Has anyone use Eco-Block?

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Good day,

I figure there are more than a few construction folks on this forum. I would like to know if anyone has tried Eco-block concrete form construction. http://www.eco-block.com/

I visited a guy building a house from it but his concrete pour was so horribly done that it wasn't a good example. This guy was pretty amateurish and the job site was very sloppy. I like the idea of Eco-block, but not sure I like stucco over foam for the outside of the house. Other than that, it's a concrete house so it is certainly sturdy.

I'm in hurricane alley and wanting to build on a point. Currently I live in a concrete house and it is very safe.

[Mel Fulks]

We know a couple that was real interested in building a house with it and did a lot of research .Talked to a number of contractors about it . Bottom line was they decided it was excellent but too expensive. They basically ended up with poured concrete house with more conventional forms and lots of foam insulation. The house has basement made same way and even just having poured basement is unusual here in Va.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Thanks for the reply. Down here wood is expensive and for a one-off it comes out more reasonable with Eco-block. If I were having the whole house done by a contractor I might go with forms, as the contractor just reuses the forms he has. I am trying to cut out the middle man as much as I can.

With Eco-block I would hire a specialist to oversee that part of the build and contract my own labor along with me doing work as well. It's a pretty simple system and I like the idea, but am having second thoughts about the foam skin. On one hand I like the insulation and sound deadening, but on the other hand I wonder if it will deteriorate over time. It's just EPS foam from what I understand.

[Curt Fuller]

The company I work for is a distributor for Eco Block. But it hasn't caught on much here in the northern Utah area. We see a dozen or so houses each year. Just my own opinion, I think it makes an excellent building. But I think the cost is somewhat higher than traditional construction with the trade off coming in reduced utility bills over time. And I don't think many of the other sub contractors (plumbing, electrical, hvac, even framing) have adopted the different processes of working with concrete walls. The CEO of our company built his house using Eco Block a couple years ago. It's a beautiful home and it has very little stucco exterior, mostly brick and manufactured rock veneer. I've also seen them with the different Hardy board products for the exterior that look really nice. My only suggestion would be to work through the entire process of building the house and get to know all the things that you have to do differently and the associated costs before making a decision. But I don't think quality of construction is an issue.

[Mel Fulks]

My friends experience was probably ten years ago ,access to the system and competition may have brought cost down .

[Mac McQuinn]

Have you investigated "Rastra"?, Interesting concept, might be worth a look.
Mac

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Have you investigated "Rastra"?, Interesting concept, might be worth a look.
Mac

That is interesting. I have looked at AAC, but not this. I am not sure I like the tubes of concrete versus a solid concrete wall, but it does look easy to build with. I will investigate that.