REWARD OFFERS 9-INCH ICF FOR RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION
(Press release)

Reward Wall Systems, Inc. recently announced the addition of a 9-inch insulating concrete form (ICF) to their iFormT product line.  "We saw a strong need for a 4-inch concrete wall above grade, and we wanted to be a part of that market," said Chief Operating Officer Hank Pfeiffer. "Here is an ICF that results in steel-reinforced exterior or interior concrete walls that are not as thick as other ICF walls. They reduce the amount of concrete needed, and therefore the cost of the wall, yet they provide the same high R-value and excellent storm and fire safety."

The 9-inch iForm has a 4-inch flat wall interior configuration, and was designed as an above-grade exterior residential and commercial wall form. The narrower 9-inch iForm offers the same features and flexibility as the rest of the iForm line. The foam thickness is 2 ½ inches and the eight interior ties, placed at 6-inch intervals, are recessed a full one-half inch into the foam. 

The ties run from the top to the bottom of each form and are designed with three loose-fit, snap-in rebar holders large enough to receive two overlapping pieces of rebar. The three rebar holders provide the flexibility for placing rebar at the inside, middle and outside of the wall as conditions require. The loose fit allows the builder to use rebar that is warped or bent without compromising the straightness of the wall. The snap-in feature eliminates the need for time-consuming and often difficult-to-use rebar ties. The ties also create a wide fastening surface from floor to ceiling, and the design of the heavy-duty tie rods on eight-inch vertical centers allows the form to be cut in half horizontally. This open tie design also maximizes the free flow of concrete within the forms.

Kelvin Doerr, director of engineering services at Reward feels the addition of the 9-inch forms has a lot of advantages. "In certain regions of the country, this 9-inch form will make us competitive with wood frame, steel frame and masonry walls. It uses a great deal less concrete, but still has substantially more strength than any of those types of wall construction," he said. Doerr added that the 9-inch iForm is ideal for interior partition walls, an application that will greatly increase the sound abatement and overall safety of the building. "In tests, the 9-inch iForm has achieved one- and two-hour fire ratings for load bearing and non-load bearing walls," he said.

With the addition of the 9-inch forms, iForm is available in three sizes-9-inch, 11-inch, and 13-inch, each size with straight, 90º, and 45º forms. Reward also offers eForm®, a line of waffle grid interior configuration ICFs that comes in five different types and sizes.