In Engineering School we used styrofoam and fly ash (coal ash) to design and build a concrete canoe for competition. It was pretty light weight it only took 4 people to lift it, very similar principal here. Reduce the portland by replacing it with fly ash. I'm always looking for building alternatives, I have done many non conventional builds. 24x24 clear span with 9ft walls all from white cedar pallets simple to insulate, wire, and very strong. Held 8 inches of snow and the ice that followed. Good Job👍!
Fly ash is a by product of Coal power plants. Due to 8 years of an administration coal plants are being shut down. The concrete became more expensive due to the scarcity of fly ash in U.S. Fly Ash in concrete is being replaced with something else. The domino effect! Fly ash was a filler ingredient in concrete to take up space and increase volume.
People like you are the best man, number 1 you show us we can think outside the box on building a home or whatever, save money etc. And on top of that you share your knowledge with everyone for free after no telling how much R & D is rare these days.! Thank you
Hi Steve I’m a builder for many years! I’ve been see and experimenting with different materials my whole life! I see ur solution bonds pretty well, I’d bet adding paint would help even more in some applications? Even rubber paint like on exterior walls or just around the foundation where the materials meet would greatly help in bonding and water proofing if needed? I’ve got so many different building ideas, I pretty much been building my whole life! And you are definitely on to a huge breakthrough? God knows the world needs it as our so calls LEADERS shaft the system in order to jack up material cost just to manipulate the masses? Good job 👏🏼 and thanks for sharing!!!!
So agree with comment, we got huge problems with not accepting better and affordable build types and dropping information on the issue here, because it will get worse. So a lot of people dont know in 2000 a failing UK company made deals with US Housing Authorities this is why we got huge ICC build code restrictions which really is just an old boys club that fills up friends of friends wink, wink pockets and they used a CA law firm to network throughout the country to use legal contraints on the public as a private legal advisory board to congressional members ONLY and their plan is by 2030 to have secured worldwide ICC codes by this once FAILING UK company as they boast publically their profit potential. US is based on the rights and freedoms of common man to own land, to build a homestead of choice. How we let a FAILING UK company come in here to restrict affordable modes of building on faked out "its for your safety" bull is an insult to Americans who are suppose to have freedom but someone has learned how to push profit agendas and override American Constitutional Rights and we truly need to wake up here as we have forfeited common sense, ease of build types for homeowners that make sense to be sold out on wasteful, expensive no longer affordable of main stream Americans, it has to stop! Ive seen absolute genius ways to build and the people behind it are who we should support as they evolved from human needs not how much can I make.
There are wattle and daub houses in England over 700 years old. When I saw you using this material to fill a void it reminded me of wattle and daub construction. Great video. I subscribed.
@@DarkLinkAD that's why architects say that you've got to make the roof and the base.... Head and feet.... Dry....... well and the rest takes care of itself.
This is great I would really like to see a demonstration of this creating a DIY SIPs panel. You could even insert pvc conduit as you pack for wire runs in the walls
Thanks for all your good experimentation and innovation! Also, for removing so much STYROFOAM from landfills & encouraging others to do likewise.. Great work!
How would one dispose of styrofoam aircrete once it reaches it's end of life? Would this type of aircrete be able to be recycled the same way concrete would be, or does the added strofoam mean it needs to be taken to the landfill? What are the consequences of leaving styrofoam aircrete to decay when abandoned onsite? I dont mean to be a negative nancy, just wondering what the net lifetime impact of this would be.
In your other video that shows your shredder machine, I noticed your foam gets everywhere and clings to everything. The best way to help eliminate the static when grinding the foam is to just mist it with water occasionally. This makes clean up so much easier and quicker. I regularly cut 2 lb density EPS on my CNC router table and I keep a spray bottle of water near by when I clean up the shavings and dust after cutting. You may be able to hook up a ring of fine atomizers around the inside housing of your blade and wet the foam slightly while cutting. You're going to be adding water anyways, so having wet styrofoam shouldn't be a problem in your mix.
DesignCutters I have been thinking about doing this and glad to hear you confirm it is a good idea. I am thinking of ways to shred and fully contain the shredded styrofoam so it does not go everywhere.
Absolutely fantastic. I'm in South Africa and here we have massive problems with lack of housing. I'm sure this is going to be such an awesome help. Thank you so much for sharing your experience
This is a very ingenious way to build economically while reducing energy needs and also helping the environment by recycling. It’s amazing how Steven is thinking outside the “box” and providing so much benefit.
@@tubester4567 I said the same thing. I've been building for 31 years and seismic, high wind, and flood plane codes have changed several times since I started. Depending on where you live snow load might also be an issue
I love your creativity! In coming up with the whole styrofoam idea in the first place, then imagining different ways to use it, and finally I think my favorite idea was the lawnmower shredder! 😄
I would suggest trying a mix with fiberglass fibers in the mix as well. It's used with concrete furniture and counter tops. It may add the reinforcement needed to stiffen up the vertical slabs.
What he's showcasing is low weight, low cost, high thermal resistance, high yield efficiency building material. Fiberglass fibers are expensive vs recycled Styrofoam and fiberglass fiber is not a low weight product if used in solid mass structural rigidity applications. The weight of the fiberglass webbing used on surface applications herein is justified because of the need for long term structural integrity and durability. You wouldn't want to leave this product as an exposed raw surface due to the high styro content. Glass fibers and even steel fibers are used in cementeous applications already, but they are not cheap, and the increase weight dramatically.
Man, I'm amazed that you had the money, the time, the resources, the basic knowledge, the tools, the curiosity, and more importantly the will to share all that. I'm the same kind of guy buy I would definitely try this out. I can thank you enough
Seems like you could pour a floor and then tip up wall panels, complete with rebar and pre-installed wood nailing ribs. Medium sized tractor for the lift. Really nice video, thanks for sharing.
I thought this was the best way to go over foamcrete 3 years ago just for the simple reason of recycling styrofoam and the great economics but didn’t really see it happening so i decided it must have drawbacks like fire risk or something . So glad you did this video content. You have reignited my vision !
Breathtaking! Awesome, inspiring, and easy! I'm rewatching this a few times to let some of the details soak in. I have a foam gen. but was stuck on how to do walls and floors. And you showed the way to do that and attic/truss insulation with structural rigidity. I have been worried about chaos Specifically, after severe weather events. The debris all flocked in pink insulation (hazardous), as well as any surviving living trees, etc. Often spelling destruction of them when clean up commences. Now, with Aircrete and your instruction, you've eased my conscious about events yet unseen.
Stephen, I have watched probably ALL the Aircrete videos on TH-cam (Like you, I can't get enough) but your videos are the BEST! I like your presentation style and how you show us your research and what worked and what didn't. I love alternative building materials. We have a Tiny Home in our backyard that we rent out on Airbnb and my wife and I are having a blast! Our dream is to have a dozen Tiny Homes on a larger property all assorted styles. I will also host art therapy retreats on the property. I definitely want one or more of them to be Aircrete! I immediately subscribed and I hope you produce many more videos! I'll watch them all.
@@AbundanceBuild I am really looking forward to watching you build THAT! Our next project is an A-frame 'treehouse" that will be added to our listing as an optional sleeping area. Since we are doing 'proof of concept' by starting in our backyard with a Glamped-up camper, parking and space is an issue or we would offer it as a second listing. Adding it should still allow us to increase the income -which is always a fun way to prove it will work. :) This A-frame will be built using 17 foot long pallets, so nearly 80% recycled wood. They will be whole -not broken down. Well, at least that's the plan. I've been considering shooting aircrete into the pallet as insulation and structural integrity. I appreciate your warning in your videos that so far you have not figured out how to make that work. When you do -please let me know! I heard Aircrete Harry say he has a special ingredient he adds that makes it tralable. I assume this ingredient is like gelatin in food that makes it consistent and more firm. Any idea what this might be?
I have watched a lot of utube video over the years but this is the first I have ever subscribed to. Very good. From your jacket I would say you are a vet. even better. I was a rebuild mechanic in the army 1960 to 63. Again great job. I look forward to looking at the rest of your videos. Wish I wasn't so darn old so I could do more with this.
Steve, you're a flippin' legend. Really inspiring! Love the recycled materials aspect -- trash is an underrated resource. God bless you and your family!
Too bad the end product cannot be recycled. Styrofoam can be recycled, concrete aswell, the 2 shouldn't be mixed, because now it can only go to landfill.
