Product – Ideal Building Systems

The Anatomy of High-Performance Precast Insulated Concrete Wall Panel

The main components of an Ideal Wall consist of 5000 psi fiber reinforced concrete, rebar, rigid foam insulation and commercial grade steel studs. These components are carefully placed in “book-matched” steel forms, to ensure a perfect fit when installed on your site. Then, we monolithically pour our on-site mixed, ﬁber reinforced 5000 psi concrete, which bonds these components together to create our high performance Ideal Walls.

The Ideal Wall Design Consists Of:

2” thick concrete outer “shell” or wythe
3” wide by 7” deep rebar reinforced concrete “studs” spaced a maximum of 24” on center (adjustable to meet higher loads)
3” tall by 9-1/2” deep rebar reinforced concrete top “header" beam
4" tall by 10-1/2” deep rebar reinforced concrete bottom “footer" beam
5” of rigid foam insulation ﬁlls the space between the reinforced concrete “studs”
Then a second layer of 1" thick rigid foam insulation board is added between the concrete “studs” and interior metal studs and the face of the girder beam. This creates a thermal break to prevent thermal bridging.
The commercial grade galvanized steel studs are the ﬁnal layer that creates the trade friendly, ready to ﬁnish interior wall surface.
All these components are fully integrated and bonded together when monolithically poured, to create an Ideal concrete wall panel.
All the walls for your project are book-match formed and poured together to ensure a perfect ﬁt when installed on your site.
Joints between wall panels have a shiplap design that are sealed in 2-3 locations with a continous bead adhesive urethane sealant and bolted together through embedded plates to ensure the walls are well connected and no water can penetrate.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How does the cost of Ideal walls compare with that of concrete block or poured concrete?

The costs are comparable. However…

Here’s Where You Gain Value!!!

No concrete footings are required saving you time and money
Typical installations take 1 day or less saving weeks of build time.
Ideal walls are better insulated than site built walls (R-22 rated)
No need for added damp-proofing (unless required by local codes)
Manufacturing process increases quality, strength and performance over site built walls while using less resources and creating less waste.

How does the design process work?

Customer provides architectural drawings and meets with an Ideal sales consultant to discuss project details.
The Ideal consultant provides an all-inclusive cost estimate and marked up drawings.
Once the customer approves design specifications and proposal, the finalized design is sent to 3rd party engineer for review who then provides signed/sealed documents for construction.
Customer selects installation date, and the project is placed in the manufacturing que.
Meanwhile, site prep can begin so site is ready for installation date.
Then the fun part… installation of your Ideal walls! By the end of the day (typically) you will have your new basement, home or building walls up and can continue with your project.

How long does installation take?

Installation for most jobs takes one day or less! Coupled with a well planned and executed project schedule, our rapid installation can save you weeks of time and have your new building “in the dry” quickly so other trades can proceed with their scope of work sooner.

What do I need to do before Ideal arrives at my site?

Site must have ingress and egress for a tractor trailer weighing 80,000 lbs.
Prepare a level crane pad that is 40’x40’ minimum. Material used for base must support 80,000 lbs.
Install a 4” perforated foundation drain below, and adjacent to the proposed bottom of wall.
Install 3/8” to 1/2” angular, washed stone footing level within 1”
Have surveyor mark ALL corners with secure pins.

What do I need to do after Ideal has finished the installation?

Install the sill plate using anchor bolts already in place.
Install the floor/ roof system per Ideal’s attachment detail.
Apply foundation coating if required by local code enforcement.
Pour concrete floor slab.
Backfill using 45 PCF or less non expansive soils.

What is the Fire Rating?

Concrete is far more fire resistant than wood and our walls are designed, tested and have passed the UL 1715 Fire Test. This means you can rest assured that Ideal Walls will provide an added level of safety and security should a fire ever occur.

What is Load-Bearing Capacity?

The engineered design of standard Ideal walls can support 4,000 pounds per linear foot and can be modified to support point loads of 32,000 pounds. This capacity is more than sufficient to meet the structural design specifications for homes and commercial buildings up to 3 stories in height.

How Do Ideal Walls hold up in different environments?

Ideal Walls were initially designed to withstand the harsh environment of below grade applications, such as crawlspaces and basements, and therefore provide excellent protection in above grade applications.
The 5000 psi concrete used is extremely durable, inherently damp-proof and air-sealed. Ideal walls reduce, or eliminate, damage caused by natural disasters, pests, mold/mildew, and rot providing a safer and lower maintenance structure. Additionally, the thermal mass of concrete helps reduce temperature fluctuations inside. All this adds up to provide you with a drier, safer, healthier, and more comfortable indoor environment for the life of your home or commercial building.

What makes Ideal Walls sustainable?

Ideal Walls are produced following a strictly designed process in a controlled environment at our manufacturing facility. This allows us to use less resources/materials and produce less waste all while producing a stronger, more precise and higher performing wall system. The installation process also reduces impacts to the job site and further reduces waste. The durability and longer useful life of ideal Walls requires less maintenance and repairs over the life of the structure, further reducing the use of resources/materials. The energy efficiency further reduces cost and environmental impacts. This means that you can help protect the environment by choosing to use Ideal Walls instead of traditional concrete, masonry or wood building materials. Let’s build better!

What Is my warranty?

Ideal Walls come with a 15 year warranty against structural defects and side wall water penetration so you can be confident that Ideal Walls will out perform traditional wall assemblies.

Why our walls are the Ideal Building System?

The manufacturing of precast concrete walls provides a higher quality, better performing and more precise wall assembly than can be obtained with traditional concrete block and poured-in-place concrete walls. We mix our own concrete at our facility, rather than having 3rd party suppliers provide our concrete. This allows us to ensure the quality of the concrete meets our strict design requirements. Ideal walls are built in a controlled environment so the concrete cures in optimal conditions which ensures concrete quality and strength and prevents issues that are common with CMU or poured concrete walls. In short, precast is more efficient, more durable, and better quality than than more traditional methods and materials.

Are insulated precast concrete walls "new technology"?

Precast concrete has been widely used in construction since the early 1950’s and is a time tested building solution that has drastically improved build quality and efficiency. The growing popularity of utilizing precast in the construction industry will only continue to grow as the as we seek to improve construction methods to address the economic and environmental issues we face today. We are proud to be part of this exciting evolution of the construction industry and intend to continually innovate our product so we can help build a better future.

Why Stone Is Better!

Stone has been used for footings and foundation bases for centuries and many of those structures are still standing today!
Stone costs less than concrete! Our 36"x8" stone footing requires less material than a typical 18"x18" concrete footing so you save by using less material that costs less per cubic yard! Not to mention no rebar and other accessories are required. That adds up to significant savings!
Stone is less labor intensive to install. Your excavator can install the stone footing while prepping your site so your reliance on another trade partner and stress is reduced. This will help expedite your project while you save TIME AND MONEY!
Stone prevents soil erosion while allowing water to flow naturally away from your foundation. Concrete inhibits water flow leading to hydrostatic pressure and leaks.
Stone is code compliant and suitable for use on sites with low load bearing capacity (as low as 1500 psf). Stone is often specified by engineers to address poor soil conditions and provide a stable and structurally sound base under concrete footings.