Given the go ahead from the other contractors who set their wall penetrations, the Bartley crews returned to finish setting the wall forms. Unlike the typical concrete wall for a foundation, the plans called for two kinds of insulated walls; one insulation system that is cast in the center of the concrete wall and one that is cast on the outside of the wall.

The first system, Thermomass (http://www.thermomass.com) is a rigid foam insulation that is placed in the center of the wall with fiber composite connectors that keep the insulation in place. The major benefit is the insulation eliminates thermal bridges which improves the thermal mass effect of the concrete wall. The effective R value of the system is 20.4 in the Washington D.C. area. Pictures that contain blue insulation are showing Thermomass.

The white insulation is a system called ThermaEZE (http://www.certainteed.com/products/foundations/foundation-insulation/311483) where the insulation is set on the inside or outside of the wall. The expanded polystyrene (EPS) insulation is set against the concrete panels during installation and the concrete is poured normally. In this application ThermaEZE was placed on the outside of the wall in order to assist the steel decking and support design. The R value of ThermaEZE is 9.4 for 2 inches of the material and a 10” wall.

Moving along the wall, the crews placed insulation, the rebar and then the exterior concrete wall panels. At this point, the walls were ready for the next critical step, the concrete wall pour. Get excited!