Hempcrete - housing industrial hemp

[angelburst29]

For awhile now, planting industrial hemp has been ban from the U.S. Recently, there was a discussion in the news, of several States asking permission to reintroduce it back into farming. Hemp is so versatile that it should replace corn as a staple crop.

Here's an example of what industrial hemp can be used for:

http://www.blacklistednews.com/HEMP%3A_Something_All_Homes_Should_Be_Made_Of/30223/0/38/38/Y/M.html

A new sustainable housing project in the Northwest of Scotland will use industrial hemp as the main building material. It’s made of a prefabricated wall system called Hembuild, which is a mixture of the plant’s woody core and a lime-based binder. Another popular name for this is Hempcrete. This is something all of our homes should be made of.

An English housing company that specializes in hemp-based construction called ‘Hemcrete Projects,’ supplied the system. Two prototype houses have already been completed in the township of Achabeag.

Hembuild ticks all of the boxes when it comes to delivering sustainable properties, and the system is ideally suitable for what are two totally different styled houses but which fulfill the requirements of a scheme where the use of natural materials and environmental sustainability are the order of the day- Peter Smith, Roderick James Architects.

Combined with insulation made from Hemp fibre, Hembuild provides the village in Scotland with houses made from a combination of insulation and thermal inertia. This reduces the energy required for heating. Another advantage of Hembuild is it’s carbon-negative profile. Hemp acts to reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by absorbing and trapping CO2 within the Hembuild walls. Furthermore, as a crop, hemp’s fast cultivation cycle makes it a much more sustainable material than traditional timber.

Hempcrete is very versatile as it can be used for wall insulation, flooring, walls, roofing and more. It is completely fireproof, water-proof, and rot-proof as long as it’s above ground. The mixture creates a negative carbon footprint for those who are concerned with the carbon side of things. Hempcrete is a much more versatile, easy to work with and more pliable material than concrete. Earthquakes can’t even crack these structures because they are 3 times more resistant than regular concrete.

Lime is the binding material, which means contractors do not have to use heat like they do when they create concrete. This results in a large amount of energy conservation when producing Hempcrete.

Hemp requires no fertilizer, weed killer pesticide or fungicide to grow. The hemp seed can be harvested as a nutritious food rich in Omega-3 oil, amino acids, protein and fiber. It is considered a “super food.” The outer fibers can be used for clothes, paper and numerous everyday items. This truly is a very powerful plant and should be a no-brainer when it comes to it being used as a mainstream product.

The Scotland project will be building 20 houses in total.

Sources:

http://www.truthonpot.com/2013/09/06/scotland-village-houses-being-built-with-hemp/

http://www.greenbuildingpress.co.uk/article.php?article_id=1546

 

[clerck de bonk]

Thanks for the link angelburst29!
IMO it is a no-brainer and that's why it's not used/promoted... If You get my point :)

 

[angelburst29]

You're right, Clerch de bonk, it's a versatile plant - from seed to stalk.

I have a few fond memories of the 'uses" of hemp from childhood (many, many moon's ago).

Both sides of my family came over to the U.S. from Europe. Several members bought land for farming while others worked various jobs including the coal mines. Next to alfalfa and oats, they grew hemp until it was banned. Those that tryed to grow small patches near their gardens for personal medicinal use, found their crop fields set ablazed prior to harvesting by County Extension Agents. It was a costly lesson. No hemp meant "no hemp" no matter what the growers intension was.

The seed was used in it's natural state for meat dishes and milled into a flour for baking. Some seeds were pressed and filtered through cheese cloth for oil. The residue left in the cheese cloth was pressed a second time and placed into a covered crock for external medicinal use (for swelling, aches & pains).

The outer fibers of the stalk were frayed (on the order of what's done with sheep's wool) and spread out to dry for a few days. Metal combs were used to reduce the fibers into fluffy strings, then gathered and placed in feed sacks, then stored in the top loof in the barn. Mainly during the Winter months, a sack would be carried into the house and set next to the spinning wheel. It was generally a group project with the women-folk and the kids giving a helping hand. It was much the same process as spinning wool into large string balls. This was considered - the First Process and this string was used to make carpets on a wooden loom with foot pedals. Second process was when a ball of string was put through the spinning wheel and refined into a thinner string - to be placed on a weaving loom to make cloth for clothes, drapes. table cloths, towels and could be used for knitting and crochet. Refining the ball of string a third time, produced string for sewing.

A larger spinning wheel was built and placed in the upper portion of the barn - where hay, oats and alfalfa bails were stored. The inner hemp stalks were pulled through a large block of wood that had nails driven through, to help separate the fibers. The fibers were fed through the spinning wheel to form a rope that was collected on a spool at the other end. The rope would be cut into different lengths (off the spool), three ends would be placed in a wooden vice, then braided by hand. The rope never rotted and was as strong as a bull!

I remember reading somewhere, that Henry Ford's first cars that came off the assembly line were durable, lightweight and never rusted due to his use of hemp in constructing the frame. When they banned hemp, they took away the many beneficial and affordable uses of a natural product.