I have 6 acres about 8 miles south of Gainesville FL where I'd like to build a house next year. Here is the link to the blueprints I have bought. I will try and attach more info but haven't used this site before. http://www.houseplans.com/plan/1872-square-feet-3-bedrooms-2-bathroom-modern-house-plan-0-garage-36926 The house is slab on grade and the front and back walls are 12' high. Ceilings are 10 and 12 ft inside. Roof pitch is 6:12. I would like to use SIPS, but am very concerned about using OSB. The house is 8 miles from the volunteer fire dept. I am hoping to mitigate fire risk by using a metal roof, Hardiboard siding and concrete floors. Does anyone know of any Contractors in the area there using SIPS? I have found one, but in every build I've seen of his, he uses OSB. His answer to my fire issue is to use a pex fire sprinkler. Anyone have any opinions on metal, MGO or cement OSB's. I really don't want to stack panels. The MGO panels in Miami are only 10' long. Thanks for any help, Nina

MGO board is better which is waterproof, if you worry about the corrosion problems, you should use sulfate mgo board which is chloride free.

I'd ask cmkavala about steel SIPs.

Posted By YunionBoard on 15 Dec 2015 02:03 AM
MGO board is better which is waterproof, if you worry about the corrosion problems, you should use sulfate mgo board which is chloride free.

YonionBoard,
I was going to let this comment slide, but cannot contain myself.
MGO board is NOT!!!! waterproof, the fact is it absorbs water to a saturation point and then leaches out liquid.
for that reason it is not allowed by the International Residential Code for use in shower or wet areas.

Posted By cmkavala on 23 Dec 2015 04:23 PM

Posted By YunionBoard on 15 Dec 2015 02:03 AM
MGO board is better which is waterproof, if you worry about the corrosion problems, you should use sulfate mgo board which is chloride free.

YonionBoard,
I was going to let this comment slide, but cannot contain myself.
MGO board is NOT!!!! waterproof, the fact is it absorbs water to a saturation point and then leaches out liquid.
for that reason it is not allowed by the International Residential Code for use in shower or wet areas.

leaching out liquid is because of the chloride, right now there is chloride free mgo board, also called sulfate mgo board, which use magnesium sulfate to replace magnesium chloride. the chloride free mgo board will not leach out liquid. this sulfate mgo board has been used in AU, EU a lot. try to google chloride free mgo board or visit www.yunionboard.com/product/chloride-free-mgo-board

Yunionboard,
you will need to supply your testing to the International Code Council and lobby for acceptance,
as it currently stands the code does not differentiate from chloride or non- chloride board it simply does not permit MGO in shower areas

Posted By YunionBoard on 14 Jan 2016 09:26 AM

Posted By cmkavala on 23 Dec 2015 04:23 PM

Posted By YunionBoard on 15 Dec 2015 02:03 AM
MGO board is better which is waterproof, if you worry about the corrosion problems, you should use sulfate mgo board which is chloride free.

YonionBoard,
I was going to let this comment slide, but cannot contain myself.
MGO board is NOT!!!! waterproof, the fact is it absorbs water to a saturation point and then leaches out liquid.
for that reason it is not allowed by the International Residential Code for use in shower or wet areas.

leaching out liquid is because of the chloride, right now there is chloride free mgo board, also called sulfate mgo board, which use magnesium sulfate to replace magnesium chloride. the chloride free mgo board will not leach out liquid. this sulfate mgo board has been used in AU, EU a lot. try to google chloride free mgo board or visit www.yunionboard.com/product/chloride-free-mgo-board

Nina, what kind of board did you use ?

I have not built yet. I am planning for the fall. At this point, I'm leaning toward a steel SIP. It's not easy to find knowledgeable people using them for some reason although there's lots of good info on the internet about their benefits. I have come up empty in the Gainesville area except for that one builder using OSB. The Magnesium boards have too much variation in the standard and only come in 10' lengths. With steel, I can have a long panel from ridge to fascia.

With the retirement of Chris Kavala, I needed to find another knowledgeable person in metal SIPS and was able to find someone in Missouri who has been very helpful in sharing pictures and his experience. Coincidentally, he used a installer in Florida who I have made contact with. It looks like his crew travels and would come from Valrico to Gainesville and stay to erect the building including windows so I would be dried in. That will be a huge piece of the puzzle. If I can get to that point, I might be comfortable scheduling the remaining subs myself. The panel my friend in Missouri used is Precision Foam Fabricators and the installers are http://www.steelsip.com/

Posted By Sheshore on 19 Apr 2016 11:00 AM
I have not built yet. I am planning for the fall. At this point, I'm leaning toward a steel SIP. It's not easy to find knowledgeable people using them for some reason although there's lots of good info on the internet about their benefits. I have come up empty in the Gainesville area except for that one builder using OSB. The Magnesium boards have too much variation in the standard and only come in 10' lengths. With steel, I can have a long panel from ridge to fascia.

