The appeal of above-grade, residential concrete walls is broad enough that homes are being built in nearly every region of the U.S. using various forming systems. January's National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Builders Show in Dallas displayed some of the attractive and innovative uses of concrete in home building.

Show attendees toured Concrete Concepts show homes in nearby Plano, affording a look at projects in both the "before" and "after" phases, with one furnished home and another under construction. Viewing a partially constructed house was an added feature for builders at this year's show. A survey taken last year by PCA's market research department indicated that 54 percent of Builders Show attendees would like to see a partly finished home showing exposed structural materials and configurations.

The show homes highlighted both the design potential and strength of load-bearing, residential concrete. Concrete systems offer a large number of benefits in addition to the way they look, including ease of construction, fire and wind safety, soundproofing, energy efficiency and environmental benefits. The show homes also exhibited decorative concrete products.

They were built using insulating concrete form (ICF) technology. According to a new study, using ICFs instead of conventional wood framing will reduce the amount of energy consumed for heating by about 44 percent, and for cooling by about 32 percent on average. The homeowner survey study, which was conducted by Dr. Pieter VanderWerf of the Boston University School of Management and sponsored by PCA, measured ICF homes constructed using pure foam systems (no foam-cement composites).

Builder Michael Hewitt of Royal Oak Custom Homes was inspired after incorporating ICF technology in his project. "When I saw how easy it was to build a better home with concrete, I decided to try it," he says. "My instincts were on target. We enjoyed doing this ICF home enough that we're going to try it with other spec homes. I feel like it will set the home apart from others on the market."

Texas model Hewitt was joined on the Concrete Concepts show home project by Alan Hoffman, I.C.E. Block of North Texas, who was the concrete wall contractor, and Dallas architect Gary Covert. The 5,600-sq.-ft. house is positioned on a corner lot, and its exterior walls are built from concrete placed inside of polystyrene forms. Exterior finishes include stucco and decorative concrete accents.

The main floor has a dining area, library, gourmet kitchen, family area and master suite. Family and living areas each feature concrete fireplaces with cast stone mantles. The master suite includes a walk-in closet and a concrete vault/saferoom hidden off of the closet. The entry area, living area and library all feature 20-ft. ceilings, and all of the bedrooms have cathedral ceilings. Concrete applications include:

* exterior walls

* foundation

* pool

* soffits

* siding and trim

* driveway

* patio

* sidewalks

The new concrete building systems are innovative, but hidden from view under sheetrock and siding. Because homes built with these systems look like any other house, it isn't obvious that underneath the standard surface lies solid, built-to-last concrete walls. Typical R-values for concrete walls are between R-16 and R-22, compared to regular walls that result in R-8 to R-11. Concrete walls are more air-tight, often reducing air infiltration by more than 50 percent over frame construction.

Joining PCA as sponsors on the home were the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Insulating Concrete Form Association and Cement and Concrete Promotion Council of Texas.

Demonstration home tells tale As with the model home, the exterior walls of the demonstration home were built of concrete placed inside of polystyrene forms. For builders interested in learning more about this construction process, there were demonstrations and open areas at the Dallas Convention Center, the Builders Show base.

The family room, living room and master suite of the house featured concrete fireplaces with cast stone mantles. Exterior finishes include cast stone, concrete brick and decorative concrete accents. Concrete used in the home included:

* exterior walls

* driveway

* sidewalks

* concrete brick

* foundation

* roof tiles

* exterior trim

* interior floors

* pool

* soffits

* patio

Additional tours In addition to the Concrete Concepts show homes in Plano, attendees had the opportunity to visit two other sites. The Vistas of Coppell, a community developed by Centex Homes in Coppell, Texas, had two concrete homes under construction during the show. One home was a 2,400-sq.-ft. traditional two-story, the other a 2,625-sq.-ft. ranch. Meanwhile, The Meadows, an all-concrete community developed by Emgee Homes in Midlothian, Texas, featured two completed models and four homes under construction. When the community is completed, Emgee Homes plans to have 39 homes with concrete walls.