THE PROCESS.

Before site works:

Igloo's involvement with your construction starts considerably before site work does. Discussions take place encompassing R.value requirements, junction details, trade dependencies, access to work areas, time frame, finishes...Igloo's work starts on paper, drawing details, making notes on your architectural plans when measuring wall areas. As we get closer to start date, a pre-install inspection will prompt more discussions, further clarifications of the job specifics. Allocating this time is essential to achieving high quality, both in terms of insulative performance and visual definition.

Cladding (External Insulation):

We work on timber frames as well as masonry walls. We follow specifications, seal penetrations & windows, re-inforce timber studs to provide solid joints...We know how to minimise waste, and organise all the ordering and delivering so that work can flow on without interruptions, with no hassles for our clients. We work on passive houses, new development, in rural environments where fire risks dictat the use of B.A.L. 40 materials. We also retro-fit existing dwellings, and are constantly told by our clients, that their energy bills have dramaticly dropped.   

Render process:

Masking is systematicly done, to protect door frames & windows; leaving a clean job is paramount. When rendering polystyrene or rigid phenolic cladding, mesh is embeded over the entire wall surface; this is done when applying first coat. We use alloy beads (external angles) around reveals and corners, although with masonry walls we prefer using straight edges and clamps, as per traditionnal method.  We do not use steel angles (to avoid any risk associated with rust), and we do not use any plastic trims (render adherence on plastic isn't good and can create maintenance issues over the years). Walls are screeded, straighten, re-filled where required. We use a 3 coat system for most finishes. Check our "Projects" page to see some of the finishes available. As we use bagged render (prepared in a factory environment by our supplier), every mix we apply on our walls is the same; thus we avoid any risk associated with human error when mixing separate ingredients by hand. This choice of materials & systematic operations ensure consistency and high quality on all the jobs we complete.

Cladding & Render work integrated:

Because E.I.F.S (External Insulation Finishing Systems) is still relatively new in Australia, its application is usually given to the available trades that best suit cladding & acrylic render work; respectively carpenters & sand/cement renderers. Some problems emmerge from having separate teams working in sequence: one doesn't necessarily understand what the other one requires, and the nature of the work might be such that inter-dependant tasks make the project difficult to schedule, involving expensive start & stops. Igloo's method erases these complications by having a team that performs both cladding & render work.