The Pump Truck

The moment of truth is at hand when the pump truck shows up. "Grabbing ahold of the hose is like grabbing a monster's tail and pinching it"-Adam Bearup

Foam Form

This form comes in two pieces with those black plastic clips to hold them together. It is a great design.

Proper Bracing

Proper bracing is the key to success when using any brand of ICF.

A man and his dream.

When the hole is dug, there is no turning back. This is one of my favorite photos, it shows a man and his dream while being presented in an almost dream-like state.

Pump Truck II

Oh no, another pic of the pump truck, yikes...

First load of lumber.

I still remember this day. We had the first floor load arrive while the cement was curing in the forms. I can remember how excited I was to get rolling on this project.

Floor joists

I was so excited to get started, that I started to set the floor joists by myself. It is so fun to build houses....

This photo is kinda dark

I believe this is a shot of the garage area with all kinds of bracing on it. These photos may not be in exact order.

The future spot of the wrap-around porch.

The homeowner and I would stare at what we built to a given point and get so excited about the fun that everyone would have on the things that weren't even built yet. I get a kick out of that!

A farther shot.

This is another pic that amazes me. The entire structure to that point (exterior walls I mean) were poured concrete. There were still so many questions I had about fastening things to them.

More bracing.

To many who are thinking of using ICFs in their new homes, here is a tip. Brace them, alot. We found that pouring the second lift went so much more smooth because of the extra effort we made to make sure they were secure and plumb.

A form

Here's another shot of the forms we use. Check out www.ecoblock.com for more details.

Attic floor.

This was a huge step forward for us. This really got us off the ground (chuckles). The next step was to frame the entire roof systems out of 2x10's. That can be a lot of work..

Jagger

This is my trusty friend Jagger. He is so very loyal and hung in there with us during our long days of framing. He would crawl into my lap on the ride home to sleep and I would take it as a thank you for letting him experience all the excitement that building can be.

A block wall.

After the people who have toured this house have said "WOW", there next emotion is "HUH?" Why put a block wall on the main floor. It is tough to tell in this early photo of the project, but keep sifting threw these pics and you will soon see why.

Sill seal.

It is proper to use sill seal when fastening the sill plate to concrete of any form.

A close up.

This is a close up of that interior block wall.

A look back.

You can see that the block wall does actually serve many roles. In this photo you can see its attachment to the ICF wall.

Built in oven.

This is where the built in oven is set. Imagine a second oven at body level. No bending over to see if the pies are done!!!

More block wall.

I must have been obsessed with this wall. Let's move onto the next pic.

A block.

Ever think of what a single cement block's role is? With out it being in its exact spot, the wall would not be as strong. I think that this is photo of a normal block and I originally compared it to the actual blocks use don the main floor.

Burnish block

This is a close up of a burnished block. Notice how you can see all the little stones in it. We have many of these blocks in the main level wall and they are finished with a high-gloss finish.

Means of egress

We added this door in the block wall to have a better way of getting to the bathroom.

A pic of Lake Michigan

Here is but one of the spectacular views from the property. Each day the view changes. The sunsets can not be described with words.