For many, the dream of a “forever home” isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s about building a hyper-efficient, durable structure designed to last for generations. A modern solution to this dream is building with Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF), creating a structure with a solid concrete core. But what is it actually like to live in one?
Beyond the sales pitches and technical specs, there are everyday realities that you only discover after you move in. We’re sharing the first-hand experiences of a homeowner who built his own ICF house and has lived in it for over two years, revealing the surprising and counter-intuitive truths of life inside a concrete home.
1. The Energy Efficiency Isn’t Just Good—It’s Shocking.
The primary motivation for choosing ICF is often the promise of long-term cost savings. This homeowner’s experience shows that the reality can exceed even the highest expectations.
The house is an all-electric, 6,000-square-foot conditioned space located in Kansas, which experiences both brutally hot summers and cold winters. Its efficiency is bolstered by a 5-kilowatt solar system and two geothermal heat pumps. After two full years of living there, the numbers are staggering:
• The average monthly electric bill, for the entire year, is just $100 per month.
• This cost covers everything, including keeping the home at a comfortable 75-76°F during the summer and 67-68°F in the winter.
The home’s incredible efficiency became clear even during the construction phase. Before the geothermal systems were operational, a single 8,000 BTU window unit was installed to provide some cooling. During a hotter-than-average May, that one small unit was able to keep the entire 6,000 sq ft house at a consistent 76-77°F. This feat shocked both the owner and the drywall finishers. While the small unit couldn’t overcome the humidity from the drywall mud, it effortlessly maintained the temperature.
2. You Trade Old House Noises for New, Stranger Ones.
An expected benefit of a solid concrete structure is that it’s incredibly quiet and solid. When strong Kansas winds hit, the house doesn’t creak, groan, or move like a traditional stick-framed house. While the concrete walls themselves have an incredible sound rating (STC 54), the homeowner notes that the overall quietness of the home is ultimately limited by the quality of its windows and doors, through which most external sound still enters.
But the counter-intuitive reality is that the house makes its own unique noises. The homeowner describes hearing “little poppings and just crackles of noise” as the sun moves across the sky and heats the exterior walls. This happens because materials, like vinyl windows, expand and contract at a different rate than the ICF foam they are set against. It’s not a structural issue or a major problem, but a surprising, everyday auditory quirk of living in an ICF home.
3. The House is Humid at First, Then Surprisingly Dry.
One of the most surprising phenomena is the “curing” phase of a new ICF house. For the first one to two years, homeowners can expect to deal with higher-than-normal humidity levels inside.
This isn’t a flaw; it’s a feature of the construction process. The massive amount of concrete in the walls cures very slowly over time. During this period, the moisture from the concrete “wicks into the living space,” temporarily raising the indoor humidity.
The key is that this is a temporary and normal phase. Once the concrete has fully cured and the house reaches equilibrium, the humidity levels drop significantly. In fact, after the two-year mark, homeowners might find they actually need to run humidifiers during the winter to add moisture back into the air.
4. You Stop Thinking About ‘Cold Spots’ in the House.
Life in an ICF home is defined by extreme temperature consistency. Because the structure is so airtight and well-insulated, there are far fewer drafts and cold spots compared to traditionally built houses. This consistency changes how you experience your own home.
The initial test with the small window unit during construction provided the first clue. The homeowner was amazed that the temperature remained so even from room to room.
“[I] was so surprised that that window unit could just keep the consistency of the temperature throughout the entire house. I thought the main living room was going to be so much cooler than… every other room… because that’s how every other house I’ve ever been in was. It wasn’t. It was consistent; it was within one to two degrees of that main living area.”
5. Everyday Tasks, Like Hanging a Picture, Are Tricky.
While the solid walls provide immense benefits, they also create a practical challenge for everyday tasks. Hanging a picture or a shelf isn’t as simple as finding a stud. In fact, standard stud finders often fail to locate the internal plastic strips embedded within the ICF foam that are designed for fastening.
Fortunately, there’s a game plan. Homeowners have three main options for anchoring items to the walls:
• Make a map: During construction or finishing, create a detailed map of your walls with known reference points for the plastic strips so you can measure off them later.
• Measure from the corner: If you have a corner block in a room, you can reliably measure from it to locate all the plastic strips along that wall. This is described as the best method.
• Drill pilot holes: The least recommended method is to drill multiple small pilot holes until you find a strip, then cover the misses with your picture frame.
A Different Way of Living
Living in an ICF home is a unique experience. The unparalleled energy efficiency and solid, quiet structure come with a few quirks, like a two-year humidity phase and the need for a strategy to hang a picture.
However, after experiencing the quiet, efficient, and solid nature of an ICF build, the homeowner notes that you get “very, very spoiled.” You will never look at a traditional house the same way again.
This raises a final, crucial question for anyone considering a similar path: for a house that’s built to last over a century, are these unique realities a worthwhile trade for unparall
eled efficiency and comfort?