Planning on doing an ICF house (2 stories) in Jamaica. I will have to import the blocks from the US and bring in technical help. I am thinking of using the Nudura blocks because they are shipped folded down, more products per container. What are your recommendations on this approach?

Nudura's fold-down feature is certainly a benefit. One thing that I found with Nudura that made them less efficient is the 8' block size. You dont tend to save very many blocks in window areas because you still need most of the block adjacent to the window. You only cut off a portion of the block for the window. Have you looked at Quad-lock, where the halves are shipped separately? Waste with Quad-Lock is minimal because of how the blocks can be cut and how corners are made. I'd give them a chance to compare.

I will take a look at Quad-Lock and compare. Thanks for the information

I will second quad-lock, we are building a 3600 sq ft 2 story home with a full basement using their 4" blocks and 12" quad deck on first floor. we are doing all the work that we can our selves, our distributor is fantastic, the customer service and knowledge of icf construction is epic.

You might want to take a look at BuildBlock too. It is the strongest block we have used to date and it has continuous webs every 6". You can also insert a 1" PVC pipe into the outside corners for trim fasteners.

I need to maximize the the shipping container so I am only interested in blocks which can be folded flat.

There are a lot of variables that affect shipping cost. Volume is certainly a big one. Distance from the block manufacturing location to the building location is another big one. If minimizing shipping cost is your primary goal in selecting an ICF product, you really should get actual shipping quotes for several ICF products.

MTicf, Not sure what you mean here about Nudura and the eight foot block. When one cuts a piece off an 8' block - he is statistically more likely to be able to use what's left. You need most of the block adjacent to the window? Also, making corners is not efficient in any way nor manually putting block together on the job site.

I sell Fox so I don't have a dog in this fight. But I know our local Quad Lock guy has done work on a lot of the island countries. I think even Jamaica and has done well.

TexasICF, Nudura is a great product. I almost used it, but in the end, in my DIY environment, Quadlock won out on cost because of delivery and the reduction of waste. My Nudura supplier(Who I accepted had an interest in a competitive bid, thus eliminating waste) quoted about $2000 higher than Quadlock, and when I compared the per sq-ft price he wasn't much different. The difference was the extra block required because when you cut the top off of part of a block at the bottom of a window, and a part off the bottom of another block at the top of a window, the scrap wasn't useable elsewhere. Depending on his design (corners and window size and location) he could end up with no waste. Designing a house as 4-corners, using an even number of block, with windows starting at the top of a row and ending at the top of a row, could be built with virtually no waste. In that case, Nudura might well win out to Quadlock.

With Quad-lock, the scrap I had after building a 1260 sq-ft basement, same size first floor, and 550 sq-ft garage/mudroom, filled about 8 garbage bags. There was no scrap larger than 10". Actually, making corners was a breeze. I precut the inner panels, placed them and the corner brackets near each corner, and they fell together.

The fact that I used Quad-lock doesn't make me a fanatic. My choice of brand was based on the cost of shipping, the cost of buying waste, and partly because I could ship Quad-deck for my concrete main floor in the same truck. Sure, there was more labor to assemble separate block halves and place the ties for each row, but my labor wasn't a direct cost. Based on those efficiencies, I suggested that the OP check out Quad-Lock. If he does his homework, I figured he would be smart enough to consider all of the factors and make his best decision between brands. Part of my suggestion was based on my expectation that labor in Jamaica is not as costly as it is in the USA. So inefficiencies don't necessarily outweigh the savings available from less waste and less container space.

MTicf, If I somehow implied that you were a fanatic I apologize -- I did not intend to do so. My issue is only that you do not appear to know Nudura very well. I am an ICF fan first and do like the Insuldeck product which is made by Quadlock but that's another thread. Regards.

Texas, It is all good, and my "fanatic" comment wasn't prompted by your comments, but by my general observation that some people are fanatical about (or financially tied to) certain brands. If Nudura is the best option for the OP, and he does his homework, it would be great for him. I offered him an option, as I found the shipping/waste of Quadlock to be close to the criteria he set. By the way, my main floor is poured over Insuldeck, and it is awesome. It really makes a man think carefully, because with pex inside, you don't get to add or change anything once it is poured.
Finally, I've learned a lot from you, and when I see your name on a topic, I make sure to read it, so the apology is mine if I seemed to be pushing back rather than offering an alternative.

