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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 2016)
Wallowa County Chieftain wallowa.com May 25, 2016 A7 GROW Steve Tool/Chieftain It’s hard to tell from the outside that this is an Insulating Concrete Form home, which uses Styrofoam forms filled with concrete as the backbone of the structure. Lostine couple takes road less traveled in building their dream home By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain F rom the driveway Roger and Sharon Weishoff’s home 6.9 miles up the Lostine River Road, well-manicured grounds sur- round the log home that re- sembles many of the up-scale dwellings dotting the Wal- lowa Valley landscape. In fact, the logs are a fa- cade on the outside walls. The secret behind the facade? Sty- rofoam. The word Styrofoam may bring images of crushable picnic coolers and coffee cups to mind, but it is a major component of a construction technique that utilizes Insu- lating Concrete Forms made of Styrofoam fi lled with ce- ment as the structure’s back- bone. Once you walk into the home’s foyer and are dazzled by the remarkable woodwork and pine paneling, Styrofoam is the last thing that comes to mind. ICF construction offers stability, soundproofi ng and superior insulating qualities, according to its manufactur- Steve Tool/Chieftain The view of the foyer from the top of the Weishoff-built staircase. Courtesy photo The Weishoffs’ home as it was being constructed in January 1999. ers. But it only recently has garnered popularity in the homebuilding market. The pioneering Weishoffs started building their ICF home in 1998, the year they purchased their 2.5-acre property. The couple is from the Wil- lamette Valley, where Roger worked as a millwright. He previously hunted in the Wal- lowa Valley and came away impressed with the landscape and the people. After the cou- ple decided to make the move to the Wallowa Valley, they started attending home shows to get different ideas about homebuilding possibilities. The ICF homes struck a chord with the couple, who found themselves particularly impressed with the insulation value — which can vary be- tween R-30 and R-50 — and the ease of installation. “It was something we fi g- ured we could pretty much put up by ourselves,” Roger said. His previous building ex- perience included building a log home near Salem and re- modeling several homes. The home is 2,800 square feet with two stories and took several years to build and fi n- ish. “We started in 1998, and the snow came on before we could get it fi nished,” Rog- er said. “By the next early summer, when we could start pouring concrete again, we put up the rest of the walls and the roof.” The interior work took another four to fi ve years to complete. How it works The ICF comes in hol- low blocks or panels shaped somewhat like cinder blocks, only larger. In the early years of Styrofoam construction, a special glue was used to at- tach each block to the next be- fore pouring the concrete into the rebar-reinforced hollow spaces in the blocks/panels. “You can ask my wife about that,” Roger said with a smile. “She did a lot of rebar tying.” much of the work themselves, with the help of friends Bruce Bibler, Randy Cherry, neigh- bors and their “church fam- ily,” the Wallowa Christian Church. “We bought a planer/ moulder to make our own log siding,” Roger said. Much of the wood used in the construction was logged locally and planed and milled on site. Do it yourself While the Weishoffs used a contractor on occasion (for example, to pour the slab and foundation), the Weishoffs did Simplicity The Weishoffs primari- ly used a table saw, moulder See HOME, Page A8 Succulents a favorite for dramatic looks and ease of care By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain They’re like little art installations all by them- selves — and in a terrari- um they’re a beautiful and stark story of life in the desert. Succulents, known for their color and ease of care, make wonderful additions both inside and outside any home. They thrive in sunny, well-drained areas and re- quire very little care. In fact, they will do well be- side your computer as a single plant in a coffee cup. More innovative, outside plantings can be a collec- tion of succulents in the seat of an old chair or in the mouth of a milk can. The simple instructions for most succulents is to al- low the dirt to dry between Kathleen Ellyn/Chieftain Simple and sweet, these little succulents — available for purchase at Copper Creek in Joseph — make great, low- maintenance office plants. Kathleen Ellyn/Chieftain These Hen and Chicks are a fun display on Vickee Gockley’s porch in Joseph. waterings and to use a soil that allows the water to run through easily. You also should know that succulents all have a winter dormancy, so don’t overwater during the winter. Succulents come in a wide variety of colors from blue-green, pink, red, yel- low, white, burgundy and near-black. The leaves can be round, ruffled, spiky or even ber- ry-like. Some bloom (a succulent can be a variety of cactus, such as Christ- mas Cactus) and some do not. Although they like the dry humidity and warm conditions found in most homes — and while they like direct light — they can adapt to lower light. Avoid fertilizing in the winter, but do fertilize in the spring or once a month during the summer. Check with your nurs- ery or online for the prop- er balance and frequen- cy of fertilizer for each plant. Varieties include Bur- ro’s Tail, Hen and Chicks, Crown of Thorns, Christ- mas Cactus, jade plants, aloe vera, Pincush- ion Cactus and snake plants.