In celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday, Element ICF and Beaver Plastics offered discounted basements (and free labor) toward Habitat for Humanity’s 34th Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, which involved the development of 150 homes for Canadians in need.
The Carter Build project was very special for us here at Element ICF, and we were honored to be a part of it. Not only did this project involve former President of the U.S. and First Lady Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter (who have been Habitat volunteers for more than 35 years), but it also involved Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood!
This post takes a look at this very special build, and how the benefits of ICF basements contribute to safe, decent affordable homes, which is Habitat’s mission for Canadians.
Building Homes For Canadians In Need
Affordable housing is at an all-time low. 1 in 7 Canadian families is in need of housing, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
This is where Habitat for Humanity comes in. Habitat is an international, non-governmental and non-profit organization. Their mission is to address issues of poverty housing by building “safe, decent and affordable” homes for those in need.
The Habitat for Humanity homes provide much-needed stability for many Canadian families. This particular project involved building 150 homes in Canada, the majority of which were constructed in Edmonton and Fort Saskatchewan. Roughly 25 homes were also built in Winnipeg, while 50 or so were built in territories and provinces across the rest of Canada.
The Carter Build project involved literally thousands of volunteers, including the future homeowners of these much-needed homes!
One of the benefits of building with ICF has to do its simplicity – it condenses “6 steps in 1”. And as is the case with all ICF projects, this project also required fewer tools and equipment compared to wood. This means that ICF homes can be built quickly as well.
Interestingly enough, the most difficult part of this build had nothing to do with the construction itself, but rather with the training and support of such a large number of volunteers!
How Our ICF Basements Will Benefit Canadians
There are many benefits of ICF basements compared to poured concrete basements. Just watch this overview of ICF basements in the following video:
In the context of the Carter project, the ICF basements in these Habitat homes offer a lot of benefits to their Canadian homeowners, helping them to carry out Habitat’s mission of safe, decent and affordable homes:
- Health & Safety. Logix’s hollow expanded polystyrene blocks (which have a closed cell structure and a steam fusion manufacturing process) result in healthy indoor air quality. ICF homes are also mold-resistant, crack-resistant, pest-resistant and disaster-resilient as well.
- Cost Savings & Affordability. Homeowners will also save a lot of money on their energy bill each year with the insulating power of the expanded polystyrene Logix blocks.
- Comfort. Logix walls are air-tight, resulting in 60% less air filtration than traditional walls. This means a comfortable, draft-free environment. In fact, Logix XtraComfort™ basements offer an R-value of R-24, compared to only R-17 with conventional basements, and this results in a quieter home as well. Basements are typically the coldest part of the home, but with the insulating power of the expanded polystyrene in ICF blocks, these basements will have the same temperature as any other room in the home! Concrete also provides a 5-day thermal lag, which means that homeowners can stay comfortable for days, even in the lowest of Canadian temperatures.
Read more about ICF benefits here.
Recommended Further Reading:
- ICF Basements Solve Problems and Create Advantages for Builders Across North America
- Waterproof Basements – The Logix Advantage!
Wrapping It Up
With housing affordability at an all-time low, Element ICF and Beaver Plastics were honored to be the Habitat for Humanity’s 34th Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project. In fact, Beaver Plastics has been involved with Habitat for Humanity for years!
The Element ICF basements will help Habitat for Humanity carry out its mission of building safe, decent, and affordable homes. And they’ll be comfortable too.
You can learn more about building with a Element ICF basement vs poured here. Request a quote, get more information, or talk to a Logix Advisor by contacting us today.