I'll tell you for years I've always considered waste products as potential building products I mean look at what Mike pillow did to make a million dollar business he went to these memory foam companies and picked up their waste to which he uniformly shredded or tour to which he inserted into a pillow case which then would yield him a $40 profit and from what I understand he was able to get this product for free I mean how many products required zero dollars
@@AbundanceBuild I hope you are able to add some rebar to a slab for a comparison on the tensile strength tests. Also was there a reason you did not use perlite and went to the eps? Thanks for doing the videos!
Whats the build? I want to build rooftop desk since house is on hill with LA skyline/ Hollywood sign 20 mile in distance. Sunset!! Or 4foot wide 3deep length the side of house no one goes by.
What an awesome build! Great ideas for repurposing styrofoam and keeping one less thing out of the landfill. Please do videos on your tools you have created. Super job and I can't wait to see what's next.
If people were really interested in keeping things out of the landfill, they would ban plastic made products and go back to metal and glass like they used to.
Love the research A couple thoughts for your next project . In flood areas you might want to blend shredded styro into concrete .so your building doesnt float away . Bags of fiberglass or nylon fibres mixed in give amazing strength drill holes then use cement board screws if you are adding drywall . Make thicker walls so theres no need to insert lumber into it for structure . Use plastic vapour barrier on your forms and they come off the wall easily and give a smooth finish . Im looking forward to uour next video
Aloha 🌺 from northern Germany. Thank you so much for sharing your experience with your self made aircrete and the results. For me (as a german) your english is easy to understand, because your pronouncation is very clear. So i thnik we´ll try it out... 🙏🥰
I think you've been inhabiting my head! I've been looking at aircrete, hempcrete, and gothic arch building for the past few years and slowly formulating a plan to do a tiny house. Very interested to see the final product
I have a few ideas for you. 1) Look at nylon Bird Netting. It comes in giant sizes to go over fruit trees to keep birds out. It is also used to keep Hawks away from chickens. You might be able to use it instead of the fiber meshing. 2) Look a heat shrinkable plastic that is used to cover boats for winter storage. Now if you utilize old fashioned chair webbing/bird net/ +heat shrinkable plastic, you can heat shrink the plastic down onto a complex form. I once made a tailbox for my recumbent bike for loaded touring using chloroplast strips (like a basket) and the heat shrinkable plastic. The tailbox turned out both lightweight and aerodynamic... Once the plastic shrinks, the structure becomes drum like. 3) For complex shapes, such as roof elements, with embedded beams that are at right angles to the shape, perhaps adding a small amount of concrete hardener might allow the mix to stiffen enough to continue pouring. 4) Bird netting could also be used like sidewalk screen within the mix. Bird Netting is cheap... 5) There is a fiberglass/epoxy product that you can coat both sides of a dry stacked cement block wall. It is probably expensive, but it waterproof when used for foundations. 6) For your Arched Cabin, what if you made your arched wooden beams in a "U" shape. Now, you could put plastic on the inside of the "U". You could then place webbing/netting/heat shrink to the arched areas. You could then slip form each side. Filling the top might be problematic. You might be able split the arch and pour one side and then the other, remove the forms, and slide the two halves together. I hope these ideas help!!! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!!! Bob Cromer email: roberthcromer@gmail.com
Wooden studs are ok if one wraps them in plastic first so the water doesn’t sucks out from the mix into the wood. That is how we make some bathroomfloors in Sweden if the floor beams are way too chopped up by plumbing and electrical drill holes. We buy a ready product like this th-cam.com/video/GGRMXYPlwps/w-d-xo.html
@@mackemacchiato3238 The wood would be slow to dry if it did absorb water from the drying cement, but that seems like it would be an issue of shrinkage and warpage from the water, rather than concerns for rot. A lot of people think rot is caused by it getting wet. But rot occurs only by repeated wet then dry cycles MANY times. Even a handful of cycles won't cause rot to cause any structural issue. The fungus that makes wood rot only thrives at a specific moisture content, which is why the wood "swinging" through that % repeatedly enables rot. It's why a wood fence post will rot off right at the ground before anywhere else: that is the most frequent spot on the post where it cycles from wet to dry over and over. "Dry rot" is not a thing, despite old timers referring to it. Either constantly dry, or constantly wet, you'll get no rot. The wet version has been in evidence for 100 years at, for example, the St. Marks church in Venice supported by wood pilings driven into the mud that have never rotted.
Two minutes into your video I knew I would subscribe to your channel. Great video well explained. Now I'm headed to see what other videos of yours I can find. Thanks
Hey Takes a lot of and years experimentation before Building codes would let usage. We sure need to find a place to repurpose styrofoam in any form. Excellent video
@@davidprins9401 True. I know that Mohave County allowed 300 squarefoot non-powered buildings as long as they were off the property line by 5' for years without any permitting. I'm sure they don't respond to much unless without a lot of prompting once you're out of sight from the main roads.
I live in a mobile home that has a tendency to attract mold easily, and after seeing this video considering replacing interior walls and insulation with aircrete. This may be an easier fix than replacing the entire home. Don't know much about foam so will have to research more. Thanks for the video.
There is a concrete product called "vinyl patch/crete," and this has strips of vinyl fibers mixed into the concrete to increase the tensile strength... So, if you could find a free source of fibers and mix them in before your pour, you could probably get rid of the need for stucco.
I would be interested in seeing how other lightweight fillers in a mix like this would perform. One that comes to mind that is super cheap and similar to Styrofoam is rice hulls. They are basically waste and are very insulative while having a high resistance to rot and fire because of their high silica content. I know that rice hulls can be used as blown insulation that does not pack down due to weight if treated with chemicals or diatomaceous earth to prevent insects from nesting in it. It has slightly less insulative value than cellulose or fiberglass blown insulation, but is is just as light and far cheaper.
@Knightswithoutatable I like your Rice Hull idea. This could be a possibility in our area in the Philippines as well. Styrofoam is more challenging to get access to here in the Philippines. Good Luck! Greg
Really beautiful piece, and I love the way you explained everything in detail. Can you please do us a video of how to make the styrofoam shredder? I'll love to see that. Thanks
@stephen Williams - Hi Steve, enjoyed watching your new discovery using shredded styro foam and the sections you are creating with membrane and stucco. I believe this a big game changer. However you mentioned some of the setbacks in applying your method to constructing domes. I am pleased to tell that I have been working on innovative approaches to dome construction using hexagons. Also I believe that I have cracked the problem with the curved characteristic of domes. My new designs produce hexagons with right angles and the curve is created with angled shims added during assembly of dome. This means lots of right angled hexagons being produced quicker and easier by lesser trained operatives and the dome size is not restricted to component size because the hexagons can be added and subtracted according to space needs. When my 3D cad drawing is complete I will make it available for viewing. Thanks for inspiring efforts. Joe of UK
@@AbundanceBuild - @Stephen Williams - Hi Stephen, just completed one set of pics using tinker cad (sketchup wasn't working for me) and I have sent a bunch of jpegs to a friend who has the resources to build my dream dome. I would like to share these with anyone interested. I haven't checked for patents and I am not looking to earn anything from this However I hope no one else steals, patents and prohibits others from using it. I have seen others involved in dome design get very tetchy about their patents. I will try and find a way to convey this info hopefully without YT interfering. Thanks to you and Shepherds of Truth for your response. Regards Joe of UK
Nice nod to the guys I've followed for a few years. Nice seeing your innovation! I think you found the perfect material (in conjunction with rebar and stucco) to build a dome with. Now I'm stoked!
Very cool!! I’ve been interested in aircrete for a long time I just have too many projects to complete yet and a warm shop before I can start experimenting. Subscribed and looking forward to future videos.
@@AbundanceBuild Have ever consider using "glass foam" aggravate in concrete pour for a slab? BTW there are few companies that make blocks of of this material that is used as an ICF. And I have seen a structural engineer test wrapping fiberglass mats, a inside failing CMU wall to reinforce it. But there is the 1st time I have seen these build ideas combined in there manner. One last question was there any issue with you local code enforcement signing off on it? That seemed like the major road block in it being used more.
@@AbundanceBuild th-cam.com/video/r-pI724I_tE/w-d-xo.html . Really easy and cheap. I do ecological housing in Uruguay. Hot outside, and inside cool with no AC.
