[MN6WS6]

I'm back in Mobile now, we got here about 11:30 or so. Couldn't see any damage with the little flashlights we have, but the neighbor said he didn't see anything (he rode it out). We were really sweating it this morning when noaa, accuweather, and the weather channel all said it had turned towards Mobile bay. Luckily it was just a little jog, then turned north and saved P'cola the big nasty storm surge they got with Ivan.

Speaking of Ivan, that is why everybody went into lockdown for this one. 10 months have gone by and people have STILL not gotten money from insurance companies, and haven't even begun to rebuild, then here comes one that was even bigger. We'll see just how bad it is tomorrow when the local stations get their choppers up to get to the areas the trucks can't reach. That's when everybody found out just how bad Ivan was.

[Joe 1320]

Folks should be thankful that the storm lost energy prior to moving on land. That was some good luck for a change. I hope eveyone in the area fared well. I know a few people in that area that lost there homes completely in Ivan.

[Rhode Island Red]

My Dad and step mom in Fort walton Beach survived quite well. Only a couple of shingles (which he already has spared from last years Ivan) and a few broken branches.

The local's down there seem to hate the media as sensationalism and over-hyping are blowing things way beyond where they should be .

[Steel2686]

I understand that... What I'm saying is to build the formed concrete walls above ground. You would basically be building an above ground cement bunker with a concrete roof and steel storm shutters. You could finish the concrete walls in stucco to make it look more appealing and less like an industrial building.

Actually, Tracy, you bring up a good point. Concrete homes are becoming very popular in tornado alley, and gaining popularity in the hurricane belt. The concrete homes look just like regular homes. They even have siding attached to metal studs. There are builders out in the lower mid-west who claim their concrete homes can stand up to an F3 tornado! The only damage they claim is siding and some roof tiles, but no internal damage as long as the storm shutters are lowered.

[TraceZ]

Actually, Tracy, you bromg up a good point. Concrete homes are becoming very popular in tornado alley, and gaining popularity in the hurricane belt. The concrete homes look just like regular homes. They even have siding attached to metal studs. There are builders out in the lower mid-west who claim their concrete homes can stand up to an F3 tornado! The only damage they claim is siding and some roof tiles, but no internal damage as long as the storm shutters are lowered.

Yup, that's what I'm talking about. If I lived in the hurricane belt that is exactly what I'd build. When a hurricane hits all your neighbors are panicing and cleaning up a mess, you just open your shutters, fire up the generator and grab a cold beer.

[Jeff_in_Atl]

It's just begun.

[MN6WS6]

I think that when I get around to building a house, it will be concrete. It will also have a metal roof that a couple of the local contractors down here sell, that is guaranteed for like 30 or 40 years and can withstand hurricane force winds. Of course, if it were up to me, I'd build the roof out of concrete too and have my own nuclear fallout shelter. Cat 5 hurricane with F5 tornadoes and I'm sitting on the porch with 1" thick lexan windows letting me watch cows fly by while I read the paper and drink sweet tea

[Rhode Island Red]

trouble is concrete homes initially cost 2-3x as much ... was hoping dad's new home, he'd build with concrete, but typical materials are still cheaper can't convince hime to go concrete ... 250k new home vs the same home @ 500k using concrete..

[Steel2686]

trouble is concrete homes initially cost 2-3x as much ... was hoping dad's new home, he'd build with concrete, but typical materials are still cheaper can't convince hime to go concrete ... 250k new home vs the same home @ 500k using concrete..

That's where the problem comes in, although, insurance for a concrete home is signifigantly cheaper than a standard wood-framed home. If you can get the capital for the initial build cost, it might work out cheaper in the long run. With the price of wood sky-rocketing, it might not be too long before they are a viable option for even people like me with no real danger of hurricanes or tornadoes.

[DeWynter]

While I don’t live in a Hurricane area, I do live in the part of the world that has the second most frequent Tornado occurrences. My father built his house out of Concrete filled Styrofoam blocks. You build it like lego then get a concrete pumper truck to come and fill it in. It worked awesome and was much cheaper than straight concrete.

