Press Releases
Seventeen Insulating Concrete Form Houses Completed by Reward Wall Systems, Inc. and Omaha Habitat for Humanity
Released: January 01, 2001
Seventeen Insulating Concrete Form Houses Completed by Reward Wall Systems, Inc. and Omaha Habitat for Humanity
Omaha, Nebraska – A new milestone in the history of the Omaha chapter of Habitat for Humanity was reached when construction began this week on another new Omaha Habitat for Humanity home. The completion of this home will signify an unprecedented number of Habitat homes to be completed in the Omaha area this year. All of these new homes utilized a different, and better, type of construction than traditional wood frame—insulating concrete forms (ICFs) by Reward.
Several Omaha families are already enjoying the benefits of their new ICF homes. Theresa Thompson moved in last July and has experienced the even temperature the Reward walls provide in both summer and winter. "I liked the fact that I could turn on the air conditioning to cool the house off," she said, "and once the house was cool, I could turn the thermostat down and the temperature stayed the same."
Although Shawna Wagner has lived in her house for only a month, she is very pleased with it. "I heard about this new kind of house with the concrete walls, and I was hoping that I would get one of them. What I heard was true—I didn’t have to turn my furnace on until a few days ago, and I keep it turned low. I also heard about how strong the walls are and how they keep the house quiet, and I’m glad about that, too," she said
The Omaha Chapter of Habitat for Humanity and Reward Wall Systems, Inc. teamed up to build seventeen Habitat homes in the Omaha area using Reward ICFs for the exterior walls. Reward ICFs combine the insulating properties of expanded polystyrene and steel reinforced concrete to produce buildings known for their strength, safety and energy efficiency.
According to Edward L. Storm, President of Reward Wall Systems, Inc., the company decided to support Omaha Habitat for Humanity because it directly improves the lives of many of Omaha's people, and in that way, the city of Omaha as a whole. "We believe in Habitat for Humanity and what it is doing to solve a very serious problem—quality housing for those in need," he said. "This is our way of assisting them in attaining that goal. We feel Habitat and Reward make a good match, and we feel good about the fact that we can help provide superior housing for those who need it most."
Reward became involved in the Habitat effort in the fall of 1999. After donating all the forms used for the walls of the 99th and 100th Habitat homes built in Omaha, Reward committed to donating the majority of the ICF forms for all of the Habitat houses to be built during the year 2000.
Through volunteer labor and tax-deductible donations of money and materials, Habitat for Humanity builds and renovates simple, affordable houses with the help of the homeowner families. Habitat houses are sold to the participating families at no profit, financed with affordable, no-interest loans. The homeowners’ monthly mortgage payments go into a revolving Fund for Humanity that is used to build more houses.
Reward walls are built using a stay-in-place concrete forming system that consists of individual lightweight foam blocks. Each hollow block is made of two pieces of expanded polystyrene (EPS) held together with plastic ties. These foam blocks are stacked like building blocks, aligned, braced, strengthened with steel rebar and filled with concrete. The resulting wall is a solid, continuous airtight, steel reinforced concrete wall surrounded by several inches of insulating EPS. The forms stay in place after the concrete cures to provide insulation.
Reward ICF walls achieve outstanding energy efficiency, saving as much as 50% to 80% on heating and cooling costs compared to wood construction according to company literature. Safety is another benefit. In 1998 a Washington, Iowa, home built with Reward walls withstood a direct hit from a tornado with measured wind speeds of up to 250 mph while neighboring wood frame houses were leveled. And Reward ICF walls achieved an outstanding four-hour fire rating during tests at Omega Point Laboratories in Texas. That means that while wood walls catch fire and collapse in one hour or less, Reward walls can remain standing for up to four hours, allowing ample time for occupants to exit the building.
Located in Omaha, Nebraska, for the past 12 years, Reward Wall Systems, Inc. is the leading manufacturer and distributor of insulating concrete forms used in residential and commercial structures. Reward’s customers include architects, general contractors, residential contractors and construction supply distributors. To learn more about Reward Wall Systems, Inc. go to www.rewardwalls.com.