Very good idea, thanks for your time and researching! I was thinking from the outside we need facade, of course there is lot of ways to do it but..., If we vibrate the concrete then we get nice surface. Now there is lot of products on the market, there are some fluids which you can spray on the concrete and it is water-resistant later and you can be sure that your concrete wall doesn't take moisture in winter days. After that you can choose some paints do decorate it.
That is great thank you - - very interesting you are a nice human being you know theres not to many people would do this for sharing this will help so many people really your a Great person hope many others appreciate what you have done here
One method that would be good for someone trying to build like this alone, is instead of doing whole walls, make interlocking blocks. Kind of like those you see on some road construction projects. The size of which would be 3'-4' long by 1.5' wide and high. The size could be adjusted for whatever weight you have the capability to handle. I am curious to know what your mix weighs when cured per cubic foot.
@@RollinShultz Almost nothing. Don't build walls with this and put a roof on it. Long-term the expanded polystyrene is no better than air and without any other proper binding/strength substrate, walls built with this, if they're under constant pressure, will fail. Stucco is absolutely not a way to strengthen anything, it's just a finish. Make decoration with this kind of aircrete, by all means, but please, never ever, ever use this to build anything that puts lives in danger if/when it fails.
@@tomteatom You are right that stucco is not the way to strengthen but latex cement on fiberglass mesh that is a 1 centimeter thick shell is the way to strengthen it and it is incredibly strong.
I will use this to insulate my roof. It is exactly what I was looking for. The lightness will be perfect. SW, how is the sound insulation compared to aircrete?
You should add chopped glass fiber from the stucco store to your concrete it will add a ton of tensile strength. By adding these fibers to 3k psi concrete it will be well over 10k psi search this 1/2" Chopped Fiberglass Fibers
@@AbundanceBuild get a chop gun and spray it :) I bet you will be casting structural member's. That's what I want to do next. Great vids on your castings.
That's a much more appropriate use for the material. Building a house with it is beyond dangerous and will 100% fail and most likely hurt everyone inside.
Wonderful! It’s so generous of you to share this with us! I hope we can make it a win for you as well. This idea has so much potential to change the world for good! Does anybody know what happened to Darwin - the honeydew carpenter? He was so prolific with his contact and had so many good ideas and had such a good heart! I miss him and Mrs. honeydew Carpenter!
Thanks Shannon. They have moved and bought a bunch of raw land and are going to homestead on it. He has put out 2 videos about it. Search for them and you will find them. gorgeous land, daunting task ahead of them.
Cool experiment. I'm very curious as to how this material would perform in the role of prefab roof panels. If it's light, thick and rigid, it'd be interesting if solar arrays could be mounted or integrated on them without the posts penetrating all the way through the barrier. Fine sands and silts can be obtained from bulk sediment with suspension sluices and sifting frames. Basaltic sediment may even reduce emissions from the curing. Frayed tarpaulins and retired agricultural polymer netting are probably a good source for reinforcement fibers. Please protect yourself with respiratory PPE or engineering controls so that your interesting experiments may continue for a long time.
That’s a great idea. The mounting hardware could be fully integrated into the panel that way. It would still need a durable and waterproof top surface. If you used a meltable PC or polymer it would surround the hardware stems.
we used to work for a restaurant chain building the restaurants. The walkin freezers were built onsite using premade foam panels using 4x8 sheets of OSB on the inside and out. the osb hung over each edge of the foam about 1/12” so you could screw the panels together by screwing thru the foam into the next overlapping osb panel. This is one way you could make roof panels with aircrete as well! I would definitely use the correct supports underneath ! Thats where a good engineer or architect comes in! I am a firm believer in that buildings have to be constructed so they are SAFE!
Your insurance factor is really amazing, so your getting average of 12.5 R rating from a 3 1/2" wall. That is so close to a regular insulted stick wall. It truly is amazing. Did you do a compression rating in PSF to see what is the average load you can use before failure of the wall?
It would be a good idea to perform some basic material strength measurements so that the properties of this material can be used to engineer the structure. What is the compression strength? Beams generally fail in tension? What is the tensile strength? You could estimate these using your sample panel and a few tests.
Please, please someone please do this test. I don’t know how to do these tests but I understand why they are necessary and would really like to see the results so this practice can be adopted more widely.
Sam, I am thinking through how to do a variety of tests. I am moving towards using the wood truss design i showed nailed together with scrap 2x material from building sites. This will give you the ability to pour the walls and roof in one monolithic pour. This will give it tremendous more strength and nailing surfaces to screw sheetrock, siding and metal roofing.
@@AbundanceBuild California needs something like this for the fire retardant facto, but the issue with earthquakes always comes up with concrete materials. How would styrocrete be reinforced to be safe in an earhquake?
Great job and explanation looking forward to seeing a panel completed with the fiber mesh. Honeydew carpenter built a great tool to get the stucco on your walls fast! I'd like to make panels for some raised garden beds.
Anyone building boats out of aircrete these days? I been thinking about trying to make a shed that could float and be lightweight so that I can put it on a trailer when I find some land to buy. I'm in Bradenton Florida. I have watched all the foamcrete and cindercrete vids on youtube from all over the world. It's amazing what people come up with and this video make me want to start experimenting. Thank you for the inspiration
Nice video Steve. Always wonder how that styrofoam could be used. Have you had any panels load tested? The arch is cool. Create a flexible template/tape to attach to top of the arc mark the blocking zones for nailing/screwing sheathing. Have you checked fire codes for toxic gases if the structure gets HOT. Wondering if fire personnel would enter a structure if on fire. I really like your creative thinking/process. Good luck. Looking forward to your videos. I watched a home being built in the early 70s. Today it is called The Flintstone House in San Mateo County, CA. It has been the center of many a controversy. Check it out. Neighbors have recently raised hell regarding the theme in the yard along with the colors. It’s the only organically shaped home on the surrounding hills. Everything else is “boxes on stilts “. There were many leaking problems with this home. Today’s materials would have been a great help. Wonder how this technology would work on a Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome structure. Create some panels that can be bolted together. 👍
I think it would be a really bad idea to have OSB in direct contact with concrete even if it is aircrete. Concrete has a lot of water that takes quite a long time to dissipate in its curing process. During that time it will degrade the OSB.
I dont know bout permanent, like osb i-beams combined with this for sips, but we use osb to form concrete on anything with a bigger exposure than 5 1/2" all the time. Faces fine n pops free well as long as it's juiced.
Nice presentation of very solid content! Well thought out. Thanks for sharing it! What I am missing is how the second story is attached - so it does not end up in Oz?
Thanks for the feedback. I bolted a top plate with long screws into the top of the aircrete and the floor sits on that and interior walls that are all nailed together.
Despite what the Ontario building Code (and I suspect others as well) would say; Using OSB on a roof is not a good idea. When the roof invariably fails, the OSB takes on water, swells up and falls apart. @14:26 Some of it even makes it into your container... Your efforts are intriguing.
I was assuming that he meant that the osb on the roof panel would give you a layer of osb to lay underlayment and shingles or metal roofing on instead of using the panel as a roof structure without any covering.
@@robhendrix8020 The problem is the OSB. When the shingles fail, the OSB gets wet, swells up and falls apart. Its fine on a wall but, on a roof or a bathroom or kitchen floor... Not a chance.
WOW! Love the content and all the info. Thanks for sharing. Typical aircrete recipe is about 150-160 PSI. What do you think you're getting on your mix design?
Thank you. It is lower than aircrete because of the styrofoam. It has good compressive strength as you can tell from holding up the second floor. The strength comes from the fiber mesh stucco. The wall is very flimsy until that is applied.
Maybe mix in some fiber mesh like used in concrete slabs . Would be interesting to see if that would give you the strength needed without having to lathe it ,etc.
Wow, brilliant!! I loved the R value testing. Put different AirCrete enclosures around bottles of frozen water, wait a while then see how much liquid water is in each bottle.
I am not familiar with this kind of test. @Stephen Williams Would having a layer of each kind of aircrete on the bottom, under the frozen bottle to form a complete enclosure, have given you a different r-value?
Interesting idea. One thing that occurs to me is that expanded polystyrene (that's actually what you're using ... styrofoam is a different product) is very flammable. Have you tested the fire resistance of this stuff?
