The Mike White Project in Bowling Green, Kentucky is a 4,285-square-foot residence built by Doug Martens Construction using Nudura ICFs. It is the largest 1-story ICF home in the surrounding area. Martens estimates that using ICFs saved the construction team 8 weeks of work time.

Building Challenges
“This home created some challenges for the installers as we had 58 corners and 6 different wall (plate) heights,” explains Martens. “Extra-large windows were also a challenge as we had to reinforce the headers to carry the roof loads. We also had to design a way to install a four- panel bypass slider into an exterior ICF wall.”

Numerous plywood nailers had to be installed for corbel installation, as well as exterior vent hood installation and all wall cabinets on exterior walls as well as any wall-mounted accessories in the bathrooms. The client wanted to build on a slab, so suitable soils had to be brought in and compacted and tested prior to construction. “Winter construction is always a challenge as it is very wet here in southern Kentucky,” Martens says. “A known issue in the Karst region we live in is sinkholes, and we had to deal with one of those as well.”

Architecture and Sustainability
Martens says the home is what is considered “Florida style” in the Kentucky area. “The amount of interior and exterior corners and variable wall heights give the home lots of character,” he says. This home meets all EnergyStar ratings requirements, All LED lighting was used. The home has three variable-speed high-efficiency HVAC systems installed. The home also has three high-efficiency tankless water heaters.

Significance and Visibility
This home has been toured by multiple groups interested in considering building with ICF. One such group, a non-profit that builds for needy and disadvantaged people, has since begun using ICF. “This home was nearing completion when the devastating tornadoes hit our community and state on December 11, 2021,” says Martens. “Many groups interested in building disaster-resilient homes have toured this home and another I have had under construction since that storm.”

Doug Martens Construction began building its first ICF home in 2004. During the construction of this home, the local school district came and toured the home with the Nudura distributor for the area, Holdfast Technologies. “Since that meeting and subsequent other site visits, every school in my home of Warren County, Kentucky, has been constructed using ICF block,” says Martens. “One of those schools was directly affected by the December 11, 2021 tornadoes. We feel like we helped to start a safer school environment by choosing to build ICF way back in 2004 and gave the local school authorities something tangible to see and evaluate. This project is just a small part of a much larger body of construction projects using ICF and we feel we are finally opening peoples eyes to this type of construction.”