Hoowood, read the title of this thread! What did your post contribute? (By the way though, I'm glad that you're amused)

Hoowood, you said "Everybody believes he has the best" ; I have not noticed this at all.

Focus gentlemen!!! We want the top 10 by people who have used at least 2 different ICFs...

I have used at least 9 ICFs and only the pink one was really deficient. Another with steel was difficult to work with but gave the customer a great end result. Brand does not matter much, let your favorite local contractor pick the best value.

I'm not a professional, but have stacked 6" Reward (8' wall on top of 4' stem wall 1000SF footprint), 6.25" Logix (10' wall 3400sf footprint), and observed 6" EcoBlock being stacked (9' wall about 2500sf footprint).

The Reward worked well for a group of volunteers new to ICF since it's flippable and handled the concrete well.

Logix is thicker (2.75" foam and 6.25" concrete) but does have left and right hand corners and is not flippable.

EcoBlock produced a good finished product from what we saw, but was installed by an experienced crew. Not sure I'd use it as a DIYer without more experience.

I'll be using Logix for my home since it's produced and sold within 40 miles, is a solid form, and we have experience with it. Also we've had good interaction with the distributor who also can supply the bracing and other supplies.

If Logix wasn't available locally, I'd really take a hard look at Fox Block.

try www.hobbsbuildingsystems.com. for the best vicf on the market It goes up fast and uses 40% less concrete.

Is "40% less concrete" really a selling point for an ICF system?

Maybe...does the 40% less concrete result in a nearly as strong wall?

I would like to try a vertical ICF on the right project. But I have concerns about doing above grade walls with vertical ICFs.

all good answers. vertical icf uses 40% less concrete? - is this a waffle grid ICF or what do they use instead of concrete?

TF is a flat wall ICF, same concrete usage as other flat walls. The Hobbs is a waffle grid of sorts with posts at regular intervals and beams at the top and bottom of the wall.

I respect the fact that Brad Kvanbek (ICFconstruction) is transparent about who he is and I believe he is using common sense while using this site for which it is intended vs. letting emotion drive his interaction with others.

Good job, Brad. I appreciate your input!

Sincerely,

Andrew Hobbs
President
Hobbs Building Systems

So the issue is risk of voids when looking at waffle/post&beam vs. flat wall pours. And is the potential cost reduction and potenial extra insulation value worth the void risk? Is there some data or many anecdotes of voids actually happening in waffle/post&beam pours like that? I wonder what the risk is?

Sometime in the last 3 years there was a pretty vigorous discussion here about slump, aggregate size, consolidation, voids, and block type. How great is the risk of voids in a post & beam wall, or waffle grid wall? I don't recall what the consensus, if any, was. I think there were photos showing voids in P & B walls, as well as flat walls. In my opinion common sense would tell you that the risk of voids has got to be greater in P & B and waffle walls simply because of the pathways concrete has to flow, but obviously it's not an insurmountable problem or those wall styles wouldn't continue to stay in the market.

I can hardly believe I've been on GBT for close to 3 years already!!

Yes yes, 3 years gone by... thank you for that awesome piece of information :)... now back to my topic...

The "Top 10 ICFs" would also be a regional thing. And in the SW I think composite ICFs should be in there.

But we are deep into two pages and nobody has a list, so I will take a stab at it. My partial list will be based of value for my region of MN, in my opinion and I cannot comment on any I haven't used especially if they differ as much as vertical ICFs do, they could be great but I don't have any first hand knowledge of that. Oh, and it could change tomorrow

1) BuildBlock
2) Fox Block
3) NUDURA
4) Logix
5) Amvic

now we are cooking with gas

10 is a big list. I was stretching after the top 8 but here is what I have used or seen the most US and eastern Canada keeping in mind I do most of my work in the Midwest. As Brad mentioned it is a regional thing and I am not saying that there are not other good ICF's out there, this is just what I have used or saw others installing.
1)TF System
2)Nudura
3)Logix
4)Amvic
5) Arxx
6)Quadlock
7)Buildblock
8)Reward
9)Green Block
10)Integraspec

Anyone putting 8 inch tie systems in front of 6 inch on center tie systems has to get (back) in the saddle and do some (more)riding.

Kevin
www.icfinstall.com
straighter, faster walls with less waste since using 6 inch on center forms. (but now the 8 inch on center forms don't send us work)

Although everything else being equal, I also prefer 6" oc ties/webs, it is not the only or even the biggest consideration. For example I would rate flippablity above the tie spacing. But both of those characteristics matter little to the end user, where price or installed price matters a great deal.

Gitty-up!

My list was in no specific order. Just listing the ones I see the most.