I watched a bunch of aircrete videos before and had come to the conclusion that it wasn't really worth the effort. I saw this video in my feed and almost skipped over it. this way of doing it seems to be the most practical, repeatable, and easy method. this has changed what I was thinking for my cabin design that said, this cannot be a structural material. first, bricks, concrete block etc. do not have their strength judged by "it held it up". building materials need to withstand failures in weird directions and for all kinds of reasons. second, structural materials cannot have catastrophic failure modes. that's why rebar is in concrete, so what when the concrete fail, the rebar holds the structure together. so, if anyone is thinking about building with this, you should build a structurally sound building FIRST, then use this to fill in the walls. something like traditional stick framing then filling in the wall cavities with this stuff would work well.
Maybe with Post and Beam style Buildings, as well! But, he did mention you could form blocks, like "Concrete Blocks, that have 2 Holes in them, for Pouring Concrete of whatever PSI you Need, for Vertical Columns, that are then the Structural Support, while the Aircrete Blocks from the Insulation, AND stabilization of the Columns! Using Vertical Rebar, tied to 1/2" Square Metal Mesh Construction Cloth, in those holes, should be a Good Core to the Columns!
Nice work. What are the benefits of mixing with aircrete rather than just standard concrete? Could you not just use a little more styrofoam and then not need a foam generator?
It's proprietary and more expensive. It also has not stood the test of time and will probably fail spectacularly like all the new stuff does. Unlike that chinese made faucet that fails in a year, if this fails, it's going to require your entire house be rebuilt and gonna cost you more than $100 to replace.
Hi Stephen. Once again great video. Little known in some circles ( blue ?) but ferro-cement boats were a resource in WWII when materials were scarce. I think your aircrete/polystyrene composite has the potential to make a great boat in the hands of an experienced boat builder.
Why not use plastic, or Dacron to line the inside of the mold. , Sparingly staple the mesh on top, then assemble the mold. Do this on both sides. 3 to 4 holes drilled in the window sill mold would allow filling that area by letting air out.
In commercial concrete construction, we used high Powered Cement vibrators, to Densify and Compact the Concrete, as we pour it, to fill Voids, ets., but - Our Forms are Very Securely Anchored, to the Rock, at the Bases, and to each other as we go up, with 1/2" Diameter Rods, threaded on the Ends, for connecting 3/4 Threaded Sleeves to, for Large Cast Plates and Big Wing Nuts, on ACME Square Threads, on the outside work area! (But, we poured Massive Thick Pours, as Retaining Walls, on Railway Banks, using a "3 in 12" Slope Inside - towards the Rails, and a "1 in 12" Slope on the Outside, with a "Skinny Top" of "Only 2 Feet Wide!") After the Pour, the Sleeves are unthreaded, and the shallow holes hand patched, with a simple Sand Grout mix!
With the foam being so finicky I would not even use the phone I would use just the styro mixed with concrete and of course you still need to add some sand to make this perfect strong with a few small pebbles I'm not sure about the pebbles just a little bit of sand the right kind of sand because you're not going to use the foam and just it looks like you use a whole barrel full of Styrofoam with one bag of Portland cement but of course the builders recipes usually 1/3 sand 1/3 cement and one third aggregate, which is Stone, you probably could use some lightweight lava stone, in fact that would be one way to get around the builders code, they might not pass the styrofoam but if you used lava stone . ..it would be considered aggregate, what do you think about that old boy Steven?
I don't know where you are located, but telling viewers that they can build their homes or an apartment with this method is highly irresponsible when it could never pass approval by any building department in almost any country. I do like the idea of using insulated concrete to build with, but until more testing and approvals are granted, it will be limited to areas with ZERO code enforcement, or to small agricultural buildings not intended for human habitation.
In Engineering School we used styrofoam and fly ash (coal ash) to design and build a concrete canoe for competition. It was pretty light weight it only took 4 people to lift it, very similar principal here. Reduce the portland by replacing it with fly ash. I'm always looking for building alternatives, I have done many non conventional builds. 24x24 clear span with 9ft walls all from white cedar pallets simple to insulate, wire, and very strong. Held 8 inches of snow and the ice that followed.
Good Job👍!
Great to hear! How waterproof was your canoe and what would you recommend?
Fly ash is a by product of Coal power plants. Due to 8 years of an administration coal plants are being shut down. The concrete became more expensive due to the scarcity of fly ash in U.S. Fly Ash in concrete is being replaced with something else. The domino effect! Fly ash was a filler ingredient in concrete to take up space and increase volume.
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Sounds interesting!
People like you are the best man, number 1 you show us we can think outside the box on building a home or whatever, save money etc. And on top of that you share your knowledge with everyone for free after no telling how much R & D is rare these days.! Thank you
You're welcome!
Hi Steve I’m a builder for many years! I’ve been see and experimenting with different materials my whole life! I see ur solution bonds pretty well, I’d bet adding paint would help even more in some applications? Even rubber paint like on exterior walls or just around the foundation where the materials meet would greatly help in bonding and water proofing if needed? I’ve got so many different building ideas, I pretty much been building my whole life! And you are definitely on to a huge breakthrough? God knows the world needs it as our so calls LEADERS shaft the system in order to jack up material cost just to manipulate the masses? Good job 👏🏼 and thanks for sharing!!!!
dried out hemp stalks as an aggregate media combined with this would probably be pretty lit
@@sinvex2224 yes similar to a fiber mesh which is always used when you don’t use rebar.
Have you tried earth bag? I’ve been curious and want to try it.
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So agree with comment, we got huge problems with not accepting better and affordable build types and dropping information on the issue here, because it will get worse. So a lot of people dont know in 2000 a failing UK company made deals with US Housing Authorities this is why we got huge ICC build code restrictions which really is just an old boys club that fills up friends of friends wink, wink pockets and they used a CA law firm to network throughout the country to use legal contraints on the public as a private legal advisory board to congressional members ONLY and their plan is by 2030 to have secured worldwide ICC codes by this once FAILING UK company as they boast publically their profit potential. US is based on the rights and freedoms of common man to own land, to build a homestead of choice. How we let a FAILING UK company come in here to restrict affordable modes of building on faked out "its for your safety" bull is an insult to Americans who are suppose to have freedom but someone has learned how to push profit agendas and override American Constitutional Rights and we truly need to wake up here as we have forfeited common sense, ease of build types for homeowners that make sense to be sold out on wasteful, expensive no longer affordable of main stream Americans, it has to stop! Ive seen absolute genius ways to build and the people behind it are who we should support as they evolved from human needs not how much can I make.
There are wattle and daub houses in England over 700 years old. When I saw you using this material to fill a void it reminded me of wattle and daub construction. Great video. I subscribed.
Straw bales (the older one man size) make excellent walls. Pinned together with willow canes and daubed over with lime mortar, it lasts and lasts.
@@Dave5843-d9m Will rot with moisture
@@DarkLinkAD that's why architects say that you've got to make the roof and the base.... Head and feet.... Dry....... well and the rest takes care of itself.
@@DarkLinkAD no not if you dont put it directly on the ground! build a stem wall first then stack your bales!
@@StonemanRocks I dont buy it..
Love this. You look like a dad, so I'm gonna say thanks dad!
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This is great I would really like to see a demonstration of this creating a DIY SIPs panel. You could even insert pvc conduit as you pack for wire runs in the walls
Look above it by idea
Yes, Sip's to attach to a Timber Frame / Post and Beam would be amazing
SIP EPS foamcrete panels? That could be beneficial in areas with high fire risk
Would also love to see this!
Could even include some wire for added strength
Thanks for all your good experimentation and innovation!
Also, for removing so much STYROFOAM from landfills & encouraging others to do likewise.. Great work!
How would one dispose of styrofoam aircrete once it reaches it's end of life? Would this type of aircrete be able to be recycled the same way concrete would be, or does the added strofoam mean it needs to be taken to the landfill? What are the consequences of leaving styrofoam aircrete to decay when abandoned onsite? I dont mean to be a negative nancy, just wondering what the net lifetime impact of this would be.
@@liquidfrice were do they recycle concrete?
Actually after tornado's here in TN it went all back into the landfills and proved a deadly structure
@@liquidfrice grind it up and make recycled styroaircrete.
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In your other video that shows your shredder machine, I noticed your foam gets everywhere and clings to everything. The best way to help eliminate the static when grinding the foam is to just mist it with water occasionally. This makes clean up so much easier and quicker. I regularly cut 2 lb density EPS on my CNC router table and I keep a spray bottle of water near by when I clean up the shavings and dust after cutting. You may be able to hook up a ring of fine atomizers around the inside housing of your blade and wet the foam slightly while cutting. You're going to be adding water anyways, so having wet styrofoam shouldn't be a problem in your mix.
