WARNING. ICF AND AIR BRICKS

[Russell griffiths]

Thought I would share cock up of the month

we are building with icf blocks with a suspended concrete floor, so have to provide air bricks to ventilate the floor void, so air bricks with riser sections all in place, concrete all poured and vibrated, lovely job went smoothly 

 

ER NO, DONT FINK SO. 

on removing some of the temporary strutting it became apparent that some of the riser sections had collapsed under the weight of the concrete, leaving a gap you could just about get your fingers in

now this is my house and I’m building it so I now have to cut them all out and check the air void is clear and not compromised by the concrete. 

 

if I was an unscrupulous builder who didn’t give a flip I wouldn’t say anything, you wouldn’t know unless you put a camera down them, so if you have had this done or are about to do it be careful and reinforce those shitty plastic extenders. 

 

Wont do it like that again. DOH. ????

[Mr Punter]

If there is still a gap and you have air bricks on all sides I would not worry.  They should still be fairly OK at the ends, just narrow in the middle.

 

If you had to do this again, what would you do?

[Simplysimon]

@Russell griffiths is it a beam and block foor, insulated, dpm?

[Russell griffiths]

3 hours ago, Mr Punter said:

If there is still a gap and you have air bricks on all sides I would not worry.  They should still be fairly OK at the ends, just narrow in the middle.

 

If you had to do this again, what would you do?

Wasn’t happy leaving it, all chopped out now, and insulation all reinstalled. 

Took two of us two days to do twenty airbricks. 

If I was doing it again I wouldn’t use the telescopic vents, but a flexible duct, all the time we where installing them I was thinking they where cheap and crap. 

 

[Russell griffiths]

17 minutes ago, Simplysimon said:

@Russell griffiths is it a beam and block foor, insulated, dpm?

Yes. 

[Simplysimon]

same problem i have (not the pour), why do you need ventilation under that floor with two dpm's, just cools the floor with no benefits, don't you just love BC

[Mr Punter]

Four days work? What was the risk? You can have a ground bearing slab with no airflow at all, so what is going to happen with B & B with a slightly restricted flow?

[Russell griffiths]

27 minutes ago, Mr Punter said:

Four days work? What was the risk? You can have a ground bearing slab with no airflow at all, so what is going to happen with B & B with a slightly restricted flow?

The risk of ground bearing gas buildup, we are on filled ground so like the thoughts on having good airflow under the floor. 

[Alexphd1]

All part of the learning curve, I keep telling myself I will make no mistakes on the 2nd house....

 

Thank you for sharing 1st hand mistakes/problems it may help the next poor sod who thinks a self build is a good idea??

[jack]

8 hours ago, Alexphd1 said:

All part of the learning curve, I keep telling myself I will make no mistakes on the 2nd house....

 

??

 

+1

 

[Simplysimon]

as an update, had an email from BC asking to call. first question was 'why do you have air bricks'? 'because it's mentioned in the details and we reckoned you wouldn't pass it without'!

love BC with a vengeance.

[Ferdinand]

11 hours ago, Simplysimon said:

as an update, had an email from BC asking to call. first question was 'why do you have air bricks'? 'because it's mentioned in the details and we reckoned you wouldn't pass it without'!

love BC with a vengeance.

 

A BCO HOG? 

 

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