With the retirement of Chris Kavala, I needed to find another knowledgeable person in metal SIPS and was able to find someone in Missouri who has been very helpful in sharing pictures and his experience. Coincidentally, he used a installer in Florida who I have made contact with. It looks like his crew travels and would come from Valrico to Gainesville and stay to erect the building including windows so I would be dried in. That will be a huge piece of the puzzle. If I can get to that point, I might be comfortable scheduling the remaining subs myself. The panel my friend in Missouri used is Precision Foam Fabricators and the installers are http://www.steelsip.com/

Sheshore,
while I am not contracting anymore, I am still in the steel SIP supply business.
But even if I were still contracting, Gainesville is too far from my area for a turnkey project.
I have a builder customer in Alachua and one in Eustis that could better serve you if you are looking for a turnkey situation.

Chris, that would be incredible. I have been searching unsuccessfully for a builder in the Alachua County area with steel SIPS experience. Please have them contact me at [email protected] or send me their info.

Hi Everyone. We build with the Steel SIPS in all of North Florida. We have built 12 homes and live in one ourselves. If you are looking for a builder, call David Brown Enterprises at 386-266-6635.

Innova Eco Building System located in Miami Florida manufacturers Dade County NOA approved MGO SIPS, NOA #14-1202.06. We only use a third party QC and Florida approved MGO board. Innova provides a 20 year warranty on our products.

We manufacture Magnesium Oxide board SIP up to 24'long. You need to use a quality approved MGO board. Innova uses only tested and certified MGO board which is third party QC certified to meet industry standards. Those who purchase the cheapest MGO board they can find on Alibaba will have problems as these boards do not meet industry standards which is why the price is so low.

Posted By Innova on 18 May 2016 08:24 AM
We manufacture Magnesium Oxide board SIP up to 24'long. You need to use a quality approved MGO board. Innova uses only tested and certified MGO board which is third party QC certified to meet industry standards. Those who purchase the cheapest MGO board they can find on Alibaba will have problems as these boards do not meet industry standards which is why the price is so low.

Better raw materials, fiberglass mesh and wood fiber offer better quality. good quality is never cheap.

Take a look at ThermaSteel Steel SIPS. They are mold, mildew, and insect resistant and are the only in the industry that are approved by the Dade County Hurricane Center for wind resistance. Check them out at www.hi-techbuilding.com. We would be happy to put together a free quote for you based on your plans if you are interested.

I think steel SIPs are a great way to go but there is really very little difference between the different manufacturers of steel panles besides poly versus EPS foam and the style of joints. Don't get sold on the idea that there is one magical brand of steel SIPs that does something none of the others can. The actual strength of foam properly bonded to steel is only a product of the foam thickness and gauge of steel. The strength is in the steel and is better able to resist bending the greater the distance between the two steel skins (panel thickness). There are other mfgs with Dade county approval and the strength will be determined more by your connection details and spans.

EPS is not fire rated. Green Mountain Panel produces class-1 fire rated urethane SIPs with MGO facings. Not only do you get a material that will self-extinguish, the upgrade to urethane also gets you a much higher R-Value and is a closed-cell product so it will not absorb moisture.

Posted By GreenMountainPanel on 09 Jun 2016 10:26 AM
EPS is not fire rated. Green Mountain Panel produces class-1 fire rated urethane SIPs with MGO facings. Not only do you get a material that will self-extinguish, the upgrade to urethane also gets you a much higher R-Value and is a closed-cell product so it will not absorb moisture.

EPS is also a closed cell product, and will not absorb moisture.  EPS is blown with pentane, which is a very low environmental impact gas, the bulk of which is recaptured at the factory and burned for process heat, reducing it to CO2 & water. The blowing agent dissipates quickly, and thermal performance of EPS is stable thereafter over many decades.

Closed cell polyurethane relies upon it's blowing agents for it's higher R/inch, and with an MGO facer will slowly decline in performance over a handful of decades as the blowing agent escapes.   The vast majority of closed cell polyurethane in North America is blown with HFC245fa, which is a powerful greenhouse gas (nearly 1000x CO2 @ 100 years), though LaPolla has switched to a low climate impact HFO1234yf blowing agent (Honeywell Solstice), and Demilec has announce that they will follow suit (at some unspecified date.) 

The fully depleted thermal performance of 2lb polyurethane isn't very different from 1.5lb (Type-II) or 2lb (Type- IX)  EPS.  Icynene's water-blown ~2lb polyurethane products test at about R5/inch which is comparable to graphite loaded EPS.

Unless Green Mountain Panel will stipulate that it uses ONLY low global warming potential blowing agents for it's polyurethane SIP products, it can't be considered a very "green" product, despite it's other characteristics.

MGO SIPs Dade County NOA approved for CoastalImpact Zone, 180 mph windspeeds. Innova Eco Building System, Miami Florida

Structural Steel SIP are also Miami-Dade approved.