DesignCutters I have been thinking about doing this and glad to hear you confirm it is a good idea. I am thinking of ways to shred and fully contain the shredded styrofoam so it does not go everywhere.
Thanks
You're welcome and thank you!
Amazing. Clever, Creative, Cost Effective. Thank You for taking the time to make this video.
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👍🙂👍
That was a solid set of shout outs.
I’ve actually heard of the majority of the people you gave a shout out to.👍
Attribution is always good. It's how you make better wheels.
I've been following the same guys.
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Absolutely fantastic. I'm in South Africa and here we have massive problems with lack of housing. I'm sure this is going to be such an awesome help. Thank you so much for sharing your experience
Stephen is from South Africa originally! We all would love to see some relief there. Thanks for watching!
This is a very ingenious way to build economically while reducing energy needs and also helping the environment by recycling. It’s amazing how Steven is thinking outside the “box” and providing so much benefit.
it is but seriously people there way much more environmentally friendly ways of building. Aircrete is a great product nonetheless !
@@ottodidakt3069
Like what?
I dont like it, its weak and is very labour intensive.I dont think it will perform well in a fire, or earthquakes/flooding and natural disasters.
@@tubester4567 I said the same thing. I've been building for 31 years and seismic, high wind, and flood plane codes have changed several times since I started. Depending on where you live snow load might also be an issue
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My favorite aircrete channel. Dude drops nuggets every sentence.
Haha thanks!
Thank you for sharing!
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I love your creativity! In coming up with the whole styrofoam idea in the first place, then imagining different ways to use it, and finally I think my favorite idea was the lawnmower shredder! 😄
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I would suggest trying a mix with fiberglass fibers in the mix as well. It's used with concrete furniture and counter tops. It may add the reinforcement needed to stiffen up the vertical slabs.
What he's showcasing is low weight, low cost, high thermal resistance, high yield efficiency building material. Fiberglass fibers are expensive vs recycled Styrofoam and fiberglass fiber is not a low weight product if used in solid mass structural rigidity applications. The weight of the fiberglass webbing used on surface applications herein is justified because of the need for long term structural integrity and durability. You wouldn't want to leave this product as an exposed raw surface due to the high styro content. Glass fibers and even steel fibers are used in cementeous applications already, but they are not cheap, and the increase weight dramatically.
@@ThirdeyedeasInc I'm not so sure styrofoam is such a great thing from the perspective of fire. Styrene emits pretty noxious fumes when burning.
You could substitute hemp fibers as a low cost alternative.
Basalt fiber is best.
@@davidprins9401 except, hemp fibers are easy to come by.
In Florida, we pour the walls in a frame that is laird out on the floor. Once dry, it is tipped up set in place. This would make it much easier!
I was about to ask about tilt up construction. I may still.
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Breaking new ground is always expensive and time consuming. Thanks for your time and effort.
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Man, I'm amazed that you had the money, the time, the resources, the basic knowledge, the tools, the curiosity, and more importantly the will to share all that.
I'm the same kind of guy buy I would definitely try this out.
I can thank you enough
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Seems like you could pour a floor and then tip up wall panels, complete with rebar and pre-installed wood nailing ribs. Medium sized tractor for the lift. Really nice video, thanks for sharing.
That's what I was thinking. I didn't see in the video but is he using any vibration to settle or remove air?
@@jakeledg looks like all he's using is the packer thing he made
That’s a good idea. Domegaia has been experimenting with building a wall like that they call it the flip up method or something?
Call a tilt-up wall system.
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I'm very inspired and excited about your research and results. Please continue with this work.
That's the plan!
Your enthusiasm is amazing. Thanks for one of the best information packed videos on this subject.
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I like that you mentioned the use for sculpture. Sounds like a good material!
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I thought this was the best way to go over foamcrete 3 years ago just for the simple reason of recycling styrofoam and the great economics but didn’t really see it happening so i decided it must have drawbacks like fire risk or something . So glad you did this video content. You have reignited my vision !
Thank you! We are in this together!
I like folks that focus on reclamation & end up turning ecologically terrible materials into entombed solutions. Good work
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Breathtaking! Awesome, inspiring, and easy! I'm rewatching this a few times to let some of the details soak in. I have a foam gen. but was stuck on how to do walls and floors. And you showed the way to do that and attic/truss insulation with structural rigidity.
I have been worried about chaos Specifically, after severe weather events. The debris all flocked in pink insulation (hazardous), as well as any surviving living trees, etc. Often spelling destruction of them when clean up commences. Now, with Aircrete and your instruction, you've eased my conscious about events yet unseen.
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Stephen, I have watched probably ALL the Aircrete videos on TH-cam (Like you, I can't get enough) but your videos are the BEST! I like your presentation style and how you show us your research and what worked and what didn't.
I love alternative building materials. We have a Tiny Home in our backyard that we rent out on Airbnb and my wife and I are having a blast! Our dream is to have a dozen Tiny Homes on a larger property all assorted styles. I will also host art therapy retreats on the property. I definitely want one or more of them to be Aircrete!
I immediately subscribed and I hope you produce many more videos! I'll watch them all.
Have you seen Treehouse Masters ? They're the masters of creative small spaces !
Thanks for the compliment. Very cool BnB idea. Yes this would be perfect making an arched A frame build out of this.
@@AbundanceBuild I am really looking forward to watching you build THAT!
Our next project is an A-frame 'treehouse" that will be added to our listing as an optional sleeping area. Since we are doing 'proof of concept' by starting in our backyard with a Glamped-up camper, parking and space is an issue or we would offer it as a second listing.
Adding it should still allow us to increase the income -which is always a fun way to prove it will work. :)
This A-frame will be built using 17 foot long pallets, so nearly 80% recycled wood. They will be whole -not broken down. Well, at least that's the plan.
I've been considering shooting aircrete into the pallet as insulation and structural integrity. I appreciate your warning in your videos that so far you have not figured out how to make that work. When you do -please let me know!
I heard Aircrete Harry say he has a special ingredient he adds that makes it tralable. I assume this ingredient is like gelatin in food that makes it consistent and more firm. Any idea what this might be?
I have watched a lot of utube video over the years but this is the first I have ever subscribed to. Very good. From your jacket I would say you are a vet. even better. I was a rebuild mechanic in the army 1960 to 63. Again great job. I look forward to looking at the rest of your videos. Wish I wasn't so darn old so I could do more with this.
Ken, Thanks for the kudos. I am working on the third video. This one is on how to mix and work with styroaircrete.
Steve, you're a flippin' legend. Really inspiring! Love the recycled materials aspect -- trash is an underrated resource. God bless you and your family!
Too bad the end product cannot be recycled.
Styrofoam can be recycled, concrete aswell, the 2 shouldn't be mixed, because now it can only go to landfill.
I'll tell you for years I've always considered waste products as potential building products I mean look at what Mike pillow did to make a million dollar business he went to these memory foam companies and picked up their waste to which he uniformly shredded or tour to which he inserted into a pillow case which then would yield him a $40 profit and from what I understand he was able to get this product for free I mean how many products required zero dollars
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Genius always flows from the practical. Love this. I would want to see compression and tensile failure testing before I would build too much.
Ben, the tensile test is fairly easy to do and I plan to do one soon. The compression test I am still trying to figure how to do that on a budget.
All the tensile strength is in the fiber embedded in the coating. It is your choice.
@@AbundanceBuild I hope you are able to add some rebar to a slab for a comparison on the tensile strength tests. Also was there a reason you did not use perlite and went to the eps? Thanks for doing the videos!
A harbor freight press with an air attachment and a gauge? Wouldn't that give you the compression test?
@@AbundanceBuild Hydraulic jack or porta power unit with a pressure gauge is a simple compression tester.
This is amazing--mind blown--can't wait to get started, and perfect timing as I am planning a small build right now!!!! THANK YOU
Whats the build? I want to build rooftop desk since house is on hill with LA skyline/ Hollywood sign 20 mile in distance. Sunset!! Or 4foot wide 3deep length the side of house no one goes by.
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Your generosity of spirit will assuredly speed you prosperity, I pray! Thank you, and be well.
Thanks for the feedback Gregory.
@@AbundanceBuild Cynthia 1 cu fy
This is one the best things I have seen this is perfect for building a enclosed hunting stand for us in the north great video thx
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What an awesome build! Great ideas for repurposing styrofoam and keeping one less thing out of the landfill. Please do videos on your tools you have created. Super job and I can't wait to see what's next.
keeping 1 more thing out of.