One additional follow up question. I would also like to use ICF for my internal walls instead of using concrete blocks which is the normal method in the island. Wood studs are not an option and I am not excited about using metal studs in a residential construction.

Is it a good idea to use ICF for my internal walls?

I love how a dyi person says their labor is not a direct cost..... Then come work for us. We will gladly pay you all beer and fajitas you can eat... On a serious note, labor is and always will be a huge factor for Icf. I was trained on 4' Reward block and then to Fox and have since been trained on Nudura. I can tell you there are several advantages of 8' and 18" which people seem to forget about. Single story build of just 9' plate, the extra 2" eliminates an extra row. The higher you go the less trips around. Also saves on rebar. Folds flat for shipping and jobsite storage. Quad lock is a fine product, but the extra labor and accessories to do it right add up and up. I've done houses with 5 corners all the way up to 45 corners and 43 openings, it helps. It also helps if the installer or dyi person cares about waste. One sorts the cuts, from 1-4 webs and rolls them back into the wall to save on scrap and $$. Do this daily and you will eliminate a bunch more in scrap pile. Usually the lowest guy on seniority would be installing the webs into the block. Not sure about everyone else but that is super critical to get right and not have any issues.

Internal walls are the easiest way and or an Icf lintel to hold walls above. Steel can get expensive and just adds another trade and time in the mix. In the end it goes back to design. We did a job with over 7k sqft of walls with internal walls on the living room and office to hold up the upper 2nd story. Worked flawlessly including a 14' lintel with #9 rebar.... Have to love engineers.

South Texas: Amen, brother! You are preaching my sermon. When a DIY-er tells me his time has no value, I say, "Tell that to your wife!" Did you see my piece in the current issue of ICF Builder Magazine? Time is everything.

South Texas and Bruce, I very much appreciate the time and expertise you give to this forum. But I hope you both realize that you have a very different perspective than I do. You guys make your living at this, and my wife and I, like many DIY people are in a labor of love. My time is valuable, and I choose to spend it working on our house. My wife and I had a great time stacking block, installing rebar, checking plumb, straight, and square, taking a break to watch the dogs chase ground vermin, watch the sunset, talk to new neighbors, or whatever we want. I didn't say it had no value, I said it wasn't a direct cost.
I appreciate that you should share the time spent in various aspects of ICF building so that, in this thread, the OP has the opportunity to plan his labor expenses vs the shipping expenses using different products. Then he can decide.
Just try to keep in mind that when a DIYer says his time has no value, or isn't a direct cost, he doesn't mean that literally. What he really means is that he hasn't yet realized just how much time will go into his DIY house, so he isn't yet worrying about how long it will take to stack block.
As an aside, you guys should see how long it takes a DIYer to set out 3000' of PEX.

Curious to know where you end up with your decision based on shipping costs. We have shipped to the Caribbean and have several inquiries a year.
I have to self declare, I am Nudura distributor, so I have to say "Nudura icf" hands down.
My experience dates back over 20 years, both as an installer, builder, designer with several different ICF blocks and distributor of IntegraSpec and now converted to Nudura. I would suggest if you want unassembled 4' panels, IntegraSpec is great block, ships in bundles of unassembled panels, all web sizes for walls of 4" - 12" widths available, manufactured corners, lockable webs and very strong system.
Realistically, Nudura beats them all with its size, features, performance....8' long x 18" high, full line up of products and accessories, tech support. Walls go up fast leaving more time to enjoy Red Stripe in the Jamaica sun or sit in the shade not working in the Jamaica sun.

Hi gtaicf, please send me your contact information. My email is [email protected] I would like to discuss your experience in shipping this product to Jamaica.

I'm looking to purchase and ship the product to Jamaica. Please send me your contact information. I currently already have the land, and building permits. I'm also looking for a contractor in Jamaica that is familiar with installing the Nudura product.