Dear Tim,

I’ve noticed a lot of Styrofoam houses going up around here. From an engineer’s perspective what is the scoop on these?

Frank M.; Snohomish, WA

By Styrofoam, I assume you mean Insulated Concrete Form (ICF) homes. In a word, I like them very much.

Here’s the scoop. Most ICF’s resemble hollow Styrofoam (expanded polystyrene, actually) LEGO blocks. You build walls with them, put rebar in the hollow space in the middle, then pour full of concrete. The blocks stay in place permanently, providing excellent insulation. Most brands have plastic or sheet metal tabs embedded in the forms at regular intervals — typically eight-inches on-center — to receive sheetrock and siding nails or screws. These tabs or ‘webs’ extend through the hollow core also serving to hold rebar in place.

The finished product is essentially a reinforced concrete wall with an integral insulation cladding on both sides — very slick system.
I’ve engineered dozens of these, and in fact am building a portion of my own home using ICF's. Following are the advantages and disadvantages as I see them.

Advantages

* Reinforced concrete walls are incredibly strong, both in terms of lateral (wind and earthquake) resistance and gravity load resistance (holding the weight of floors, roofs, beams, etc.).
* They are fast to construct. An experienced ICF contractor can have standing insulated walls ready for gyp and siding every bit as fast as a good wood framer, perhaps faster. There is no separate step for insulating nor for plywood/OSB sheathing.
* They are soundproof. I like a quiet house, and you can’t get much quieter than solid concrete.
* They are well insulated. Most ICF walls are R-30 or better, depending on the thickness.
* They are fireproof. Concrete doesn’t burn and neither does polystyrene (it melts).
* They are great for basements. Using ICF, you don’t have to frame an additional wood wall on the inside. ICF is waterproof (using manufacturer’s recommendations) and is suitable to receive sheetrock directly.
* You get the advantages of concrete without the mess of forms. There are no heavy forms to lug around and to scrape and oil. Even the slightest-built workers can whip this stuff around.
* Rebar is held in the right place. The engineer in me particularly likes this feature. Sometimes rebar needs to be placed toward the tension face of the wall; sometimes in the center. In either case, ICF’s integral web holds the rebar positively where the engineer specifies it — as opposed to normal formed walls, where rebar flops all over the place, rarely winding up where the engineer specified.

Disadvantages

(Note: although the following list seems long, many issues will go away or become minimal after becoming proficient with ICF)

* In my neck of the woods, an ICF home is generally about 5% more expensive than a similar stick-framed house.
* Plumbing and electrical are routed in a burned-out groove in the Styrofoam, which is relatively simple and easy to do. However, if you forget something and have to penetrate a wall later, coring it is an expensive hassle. Also, large diameter sewer pipes don’t fit in the Styrofoam, adding a complication.
* You need to know what you're doing. Concrete is not very forgiving of mistakes. All builders will make a few mistakes with ICF at first, though some brands offer training to minimize this.
* There can be blowouts because wet concrete is heavy, particularly when poured several feet high. Some ICF brands appear to be more prone to blowouts than others.
* If you precisely follow the ICF manufacturer’s recommendations, you shouldn’t have problems keeping walls true and plumb. However, if you cut corners, watch out. Some brands even recommend proprietary shoring/bracing/scaffold systems.
* If you follow manufacturers' recommendations to the tee, you should be fine with door and window penetrations. Most contractors I’ve spoken too, however, have problems on their first few.
* On structural connection to horizontal diaphragms — because concrete walls are heavy, they are more affected by earthquakes than wood. As shear walls, ICF's are about five times stronger than wood, but in the out-of-plane direction, ICF walls depend on floors and roofs to be held from flapping during an earthquake. The connections between concrete walls and wood floors or roofs can be difficult and expensive.
* Local building officials may not be familiar with ICF's. I’ve had problems educating wary building officials about them. Some have insisted on expensive and time-consuming special inspections.

If I were a builder, I would definitely get involved with ICF's. It is a terrific product with a very bright future.