.
If people were really interested in keeping things out of the landfill, they would ban plastic made products and go back to metal and glass like they used to.
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Glad to see another, recent video shared with creative thoughts applied to aircrete!
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Love the research
A couple thoughts for your next project .
In flood areas you might want to blend shredded styro into concrete .so your building doesnt float away . Bags of fiberglass or nylon fibres mixed in give amazing strength drill holes then use cement board screws if you are adding drywall . Make thicker walls so theres no need to insert lumber into it for structure .
Use plastic vapour barrier on your forms and they come off the wall easily and give a smooth finish .
Im looking forward to uour next video
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Recently I started to see foam concrete, now with this Styrofoam tip I believe I will make a completely cool, light and fresh house thanks
You absolutely can! We are about to release a step by step e-course to help you do it too! Subscribe to be notified!
Aloha 🌺 from northern Germany. Thank you so much for sharing your experience with your self made aircrete and the results. For me (as a german) your english is easy to understand, because your pronouncation is very clear. So i thnik we´ll try it out... 🙏🥰
Danke schön! Viel Glück mit Ihrem Projekt! Wir arbeiten an einer baldigen mehrsprachigen Unterstützung!
@@AbundanceBuild Vielen Dank. Thank you so much. But it´s ok for me in english 😍🙏
I think you've been inhabiting my head!
I've been looking at aircrete, hempcrete, and gothic arch building for the past few years and slowly formulating a plan to do a tiny house.
Very interested to see the final product
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I have a few ideas for you. 1) Look at nylon Bird Netting. It comes in giant sizes to go over fruit trees to keep birds out. It is also used to keep Hawks away from chickens. You might be able to use it instead of the fiber meshing. 2) Look a heat shrinkable plastic that is used to cover boats for winter storage. Now if you utilize old fashioned chair webbing/bird net/ +heat shrinkable plastic, you can heat shrink the plastic down onto a complex form. I once made a tailbox for my recumbent bike for loaded touring using chloroplast strips (like a basket) and the heat shrinkable plastic. The tailbox turned out both lightweight and aerodynamic... Once the plastic shrinks, the structure becomes drum like. 3) For complex shapes, such as roof elements, with embedded beams that are at right angles to the shape, perhaps adding a small amount of concrete hardener might allow the mix to stiffen enough to continue pouring. 4) Bird netting could also be used like sidewalk screen within the mix. Bird Netting is cheap... 5) There is a fiberglass/epoxy product that you can coat both sides of a dry stacked cement block wall. It is probably expensive, but it waterproof when used for foundations. 6) For your Arched Cabin, what if you made your arched wooden beams in a "U" shape. Now, you could put plastic on the inside of the "U". You could then place webbing/netting/heat shrink to the arched areas. You could then slip form each side. Filling the top might be problematic. You might be able split the arch and pour one side and then the other, remove the forms, and slide the two halves together. I hope these ideas help!!! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!!! Bob Cromer email: roberthcromer@gmail.com
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That's a great idea you have. I'd like to build a shed with this, possibly adding metal studs inside for added strength. Thanks for posting.
It's been done already on TH-cam.
Wooden studs are ok if one wraps them in plastic first so the water doesn’t sucks out from the mix into the wood. That is how we make some bathroomfloors in Sweden if the floor beams are way too chopped up by plumbing and electrical drill holes. We buy a ready product like this th-cam.com/video/GGRMXYPlwps/w-d-xo.html
@@mackemacchiato3238 The wood would be slow to dry if it did absorb water from the drying cement, but that seems like it would be an issue of shrinkage and warpage from the water, rather than concerns for rot.
A lot of people think rot is caused by it getting wet. But rot occurs only by repeated wet then dry cycles MANY times.
Even a handful of cycles won't cause rot to cause any structural issue. The fungus that makes wood rot only thrives at a specific moisture content, which is why the wood "swinging" through that % repeatedly enables rot.
It's why a wood fence post will rot off right at the ground before anywhere else: that is the most frequent spot on the post where it cycles from wet to dry over and over.
"Dry rot" is not a thing, despite old timers referring to it.
Either constantly dry, or constantly wet, you'll get no rot. The wet version has been in evidence for 100 years at, for example, the St. Marks church in Venice supported by wood pilings driven into the mud that have never rotted.
@@brianmi40 Well Done ! (Sailing off the keel).
I like that idea of using metal studs as a skeleton inside the Crete.
Fantastic!
Thanks for making!
Keep us posted.
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Two minutes into your video I knew I would subscribe to your channel. Great video well explained. Now I'm headed to see what other videos of yours I can find. Thanks
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Hey Takes a lot of and years experimentation before Building codes would let usage. We sure need to find a place to repurpose styrofoam in any form. Excellent video
Fortunately many jurisdictions allow 200 sf detached structures.
But, lots of testing and documentation can be done in the mean time
Styrofoam is one of the few things I CANT recycle in my area 😭 A great idea for reusing it!
@@foyjamez Yes outbuildings will be the way to experiment. Or in the middle of Arizona 😂
@@davidprins9401 True. I know that Mohave County allowed 300 squarefoot non-powered buildings as long as they were off the property line by 5' for years without any permitting. I'm sure they don't respond to much unless without a lot of prompting once you're out of sight from the main roads.
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I live in a mobile home that has a tendency to attract mold easily, and after seeing this video considering replacing interior walls and insulation with aircrete. This may be an easier fix than replacing the entire home. Don't know much about foam so will have to research more. Thanks for the video.
That sounds smart
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There is a concrete product called "vinyl patch/crete," and this has strips of vinyl fibers mixed into the concrete to increase the tensile strength... So, if you could find a free source of fibers and mix them in before your pour, you could probably get rid of the need for stucco.
Fiberglass or rock wool insulation could work.
@@slaplapdog Fiberbond fiberglass concrete is what i was thinking too.
Blow insulation
Chopped fiberglass is pretty cheap
Doesn't concrete break down fibreglass?
Good job. Finding new ways to build with new material. Keep it up.
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Great to hear how your creative mind works while you're talking
Thanks Roxie!
I would be interested in seeing how other lightweight fillers in a mix like this would perform. One that comes to mind that is super cheap and similar to Styrofoam is rice hulls. They are basically waste and are very insulative while having a high resistance to rot and fire because of their high silica content. I know that rice hulls can be used as blown insulation that does not pack down due to weight if treated with chemicals or diatomaceous earth to prevent insects from nesting in it. It has slightly less insulative value than cellulose or fiberglass blown insulation, but is is just as light and far cheaper.
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@Knightswithoutatable I like your Rice Hull idea. This could be a possibility in our area in the Philippines as well.
Styrofoam is more challenging to get access to here in the Philippines.
Good Luck!
Greg
Really beautiful piece, and I love the way you explained everything in detail. Can you please do us a video of how to make the styrofoam shredder? I'll love to see that.
Thanks
Yep.. that's what I want to see as well
Me, too
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I love your shredder solution. I would not have thought of that in, well in like 20 years i tried to. So elegant.
Thank you!
World changing innovation 💡 👏
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@stephen Williams - Hi Steve, enjoyed watching your new discovery using shredded styro foam and the sections you are creating with membrane and stucco. I believe this a big game changer. However you mentioned some of the setbacks in applying your method to constructing domes. I am pleased to tell that I have been working on innovative approaches to dome construction using hexagons. Also I believe that I have cracked the problem with the curved characteristic of domes. My new designs produce hexagons with right angles and the curve is created with angled shims added during assembly of dome. This means lots of right angled hexagons being produced quicker and easier by lesser trained operatives and the dome size is not restricted to component size because the hexagons can be added and subtracted according to space needs.
When my 3D cad drawing is complete I will make it available for viewing.
Thanks for inspiring efforts. Joe of UK
Buckminster Fuller is smiling down at you ! ~Nice
That’s awesome Joe!
Joe I am interested to see how that works. Sounds great.
Yes please keep me posted as well once you have the design available to see, send us an email or text us here! Thank you for sharing!
@@AbundanceBuild - @Stephen Williams - Hi Stephen, just completed one set of pics using tinker cad (sketchup wasn't working for me) and I have sent a bunch of jpegs to a friend who has the resources to build my dream dome.
I would like to share these with anyone interested. I haven't checked for patents and I am not looking to earn anything from this However I hope no one else steals, patents and prohibits others from using it.
