Faswall® — The Product
After World War II amidst the rubble and destruction a way was discovered to take the huge volumes of wood waste, grind it into chips, mineralize the chips to neutralize the natural sugars that cause rot, and bond them to cement to form a building block. This is the genesis of the Faswall® ICF Wall Form.
Healthy building and installation for do-it-yourselfers
Since then, tens of thousands of homes and commercial buildings have been built in Europe and Asia and North America with this remarkable material. This remains one of the preferred methods of building in Europe. It has been available in North America for close to 30 years. In 1987 Hans and Leni Walter of K-X Faswall International Corp. advanced the state of the art with a patented mineralization process that allows virtually any wood or cellulose fiber to be bonded to cement.
Rebar and interlocking wood fiber ICF detail
The wall form blocks are manufactured in 24″ long modular units to aid the designer. They are designed to be under 30 lbs to aid the installer. Simply stack the wall forms on top of one another without mortar. The interlocking tongue-and-groove end design keeps the wall forms in place. Rebar is set both horizontally and vertically within the stacked forms prior to filling the cores with concrete. This creates a “post and beam” grid effect which makes the wall exceptionally strong. Essentially, Faswall® is a efficient method of building a reinforced concrete wall with built-in thermal, acoustical and fire protection. Our wall-forms can be used above-grade, below-grade, for commercial or residential applications.
Rebar and below grade installation of Faswall
Faswall® — The System
Wallforms are cast from wood-concrete, a mixture of K-X Aggregate (mineralized wood chips) and portland cement. The Wallforms are designed as stay-in-place units which become part of a load-bearing wall only after being filled with reinforced concrete.
The Wall Forms are supplied in just three types for building your entire project: a Standard Wall Form, a Corner Wall Form and an AP Wall Form. The quantity of each wall form shipped is unique to the design of the project and determined in consultation with the owner, contractor or designer.
The Wall Forms are supplied in just three types for building your entire project: a Standard Wall Form, a Corner Wall Form and an AllPupose Wall Form (can be scored to provide (2) Half block). The quantity of each wall form shipped is unique to the design of the project and determined in consultation with the owner, contractor or designer.
Standard Wall Form |
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Corner Wall Form (outside or inside notched as needed)All Purpose Wall Form |
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(cuts in half to form 1/2 size block) |
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The beam notches in each wallform, which allow for the formation of a horizontal beam of concrete must be continuous in the whole wall system. This requires all of the AP-Corner Wall forms to have beam notches cut on site as well as the ½ size Wall forms that are made from the AP-Corner units that are cut in half.
Features & Benefits to You & to a Sustainable Future
- What’s it made of?— 85% mineralized wood chips from recycled wood and 15% Portland cement and fly ash; that’s all.
- Faswall® is hygroscopic; it absorbs and releases water vapor in a “sink effect”, thereby evening out the indoor humidity and eliminating moisture buildup in the wall
- Durable. Faswall® buildings can have useful lives measured in centuries, not decades.
- Utilizes a renewable, sustainable resource with one of the lowest embodied energies in a building material-wood. Unique and patented mineralization process allows use of many wood species.
- 4 hour fire rating. No flame spread, no smoke development (ASTM C-119-88, E-84-89a; test done without insulation inserts)
- Freeze and Thaw. Passed 300 cycle test (ASTM C-666)
- Termite and Pest resistant. Unlike foam, termites do not tunnel through Faswall®. Test by Univ. of Georgia Dept. of Entomology.
- Suitable for all seismic zones.
- Sound Proof (ASTM E 90-90). STC rating of 55: Creates exceptionally quiet indoor space.
- Cuts with carpenter’s tools. Takes screws and nails on all surfaces. No installation or searching for furring strips.
- Meets or exceeds building codes and energy codes in all states.
- Minimal bracing as compared to foam ICFs.
- Significantly less concrete infill compared to foam ICFs for similar wall thickness.
- Insulation inserts insulate the thermal mass into the living space gaining the full benefit of a thermal fly wheel effect whereas foam ICFs isolate the mass from the living space.
- No fume out-gassing, no VOC’s, no formaldehyde…period.
- For those interested in Bau Biologie, Faswall® has an ion ratio of 60% negative:40% positive–approximates the outdoors
- Comparable installed cost to foam ICFs, SIPS, and advanced framing..
- Supervised unskilled labor can be used for installation. Ideal for owner built homes.
- Excellent substrate for plasters and stuccos; keys-in on the porous surfaces.
- Wall is highly alkaline and breathable. These two factors combine to be inhospitable to mold growth.. period.
- Insulated thermal mass into the living space contributes to lower temperature swings and significantly reduced heating and cooling costs.
- Non thermal mass enhanced R values of R-21 for Faswall® Wall Forms with 3 inch mineral wool inserts and R-25.5 for Faswall® Wall Forms with 3 inch poly-iso inserts. Performance R values significantly higher depending on glazing quality, southern exposure and climate.
- Very low life-cycle energy cost.