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Willi Wacker9 Nov 2010 19:51I haven’t built one myself (unfortunately), but I have closely followed how several of these houses were constructed in our new development area. I’m not familiar with the providers mentioned. In our case, the company was ISO-Massivhaus. Some homeowners built parts themselves, while others had the houses delivered as turnkey projects. Depending on how much effort the homeowner put in, the construction went faster or slower. I know almost all the homeowners, and honestly, I’m a bit jealous of how low their heating costs are... ****** The costs certainly depend on how much you do yourself.
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Al Capone8 Dec 2010 13:50Hello everyone,
I read the question here and happen to have some insight because I know all the mentioned companies quite well.
Basically, you should be a fan of NEOPOR and have studied or, even better, watched enough information about this material and how it works. The company BASF did not develop the predecessor Styropor back in the early 1950s without reason—it was urgently necessary to insulate post-war buildings against heat loss to avoid literally heating all the energy out of the walls.
Without a doubt, the pioneer of all providers is the company isorast, which has done a lot to promote NEOPOR formwork blocks. However, other companies such as Variant Haus and StyroStone also emerged from it.
Variant Haus is certainly the market leader today, and there is no avoiding it, also in terms of price. The cooperation with the necessary planners also proceeds quite smoothly and professionally.
Exzellent Massivhaus is basically just a private address with a website. The owner has been trying to establish himself in the market for about 10 years but has not succeeded. In 2010, no houses were built using NEOPOR, and the one house currently under construction is the mediation effort of an architect who, in addition to the client’s fees, also wanted an extra charge.
You should definitely contact Variant Haus, isorast, and their partners, but actually avoid all other providers.
Good luck and have a nice day
I read the question here and happen to have some insight because I know all the mentioned companies quite well.
Basically, you should be a fan of NEOPOR and have studied or, even better, watched enough information about this material and how it works. The company BASF did not develop the predecessor Styropor back in the early 1950s without reason—it was urgently necessary to insulate post-war buildings against heat loss to avoid literally heating all the energy out of the walls.
Without a doubt, the pioneer of all providers is the company isorast, which has done a lot to promote NEOPOR formwork blocks. However, other companies such as Variant Haus and StyroStone also emerged from it.
Variant Haus is certainly the market leader today, and there is no avoiding it, also in terms of price. The cooperation with the necessary planners also proceeds quite smoothly and professionally.
Exzellent Massivhaus is basically just a private address with a website. The owner has been trying to establish himself in the market for about 10 years but has not succeeded. In 2010, no houses were built using NEOPOR, and the one house currently under construction is the mediation effort of an architect who, in addition to the client’s fees, also wanted an extra charge.
You should definitely contact Variant Haus, isorast, and their partners, but actually avoid all other providers.
Good luck and have a nice day
Hello Mr./Ms. Küne,
There are several suppliers of insulated formwork blocks that come to mind:
argisol; euromac2; isorast; magu; styrostone; varianthaus
Usually, you can send your building plans by email to receive a specific offer from the respective suppliers. Since many opinions circulate in forums like this, which unfortunately are not always posted by people who have PERSONAL experience or have obtained information directly from one of the above suppliers, I recommend that you request free, non-binding information about each system. The fact is that due to rising energy costs and legislative requirements for building envelopes, the use of insulated formwork blocks is increasingly common, both among architects and construction companies as well as private builders.
Best regards,
Alex
There are several suppliers of insulated formwork blocks that come to mind:
argisol; euromac2; isorast; magu; styrostone; varianthaus
Usually, you can send your building plans by email to receive a specific offer from the respective suppliers. Since many opinions circulate in forums like this, which unfortunately are not always posted by people who have PERSONAL experience or have obtained information directly from one of the above suppliers, I recommend that you request free, non-binding information about each system. The fact is that due to rising energy costs and legislative requirements for building envelopes, the use of insulated formwork blocks is increasingly common, both among architects and construction companies as well as private builders.
Best regards,
Alex
Styro Stone is the only manufacturer that openly displays its prices online. You can enter your project details yourself and receive the purchase price for the building kit within an hour, or you can email your plan if you have trouble using the calculation tool—though anyone should manage that.