I have seen others involved in dome design get very tetchy about their patents.
I will try and find a way to convey this info hopefully without YT interfering.
Thanks to you and Shepherds of Truth for your response.
Regards Joe of UK
Nice nod to the guys I've followed for a few years. Nice seeing your innovation! I think you found the perfect material (in conjunction with rebar and stucco) to build a dome with. Now I'm stoked!
maybe use that basalt webbing instead of fiberglass or rebar, that would be cool
Thank you!
I would like to see the detailed build for use as a planter raised bed system, thanks
Brilliant idea! Potentially bug, rodent, and rot proof. Could be made modular so it could be relocated.
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Amazing this is perfect for kids play houses I’m interested in the making and mixing process love to see more
Great idea!
Amazing, thanks for all the helpful tidbits very generous of you!
You're welcome!
Very cool!! I’ve been interested in aircrete for a long time I just have too many projects to complete yet and a warm shop before I can start experimenting. Subscribed and looking forward to future videos.
We’re did you find that elevator?
@@Top12Boardsport On TH-cam. Search for Winch elevator. You will see several of them. Really cool.
@@AbundanceBuild Have ever consider using "glass foam" aggravate in concrete pour for a slab?
BTW there are few companies that make blocks of of this material that is used as an ICF. And I have seen a structural engineer test wrapping fiberglass mats, a inside failing CMU wall to reinforce it. But there is the 1st time I have seen these build ideas combined in there manner.
One last question was there any issue with you local code enforcement signing off on it? That seemed like the major road block in it being used more.
@@AbundanceBuild th-cam.com/video/r-pI724I_tE/w-d-xo.html . Really easy and cheap. I do ecological housing in Uruguay. Hot outside, and inside cool with no AC.
@@AbundanceBuild . Sandwich panel. Cheap. Very strong. No fire. th-cam.com/video/s_dRkIpgxCs/w-d-xo.html . 2 months, four people, done ✅.
Very good idea, thanks for your time and researching! I was thinking from the outside we need facade, of course there is lot of ways to do it but..., If we vibrate the concrete then we get nice surface. Now there is lot of products on the market, there are some fluids which you can spray on the concrete and it is water-resistant later and you can be sure that your concrete wall doesn't take moisture in winter days. After that you can choose some paints do decorate it.
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You have my complete attention. My mind is racing, thinking of the possibilities. Subscribed and eagerly awaiting some of your follow-up videos.
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That is great thank you - - very interesting you are a nice human being you know theres not to many people would do this for sharing this will help so many people really your a Great person hope many others appreciate what you have done here
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Fantastic video, looking at a barn addition, I cant wait to try some of this, thank you so very much!!!!! Really awesome!!!!!
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One method that would be good for someone trying to build like this alone, is instead of doing whole walls, make interlocking blocks. Kind of like those you see on some road construction projects. The size of which would be 3'-4' long by 1.5' wide and high. The size could be adjusted for whatever weight you have the capability to handle.
I am curious to know what your mix weighs when cured per cubic foot.
fwiw there are a couple companies that have and still make ICF blocks out of it....
Hi Rollin. The mix I am using weighs around 10 lbs /cu ft.
@@AbundanceBuild do you happen to know the compressive strength?
@@RollinShultz Almost nothing. Don't build walls with this and put a roof on it. Long-term the expanded polystyrene is no better than air and without any other proper binding/strength substrate, walls built with this, if they're under constant pressure, will fail. Stucco is absolutely not a way to strengthen anything, it's just a finish. Make decoration with this kind of aircrete, by all means, but please, never ever, ever use this to build anything that puts lives in danger if/when it fails.
@@tomteatom You are right that stucco is not the way to strengthen but latex cement on fiberglass mesh that is a 1 centimeter thick shell is the way to strengthen it and it is incredibly strong.
I will use this to insulate my roof. It is exactly what I was looking for. The lightness will be perfect. SW, how is the sound insulation compared to aircrete?
Oooh! Good question! I'm thinking music studio....
Thank you. From what I can tell it is a very good sound insulator as well.
You should add chopped glass fiber from the stucco store to your concrete it will add a ton of tensile strength. By adding these fibers to 3k psi concrete it will be well over 10k psi search this 1/2" Chopped Fiberglass Fibers
That's what I was thinking, I want to try that mix, I also want to make the bent dome mild he did not make.
Thanks for the suggestion. I noticed that EZ block, which is an aircrete ICF block is very hairy which means they are using fibers in the mix.
@@AbundanceBuild get a chop gun and spray it :) I bet you will be casting structural member's. That's what I want to do next. Great vids on your castings.
Runs about $10/lb. is that average
Why would tensile strength be needed for his wall panels?
@iammimic79
I know someone who built a huge geodesic dome house using this exact recipe, turned out great !
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This is amazing. I've been doing this for over a decade . However, I make pots for plants out of it. Never thought of a house. Really good video 👍🏽
I'm melting ~ can I see some picts of your pots? :)
That's a much more appropriate use for the material. Building a house with it is beyond dangerous and will 100% fail and most likely hurt everyone inside.
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Wonderful!
It’s so generous of you to share this with us! I hope we can make it a win for you as well. This idea has so much potential to change the world for good!
Does anybody know what happened to Darwin - the honeydew carpenter? He was so prolific with his contact and had so many good ideas and had such a good heart! I miss him and Mrs. honeydew Carpenter!
I was just thinking I haven’t heard from them in a long time. Wondering the same.
Thanks Shannon. They have moved and bought a bunch of raw land and are going to homestead on it. He has put out 2 videos about it. Search for them and you will find them. gorgeous land, daunting task ahead of them.
@@AbundanceBuild I just looked them up again too after seeing this 👍
Cool experiment. I'm very curious as to how this material would perform in the role of prefab roof panels. If it's light, thick and rigid, it'd be interesting if solar arrays could be mounted or integrated on them without the posts penetrating all the way through the barrier.
Fine sands and silts can be obtained from bulk sediment with suspension sluices and sifting frames. Basaltic sediment may even reduce emissions from the curing. Frayed tarpaulins and retired agricultural polymer netting are probably a good source for reinforcement fibers.
Please protect yourself with respiratory PPE or engineering controls so that your interesting experiments may continue for a long time.
that would be really intresting, were you thinking of using it more like spancrete? or more like individual smaller pannels fitted together?
@@timgoodliffe That's interesting as well. Spancrete marketed as "Space-Crete". Give us a couple of practical uses. Let's get this thing going.
That’s a great idea. The mounting hardware could be fully integrated into the panel that way. It would still need a durable and waterproof top surface. If you used a meltable PC or polymer it would surround the hardware stems.
I also love the idea of retired netting as a recycled fiber.
we used to work for a restaurant chain building the restaurants. The walkin freezers were built onsite using premade foam panels using 4x8 sheets of OSB on the inside and out. the osb hung over each edge of the foam about 1/12” so you could screw the panels together by screwing thru the foam into the next overlapping osb panel. This is one way you could make roof panels with aircrete as well! I would definitely use the correct supports underneath ! Thats where a good engineer or architect comes in! I am a firm believer in that buildings have to be constructed so they are SAFE!
Thank you! I want to give it a try. Where are you located? would love to see a list of the vendors for the mixer, shredder, materials, etc?
Hi A. I live in Athens Alabama. I will be sharing more about the process in the next video.
@@AbundanceBuild very cool, TY!
Great job. I have been searching building materials for years and this is the best so far that I've seen or heard of.
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WowThis stuff would be amazing as a shell to apply over a shipping container house as an insulator !
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Your insurance factor is really amazing, so your getting average of 12.5 R rating from a 3 1/2" wall. That is so close to a regular insulted stick wall. It truly is amazing. Did you do a compression rating in PSF to see what is the average load you can use before failure of the wall?
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It would be a good idea to perform some basic material strength measurements so that the properties of this material can be used to engineer the structure. What is the compression strength? Beams generally fail in tension? What is the tensile strength? You could estimate these using your sample panel and a few tests.
Please, please someone please do this test. I don’t know how to do these tests but I understand why they are necessary and would really like to see the results so this practice can be adopted more widely.
Sam, I am thinking through how to do a variety of tests. I am moving towards using the wood truss design i showed nailed together with scrap 2x material from building sites. This will give you the ability to pour the walls and roof in one monolithic pour. This will give it tremendous more strength and nailing surfaces to screw sheetrock, siding and metal roofing.
