I am new to this forum and considering SIP for construction of my new home. Can anyone give me any feedback, good or bad, on R-Control SIPS and their system. I am considering them because they have a manufacturer locally and from what I read they have a good reputation for a quality product. I live in Little Rock, AR. Please share your thoughts on them. Thanks 

I have some R-Control SIPS under wraps outside waiting to be installed (soon I hope). I have no real experience with SIPs, but to my untrained eye, all seems fine. As I understand it, the SIPs are manufactured by different companies to the R-Control standards and specifications so your experience with ordering, support, etc. etc. might be different from mine (which was generally very good). The R-Control website has a wealth of good information, but that seems to be true of most of the manufacturers. In short, so far I'm very happy, the walls are not standing upright yet, but I don't foresee any problems there that can be blamed on the SIPs.

Stonecaveman, How long before you intend to get started ? Do you plan on hiring a crew to do the install or do yourself ? I have heard good things about R-Contol but nothing beats word of mouth and would really appreciate your input on your experience. What size house are you building ? On slab or crawlspace ? How was their cost in comparison to the other bids you got ? Please keep posted about your construction in work. Thanks.

R Control is one of three major brands nationally that stand head and shoulders above all the others. The other brands are Insulspan and Precision. These three brands perform all the most important building-industry tests and keep up-to-date records to substantiate compliance with architectural standards. Lots of little guys buildings SIPS don't. Stay clear of them.

Each R control site is an independent business building prouct to the design requirements of R Control and using their specified materials. Some are much better than others, but the guys in Little Rock do a good job and have a good reputation.

ALL SIPS buildings are better insulated than other forms of construction and IF engineered and cut properly at the plant and IF installed properly, much stronger as well. But there are the two IFs. Did they properly interpret your building drawings and pre-cut the walls and roofs including openings. Second NEVER, repeat NEVER allow these products to be installed by a crew that is not well experienced in working with SIPS or you could have huge problems later. Than said if engineered properly and installed by an experienced crew you will save thousands of dollars on heating and cooling costs over the life of your building.

Want to be even more energy cost efficient......do two things:
1. Use ICF's for your basement.
2. Use a high efficiency HVAC system.

I guess that you don't get out too much?

I have built more than 10 homes with SIP's and all have been from R-Control, Actually the local manufacturer of R-Control, Branch River Plastics in RI. I visited the other 4 manufacturers located within the region before choosing them. Why? First is the engineering, they have a complete details book along with the spec's, loads and span charts. Many of the others would not provide me this information, they wanted to do the design and engineering work themselves. Second was the methods used, CNC, lamination methods, and hydraulic press to ensure solid bonding. One of the other companies, that shall remain nameless, used a vacuum method that entail little more than a plastic bag over the panels with a shopvac drawing out the air, I couldn't see how you could ensure a solid bond. 
         I design and build solar homes, and SIP's are the most cost effective method, I have found, to acheive very low energy losses or gains. Not that the SIP's are less costly than the components individually, but when time is factored in the scale quickly tips in their favor. Here is a link to a vidoe I shot during the installation of the SIP's. There are a lot more photos of SIP's during construction on my web site as well. Good luck with you project. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHCww99a_AA&feature=channel_page

Tom Pittsley
[email protected]
www.eebt.org

I have been following this thread since it started, but have been so busy I have not taken the time to respond. As a professional engineer who regularly test a variety of building materials and building assembles, including SIPs, I think the notion that only a large manufacture can produce a quality SIP product is just silly. I have tested SIPs from both large and small manufactures, those produced in a hydraulic press and under vacuum, those with a CNC machine and those with out and find that none of these features have any bearing on the engineering properties of the SIP panels they produce.

Incidental, the local R-Control manufacture (Chapman Building Systems in Kerrville, Texas) uses vacuum compression and does not have a CNC machine; however, they produce the same R-Control panel that any other R-Control manufacture produces. I am personally well acquainted with this manufacture and have visited this plant many times.

So, what I hope consumers and do-it-yourselfers will take away from this discussion is that they should only use SIPs that are produced by manufactures that have test results for their product and that the testing should be a continuous quality program and not a one shot deal, is a good start. If a manufacture does not readily provide span tables, it is doubtfully they will have had their product tested or have a continuous quality (ISO 9000) program that ensures the SIP you get delivered to you has the same engineering properties as the ones that were tested and the span tables were created from and for. A few unscrupulous manufactures have gone so far as to take span tables from other manufactures and change a few items and relabeled them as their own. A good rule of thumb is to check with the Structural Insulated Panel Association (SIPA) at www.sips.org SIPA members tend to be a good bet for a quality SIP product. Not to say that only SIPA members produce quality SIPS that posses engineering properties consistent with their manufactures statements, just that it may be easier to find out if that is true.

I have taught and provided construction oversight on numerous SIP projects. It has been my experience that a competent framing crew can do as good a job as a seasoned SIP crew in erecting and assembling SIP panels on site provided the SIPs were pre cut at the factory, well marked (insert tab A into slot B), have the correct materials and tools and follow the assemble plan. Failure to follow the assembly plan, or not even having one, has been the biggest bain to SIP projects for professional crews and do-it-yourselfers alike, that I have seen.

Good Luck!

If anyone would like to discuss this issue further with me, please contact me off list at:

SIP Engineering and Testing, LLC
201 CR 138
Hutto, Texas 78634
[email protected]

I have also used R control Sips from Branch River Plastics and have been 100% satisfied with them.