Affordable Housing becomes Green With Hemp

Grow Your Own Home Affordable Housing becomes Green with hemp

Entering the housing market is not only a challenge for first time buyers, but also for conscious consumers wanting to take care of the environment while still being affordable.

With now legal industrial hemp licenses available in many countries around the world, Growing Your Own Home has never been easier!

According to long-time industrial hemp expert Paul Benhaim, "just one acre of land is enough for you to grow a crop of hemp that can be converted to a regular looking building on that same piece of land". He goes on to say "and we are not talking rustic homes, but regular looking solid council approved buildings".

These new eco friendly buildings are built by regular builders, and don't require specialist designs, though the developers recommend solar passive designs that take advantage of the thermal mass offered by the hemp walls. As well as residential and commercial hemp projects, simple renovations are possible.

Until now you had to import materials to be sure of a standard building product. Previous versions of similar technologies commonly known as ‘hemcrete' or ‘hempcrete' have also required processing of hemp in large factories. Hence this technology has not been fully sustainable, until now.

This new technology developed over 10 years by Klara & Marton Marosszeky Professor of Construction Innovation at the University of New South Wales allows simple harvesting of hemp that makes use of the whole stalk to create a building material that has excellent rodents, fire and insulation properties. Although an option, no rendering or finishing is required (you can colour through the mix) and all local materials can be used in what is becoming the leader in the latest trend in environmentally friendly building techniques.

Klara is currently hoping for a project to see some genuine and direct outcomes for the Indigenous people of Australia in regards to Affordable 'home grown' housing. South Africa and Trinidad have also showed interest in this technology.

Klara Marosszeky and Paul Benhaim have just launched their findings in a new book on Building with Hemp which includes a detailed construction manual. To support professional builders, self-builders, renovators and eco enthusiasts Klara and Paul will personally share this technique at workshops around the world in 2011 starting in Canberra, ACT from February 2011.

Everything Hemp , including hemp foods (hemp seed and oil), hemp clothing, hemp fibre, hemp twine, hemp plastics, hemp building and more! Pages of information and pictures show you the real options. Now includes a reputable hemp products shop that delivers worldwide from all the best suppliers.

Did You Know?:

• Hemp improves and regenerates soils

• Hemp may be sustainably farmed without herbicide or pesticide

• Hemp sequesters carbon – grows in 100 days, sequesters 11ton of carbon/ha, 1-2t carbon stays in soil as organic carbon, 100kg can be stored in the hemp masonry.

• Hemp is breathable – 75% of allergies including asthma are due to moulds in buildings. Moulds are prevalent in conventional masonry because the material does not breathe.

• Building with hemp is waterproof, fireproof, rodent proof. Affordable, sustainable & local. No need to render, paint, insulate. Can look like any other building.