@@AbundanceBuild California needs something like this for the fire retardant facto, but the issue with earthquakes always comes up with concrete materials. How would styrocrete be reinforced to be safe in an earhquake?
Why let facts get in the way of a bad/dangerous idea?
Great job and explanation looking forward to seeing a panel completed with the fiber mesh. Honeydew carpenter built a great tool to get the stucco on your walls fast! I'd like to make panels for some raised garden beds.
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Looks like a real breakthrough and super smart, congratulations!
Thanks!
Anyone building boats out of aircrete these days? I been thinking about trying to make a shed that could float and be lightweight so that I can put it on a trailer when I find some land to buy. I'm in Bradenton Florida. I have watched all the foamcrete and cindercrete vids on youtube from all over the world. It's amazing what people come up with and this video make me want to start experimenting. Thank you for the inspiration
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Nice video Steve. Always wonder how that styrofoam could be used. Have you had any panels load tested? The arch is cool. Create a flexible template/tape to attach to top of the arc mark the blocking zones for nailing/screwing sheathing.
Have you checked fire codes for toxic gases if the structure gets HOT. Wondering if fire personnel would enter a structure if on fire.
I really like your creative thinking/process.
Good luck. Looking forward to your videos.
I watched a home being built in the early 70s. Today it is called The Flintstone House in San Mateo County, CA. It has been the center of many a controversy. Check it out. Neighbors have recently raised hell regarding the theme in the yard along with the colors. It’s the only organically shaped home on the surrounding hills. Everything else is “boxes on stilts “. There were many leaking problems with this home. Today’s materials would have been a great help.
Wonder how this technology would work on a Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome structure. Create some panels that can be bolted together. 👍
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I think it would be a really bad idea to have OSB in direct contact with concrete even if it is aircrete. Concrete has a lot of water that takes quite a long time to dissipate in its curing process. During that time it will degrade the OSB.
I dont know bout permanent, like osb i-beams combined with this for sips, but we use osb to form concrete on anything with a bigger exposure than 5 1/2" all the time. Faces fine n pops free well as long as it's juiced.
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Nice presentation of very solid content! Well thought out. Thanks for sharing it! What I am missing is how the second story is attached - so it does not end up in Oz?
Thanks for the feedback. I bolted a top plate with long screws into the top of the aircrete and the floor sits on that and interior walls that are all nailed together.
Great video we need contractors who build these types of homes in America
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Great job .
Keep building .
I live in Arizona and am going to build the same way.
You lead I will follow
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Despite what the Ontario building Code (and I suspect others as well) would say; Using OSB on a roof is not a good idea. When the roof invariably fails, the OSB takes on water, swells up and falls apart.
@14:26 Some of it even makes it into your container...
Your efforts are intriguing.
I was assuming that he meant that the osb on the roof panel would give you a layer of osb to lay underlayment and shingles or metal roofing on instead of using the panel as a roof structure without any covering.
@@robhendrix8020 The problem is the OSB. When the shingles fail, the OSB gets wet, swells up and falls apart. Its fine on a wall but, on a roof or a bathroom or kitchen floor... Not a chance.
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WOW! Love the content and all the info. Thanks for sharing. Typical aircrete recipe is about 150-160 PSI. What do you think you're getting on your mix design?
Thank you. It is lower than aircrete because of the styrofoam. It has good compressive strength as you can tell from holding up the second floor. The strength comes from the fiber mesh stucco. The wall is very flimsy until that is applied.
Maybe mix in some fiber mesh like used in concrete slabs . Would be interesting to see if that would give you the strength needed without having to lathe it ,etc.
Exactly what I was looking for here in the comments.
Fiber mesh isn't a substitute for steel reinforcement, its intent is to reduce cracking during concrete curing
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Wow, brilliant!! I loved the R value testing. Put different AirCrete enclosures around bottles of frozen water, wait a while then see how much liquid water is in each bottle.
I am not familiar with this kind of test. @Stephen Williams Would having a layer of each kind of aircrete on the bottom, under the frozen bottle to form a complete enclosure, have given you a different r-value?
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This was a great video. Easy to follow. I enjoyed it very much. My favorite part was reclying styrofoam and upside down lawn mower blender
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Interesting idea. One thing that occurs to me is that expanded polystyrene (that's actually what you're using ... styrofoam is a different product) is very flammable. Have you tested the fire resistance of this stuff?
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I watched a bunch of aircrete videos before and had come to the conclusion that it wasn't really worth the effort. I saw this video in my feed and almost skipped over it. this way of doing it seems to be the most practical, repeatable, and easy method. this has changed what I was thinking for my cabin design
that said, this cannot be a structural material. first, bricks, concrete block etc. do not have their strength judged by "it held it up". building materials need to withstand failures in weird directions and for all kinds of reasons. second, structural materials cannot have catastrophic failure modes. that's why rebar is in concrete, so what when the concrete fail, the rebar holds the structure together. so, if anyone is thinking about building with this, you should build a structurally sound building FIRST, then use this to fill in the walls. something like traditional stick framing then filling in the wall cavities with this stuff would work well.
Maybe with Post and Beam style Buildings, as well! But, he did mention you could form blocks, like "Concrete Blocks, that have 2 Holes in them, for Pouring Concrete of whatever PSI you Need, for Vertical Columns, that are then the Structural Support, while the Aircrete Blocks from the Insulation, AND stabilization of the Columns!
Using Vertical Rebar, tied to 1/2" Square Metal Mesh Construction Cloth, in those holes, should be a Good Core to the Columns!
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Nice work. What are the benefits of mixing with aircrete rather than just standard concrete? Could you not just use a little more styrofoam and then not need a foam generator?
Good question. I originally thought that is what he did. I had to watch the video twice to see the suds being added.
It's proprietary and more expensive. It also has not stood the test of time and will probably fail spectacularly like all the new stuff does. Unlike that chinese made faucet that fails in a year, if this fails, it's going to require your entire house be rebuilt and gonna cost you more than $100 to replace.
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Great video. I liked how you explained what you did and showed clips. Well done sir!
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Great stuff ! impossible not to like this videoooo ! I'll keep on watching ! Greetings.
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Hi Stephen. Once again great video.
Little known in some circles ( blue ?) but ferro-cement boats were a resource in WWII when materials were scarce.
I think your aircrete/polystyrene composite has the potential to make a great boat in the hands of an experienced boat builder.
thanks for sharing!
Why not use plastic, or Dacron to line the inside of the mold. , Sparingly staple the mesh on top, then assemble the mold. Do this on both sides. 3 to 4 holes drilled in the window sill mold would allow filling that area by letting air out.
In commercial concrete construction, we used high Powered Cement vibrators, to Densify and Compact the Concrete, as we pour it, to fill Voids, ets., but - Our Forms are Very Securely Anchored, to the Rock, at the Bases, and to each other as we go up, with 1/2" Diameter Rods, threaded on the Ends, for connecting 3/4 Threaded Sleeves to, for Large Cast Plates and Big Wing Nuts, on ACME Square Threads, on the outside work area!
(But, we poured Massive Thick Pours, as Retaining Walls, on Railway Banks, using a "3 in 12" Slope Inside - towards the Rails, and a "1 in 12" Slope on the Outside, with a "Skinny Top" of "Only 2 Feet Wide!")
After the Pour, the Sleeves are unthreaded, and the shallow holes hand patched, with a simple Sand Grout mix!
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With the foam being so finicky I would not even use the phone I would use just the styro mixed with concrete and of course you still need to add some sand to make this perfect strong with a few small pebbles I'm not sure about the pebbles just a little bit of sand the right kind of sand because you're not going to use the foam and just it looks like you use a whole barrel full of Styrofoam with one bag of Portland cement but of course the builders recipes usually 1/3 sand 1/3 cement and one third aggregate, which is Stone, you probably could use some lightweight lava stone, in fact that would be one way to get around the builders code, they might not pass the styrofoam but if you used lava stone . ..it would be considered aggregate, what do you think about that old boy Steven?
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Very interesting aircrete strategy. LOVE IT!
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Absolutly great...thank you for the information, ingeniosity and recicling /reusing solutions. All the best here from Chile.
Bless
Thank you!
I don't know where you are located, but telling viewers that they can build their homes or an apartment with this method is highly irresponsible when it could never pass approval by any building department in almost any country. I do like the idea of using insulated concrete to build with, but until more testing and approvals are granted, it will be limited to areas with ZERO code enforcement, or to small agricultural buildings not intended for human habitation.
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