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Oklahoma
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For more information about concrete homebuilding in Oklahoma, contact:
Mike Tyler
Executive Director
Oklahoma Ready Mixed Concrete Association
2525 NW Expressway
#320
Oklahoma City, OK 73112
(877) 59-ORMCA or (405) 840-2117 / Fax: (405) 840-2474
Oklahoma Concrete Homebuilders and Contractors
Tulsa
In Tulsa, Oklahoma, a community development organization known as "Neighbor for Neighbor" is constructing a prototype house known as the "Millennium Home". The home is designed for low to moderate-income families and incorporates superior energy efficiency, disaster-resistance and a healthy indoor environment. The 1,260 square foot home features Insulating Concrete Form (ICF) construction for the exterior walls, an exposed stained and colored decorative concrete slab, a concrete "safe room" (which also serves as the master bathroom) and a stamped concrete driveway. The home will incorporate a geothermal heating and cooling unit and also meets the specifications for the America Lung Association's "Health House". According to a Neighbor for Neighbor volunteer engineer, Don McCarthy, the average heating and cooling costs for the Millennium home will be less than $10 per month. The use of steel studs for the interior walls, combined with the ICF exterior walls, greatly reduces the potential for fire damage.
The Millennium Home is being constructed by the largest contractor in Oklahoma, Manhattan Construction. Other major sponsors include the City of Tulsa, American Lung Association of Oklahoma, American Institute of Architects, and Tulsa Project Impact. The estimated completion date for the Millennium Home is June of 2003.
For more information about the Millennium Home project, contact Don McCarthy of Neighbor for Neighbor at (918) 627-7836 or Jim Niehoff of PCA at (847) 972-9108.
Rebuilding Oklahoma with Tornado Resistant Alternatives to "Stick-Built" Construction
Dramatic images of 2x4s strewn across the landscape in the wake of this spring’s tornadoes bring up the question: What role does construction play in tornado safety? Tests at Texas Tech show that wall construction can make a world of difference.
Tests conducted by Texas Tech University offer dramatic proof that concrete walls withstand flying debris from tornadoes and hurricanes—and outperform their wood and steel counterparts.
There are 2 ways in which concrete homebuilding systems can help you protect your family and property during a tornado: Concrete Safe Rooms & Concrete Safe Homes.
Concrete Safe Rooms
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A safe room is a small, windowless room that is completely encapsulated in concrete - walls, ceiling and floor. Typically, the room would be located in a central area of the home for additional protection as well as accessibility. A safe room can be incorporated into the construction of a new home, or can be retrofitted into an existing home. The advantage of a safe room over a storm cellar is that the safe room can function year-round as a usable area, such as a bathroom, closet or utility room. One of the most cost effective systems for building the walls of a safe room is insulating concrete forms - polystyrene forms that are filled with concrete to provide the strength and mass needed to resist the high winds and flying debris of a tornado. |
Concrete Safe Homes
Homeowners and builders are finding that concrete is the material of choice when it comes to tornado resistance. Not only are they installing concrete safe rooms, but they're building the exterior walls of their homes with concrete. One of the most popular concrete homebuilding systems for building a safer home is insulating concrete forms.
 Exterior walls of the safe room are extended to the entire exterior of the home to provide additional protection for your family and possessions against flying debris. For added safety, the concrete walls are anchored to the foundation with steel reinforcing bars and the roof is secured to the walls using specially designed wind braces.
The result is a beautiful home that provides safety and comfort at a reasonable cost. Not only are concrete homes safer, they're more energy efficient and quieter. Over 90,000 families chose to build a home using a concrete homebuilding system for the exterior walls last year - and that number continues to grow.
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