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Building Reinforced Concrete Storm-Ready Homes in Florida

Bob is joined on the site of the Punta Gorda, Florida, storm-ready home by Jim Crain of Precise Forms. Precise Forms partners with Mercedes Builders to create high-quality, reinforced concrete homes throughout Florida. Precise Forms began in 1967 by supplying cast-in-place forms for subterranean foundations and basements. In 2000 they began to set forms for full wall, cast-in-place houses for Mercedes Homes. Once the forms are set, Bob walks through the layout with Jesse Gonzalez of Mercedes Homes. Gonzalez points to window placements that are encapsulated behind the aluminum forms as they walk past view windows in the family area, past the three bedrooms, bath, laundry, and two-car garage of this four-bedroom home with master suite. Mark Newton of Solid Wall Systems joins Bob as the pour begins. He explains that they are using a 2,000 pound psi, small aggregate concrete mix for the entire pour. We watch as the concrete is pumped into the forms, which are braced at the top by two-by-fours that hold the tops of the forms square to prevent movement as the forms receive the static pressure of the concrete. Newton explains that they will vibrate around all door and window openings before allowing the concrete to set. This will help eliminate voids, honeycombing, or any blowout due to bad adhesion or conformity of the concrete.

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Chapters from this episode

Removing the Concrete Wall Forms and Planning the Plaster Finish Now Playing

Removing the Concrete Wall Forms and Planning the Plaster Finish

Building Reinforced Concrete Storm-Ready Homes in Florida Now Playing

Building Reinforced Concrete Storm-Ready Homes in Florida

House Failures in Hurricanes Now Playing

House Failures in Hurricanes

Setting Aluminum Forms for Concrete Walls Now Playing

Setting Aluminum Forms for Concrete Walls

Stem Walls, Slab, and Reinforcement for Concrete Walls Now Playing

Stem Walls, Slab, and Reinforcement for Concrete Walls

A Concrete House for a Hurricane Zone Now Playing

A Concrete House for a Hurricane Zone

Clip Transcript For:

Building Reinforced Concrete Storm-Ready Homes in Florida

computer-generated transcript - may not be 100% accurate

" The concrete trucks should roll in just any minute but before they do before start pouring let's say hi to Jim -- who's with precise forms a company that developed this system. How old is this. We started manufacturing this in March of 1967. Interesting so they've been around for awhile a long -- and also be used for underground purposes for foundations."

" Yeah that was initial use in the beginning was a subterranean basements foundations that sort of application I see and when did they start going above ground. -- five years ago we hooked up with the Mercedes homes you'd be here in Central Florida and started pouring a lot of their homes above grade. We had done some previous to that but it was more scattered. Once we got involved with Mercedes it became a real production issue that."

" Points and is it primarily something that's becoming popular in the sun belt."

" Right it's taking off more in the state of Florida than anywhere there's more motivation locally if you will because of the inclement. Weather that they experience down right here police -- a more secure home."

" Yes it's perceived as being much more sturdy. -- building a house absolutely what's the growth been like for your company we've experienced over the last five years for example about 30% a year. 30% a year yes -- that goes on to provide a number of new houses being built -- this kind of systems. Such enormous right I heard that the average while the average home like this the set of forms itself is worth about 150000 dollars does that make sense. Actually this set here is probably closer to a 125125. OK that would include the form baskets and -- it and you're gonna you know bodies."

" OK so we're just a few minutes away from. Foreign and I got to admit this really looks like a container like something should be on one of those container ships right now so it sounds yeah -- Let's go through the lay out and to commend the entrance here what's on the right we got of them out. -- overhear certainly bought it through here we've got dining and living room area no windows at all. There is some windows they're encapsulated the window box and went and not expect an ambulance to the window OK so this is. Master bedroom and bathroom and you have a big window over there window and a big slider over there. Correct and then this area mrs. PI dining living area over to left over your kitchen we've got the breakfast nook area step along the corner over here. We have the nice big family area where we have two big windows. That's 66 windows over there and we got 123 bedrooms over here and along here. Excellent so we've got three bedrooms and a bath and a lot of -- room and then a two car garage and we have mark over here. Hey mark this is an exciting minute yes it is now the concrete that gets poured. What's the PSI what's what is -- anything special and Margaret 3000 pound hot. And all right and you don't have to put any kind of extra ingredients -- it just add water Justice Department okay. All right so you have to worry about that all this concrete sticking or you know. Setting up for. Actually -- the form of it all over the country. That's correct me."

" All reject that -- won't forget."

" You can afford a six hour."

" The concrete -- fraction of that test right lawful vibrate around windows for openings -- Or so that you don't end up with any kind of -- back. -- blowout I would think would be -- Horrible thing to happen here if one of these fasteners lets go right. Write that on the floor under the law. When you take the forms away from the wall go. The concrete walls outlet that yes means it either stuck to the former reading your good. Conformity yes and then. Now I notice they've set up a whole row of two by four's along the perimeter up at the top what's that do. Right that -- for the -- in Iraq and global -- hall they help hold all square. -- Pointing long. Strength of all why you're static. Comes in from the concrete and obviously -- the panel so there's no -- even a minor variation like deck can make for a messy messy look yes yeah great. We're."

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