Location: San Diego CA
Owner: David and Sara Matta
Contractor: Bill Freeman Construction
David and Sara Matta lost their home in the Witch Creek fire of 2007. Once they were ready to rebuild, their only design request was that it was not made out of wood. After a lot of research, we ended up with ICF construction. Insulated Concrete Forms, which are lego like polystyrene blocks that stack and interlock with each other. As the ICFs are stacked, rebar is laid between and the blocks are filled with concrete. The polystyrene forms can later be removed, or left in place and wrapped with stucco and drywall. The walls and roof end up 12” thick with extremely high insulation values. Interior walls are built with metal studs and drywall. Exterior windows are all aluminum with insulated glass.
The house is 4,000 square feet, modern and open with floor to ceiling glass and 13’ ceilings. The Living area opens up to a large outdoor concrete deck with stacking sliding glass doors, doubling the size of the Living area. All of the finished floors are sanded and sealed concrete, merging the inside to the outside.
Powered by a 7.5 KW photo voltaic solar system, solar thermal water, and a highly efficient wood stove by Wertis, they are completely self sufficient. The house stays a steady comfortable temperature year round, and they rarely need to turn on the heating or air conditioning.
A new wood house will last 50 years. A concrete house will last 500 years or more. The house is green, self sufficient and will be enjoyed and used by many generations to come.