The costs for a Neopor house are not lower than for a conventional brick house (a red 17.5cm (7 inches) thick brick costs about 12€ per m² plus masonry labor 18€ per m² plus insulation 18cm (7 inches) WLG 035 at 14€ per m² and adhesive 15€ per m², which totals around 59€ per m² for the wall) and I didn’t even lift a finger.
Styro Stone Neopor stone material costs about 75€ per m² including all shaped parts like corners, end pieces, etc., but excluding concrete (about 10€ per m²).
Typically, simple houses with a pitched roof and a 1m (3 feet) knee wall have about 200 m² of exterior wall surface (I think anyone could calculate this from their drawings). Interior walls made from Lego blocks are too thick and expensive.
200 m² x 85€ for Neopor with concrete and doing everything yourself amounts to 17,000€
200 m² x 70€ for masons and painters doing nothing (I added 11€) and doing nothing amounts to 14,000€ WHAT TO DO?????
Masonry is not the most expensive part. With good contractors, it takes a maximum of three days per floor, and we are only talking about the exterior walls.
The trick with self-performance is that the builder is shown the installation costs for a contractor if the expensive Lego stone has to be used. According to advertising by three experienced craftsmen/builders, building one floor takes two days, which with 8 hours x 3 workers x 2 days corresponds to an hourly wage of 36.50€, totaling 1,752€ per floor.
Anyone who wants to build with these adult Legos should request the building authority approvals and test certificates for fire protection, etc., from the manufacturer before purchase or contract.
To sum up briefly: Lego houses are not cheaper, even with self-performance... but... since it’s self-built, it’s already good; thermally excellent, outstanding sound insulation from inside to outside, and a very pleasant indoor climate—cool in summer, warm in winter.
I have been living in a Lego house since 1994 and have built about 300 with different systems since then. I think I know what I’m talking about.
I can recommend a Lego house to anyone—but I advise against being persuaded to use silo concrete; that stuff is heavy and... never again.
There are systems that can handle concrete pouring with a concrete pump.
I have filled 4m (13 feet) high walls without problems, no crooked walls, or any of the usual issues you read about—you just need to know how it works. Don’t expect to be told beforehand: first, it’s sold, and then? Everything gets finished somehow.
The costs for a Neopor house are not lower than for a conventional brick house (a red 17.5cm (7 inches) thick brick costs about 12€ per m² plus masonry labor 18€ per m² plus insulation 18cm (7 inches) WLG 035 at 14€ per m² and adhesive 15€ per m², which totals around 59€ per m² for the wall) and I didn’t even lift a finger.
Styro Stone Neopor stone material costs about 75€ per m² including all shaped parts like corners, end pieces, etc., but excluding concrete (about 10€ per m²).
Typically, simple houses with a pitched roof and a 1m (3 feet) knee wall have about 200 m² of exterior wall surface (I think anyone could calculate this from their drawings). Interior walls made from Lego blocks are too thick and expensive.
200 m² x 85€ for Neopor with concrete and doing everything yourself amounts to 17,000€
200 m² x 70€ for masons and painters doing nothing (I added 11€) and doing nothing amounts to 14,000€ WHAT TO DO?????
Masonry is not the most expensive part. With good contractors, it takes a maximum of three days per floor, and we are only talking about the exterior walls.
The trick with self-performance is that the builder is shown the installation costs for a contractor if the expensive Lego stone has to be used. According to advertising by three experienced craftsmen/builders, building one floor takes two days, which with 8 hours x 3 workers x 2 days corresponds to an hourly wage of 36.50€, totaling 1,752€ per floor.
Anyone who wants to build with these adult Legos should request the building authority approvals and test certificates for fire protection, etc., from the manufacturer before purchase or contract.
To sum up briefly: Lego houses are not cheaper, even with self-performance... but... since it’s self-built, it’s already good; thermally excellent, outstanding sound insulation from inside to outside, and a very pleasant indoor climate—cool in summer, warm in winter.
I have been living in a Lego house since 1994 and have built about 300 with different systems since then. I think I know what I’m talking about.
I can recommend a Lego house to anyone—but I advise against being persuaded to use silo concrete; that stuff is heavy and... never again.
There are systems that can handle concrete pouring with a concrete pump.
I have filled 4m (13 feet) high walls without problems, no crooked walls, or any of the usual issues you read about—you just need to know how it works. Don’t expect to be told beforehand: first, it’s sold, and then? Everything gets finished somehow.
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