Many people ask us, ”Why is Thermacell a better product than other products offered to them in the market place?”
It takes a long time to answer all the questions, so we have attempted to answer some of these questions in full on this document.

Advantages of the “Thermacell Building System” over other similar products.

We have a range of 5 different size blocks. The 125mm and the 250mm Blocks were the original Isorast blocks which came from Germany in 1982. The tooling for these blocks was imported from Germany. We later designed the 166m Blocks ourselves and the tooling was made in Australia. This block has been well used in single two story houses and units since 1997. We later designed the 200mm Block and had the tooling made in Australia. This block has been highly successful and is our major seller. We have just designed and produced a 150mm block, which has the same keyways as the 200mm block and is designed to be used as an internal wall which locks into the 200mm exterior wall. This creates a strong buffer to the outside walls and cuts out the need for much of the bracing of the walls prior to pumping them full of concrete. The 150mm block has turned out to be so strong that it can be used as an external and an internal wall combined for single story houses . The use of this lower cost wall using a little less concrete will make it an ideal choice for building Single Story Houses Granny Flats , Retirement villages. The R Value of the block is excellent an is a fraction below that of the 166mm block. So insulation will be very efficient.

The 150mm and the 200mm tooling was designed by us at Thermacell as a result of 20 years of experience in block design, and the operation of the tools was designed by engineers at R/Max , who are the largest Polystyrene molders in Australia. As they have factories in every State in Australia, we can manufacture blocks at all of these factories. We have made Thermacell product at Bundaberg and Brisbane Qld. Sydney, Melbourne, Launceston, Adelaide and Perth W.A.. The design of these two tools, the 150mm and the 200mm, has the latest technology built into them which results in High Quality in Fusion and Strength. Only the finest quality raw materials are used in our blocks. Our tooling is Modern and up to date and quite expensive, but we don’t mind that because we believe that you don’t make quality product out of cheap tooling. Our blocks are made with quality and performance in mind and not just to make a cheap block.

It should be understood that the concrete core of an I.C.F. is like a lattice work of concrete. The Vertical columns support the downward pressure of a building and the horizontal cross flow of concrete resists sideways pressure which is necessary for the construction of Retaining walls and Swimming pools, and to prevent the building from twisting under wind load. Also the core size is necessary to get sufficient concrete around the steel reinforcement. Steel reinforcement alone does not give the structure much strength. It needs to be thoroughly surrounded by concrete for strength. Too much steel in too small a cavity, can sometimes cause wall failures ,particularly in high wind areas. Because of the superior design of the interior core of Thermacell blocks, we have never experienced a failure.

Our blocks are more stable, have tighter keyways ,which help to hold the blocks together whilst they are being filled, and much less bracing is needed to hold the walls in position. Thermacell blocks lock over each other at corners which allows for the concrete to flow around the corners, adding greatly to the strength in our walls.

Our blocks do not require to be assembled with metal or plastic spacers, or bridges or need solid bracing on both sides of the wall. This would cost the builder about 3 times the labor costs in assembling the wall plus the cost of hiring the braces. Professional builders have to hire laborers and pay wages .

Our blocks can be pumped in one go to heights from between 2.5 to 3 metres without fear of “blowing out”, because of the strength of the blocks, and this is expensive time saved in filling the walls. Some of opposition blocks can only safely be filled from two to three courses at a time, otherwise they often ‘Blow Out” causing Time and pumping cost and Wastage “Blow Outs” as well.

Our blocks are manufactured at the correct height of 250mm and not 300mm. We have therefore, lower bridges across the blocks ,and two more horizontal crossflows of concrete to a height of 2750mmwhich is the normal height of a single story wall. For instance, in the 200mm block, the height of the bridge is 80 mm leaving a horizontal crossflow height of 170mm. It is easy to lay horizontal steel reinforcement in the blocks, and because of the depth of the crossflow, and the size of the vertical columns, much less steel reinforcement is necessary. Thermacell walls are designed with much less steel reinforcement than our opposition blocks. This is also a cost saving. Cost is always the big concern of every user, so THINK IT OUT WELL. You should CHECK OUT THE TOTAL COST of using any particular System. For Example, Add up the COST OF BLOCKS, TRANSPORT and DELIVERY CHARGES of blocks, TIME TAKEN and the SPEED OF ASSEMBLY, ANY WASTAGE, the COST FOR HIRE OF BRACING , COST OF PUMPING, TIME TAKEN IN PUMPING WALLS, WAITING TIME FOR CONCRETE TRUCKS AND CONCRETE PUMP OPERATORS, AND ALL STEEL REINFORCING REQUIRED. We are confident that Thermacell costs are considerably less than all other similar products.

Our BLOCKS are marketed at the lowest prices that we can for a QUALITY product. Our PRICES also reflect our overhead costs of STORAGE, HANDLING, and DELIVERY. We keep stock on hand at all times Delivery to Melbourne Metro areas is FREE, and in COUNTRY or INTERSTATE areas, we try to recover our Fuel costs only. This is sometimes a savings of Hundreds of Dollars We have our own Transport Vehicles and do not rely on other Transport Companies. We personally deliver our product to our customers at their building site, wherever that is. We spend time with them demonstrating the system. .

We at Thermacell, do not make extravagant claims for our blocks in the areas of R/RATINGS, S.T.C RATINGS, FIRE RATINGS AND CYCLONIC AREA RATINGS. It is easy to make such claims, but not so easy to back them up. We don’t make claims that can’t be backed up. If these matters are important to you, you should not believe everything that you read, but ask for proof of the claims made on their advertising.
With respect to the R ratings claimed on our advertising, these have been formulated by Engineers at R Max, who are the largest polystyrene molders in Australia. Their calculations have been accepted by the CSIRO and Government authorities in Victoria.

Quality Lives On Long After the Price is Forgotten G.Bennet.