A Hempcrete House for Tarpon Springs, FL.

Summer 2012. We are building the first hempcrete house in Florida and one of a very few in America. Follow along as work progresses. We broke ground in mid-April and anticipate completion by November.

There are many hempcrete structures in Europe, but few in America. There are buildings in the south of France, but we found little information to compare with Florida's climate with hurricanes and high humidity. We really do not know how the house will perform so this will be a test house. We will be trying every feature of hempcrete houses we can. Once built, we will be monitoring performance to see how the structure holds up and what the operating costs are.

There are also maintenance issues. Hempcrete breathes well, and care must be taken to maintain it. Only lime-based paints can be used. They are more expensive and more difficult than the modern latex acrylic paints. Three coats are required for full coverage. The first owner might be careful, but how do you assure it will be properly maintained through a chain of owners? You won't get good hempcrete advice from Home Depot.

Hempcrete is famous for breathability. People say it is very comfortable and healthy. The natural materials reduce the effects of allergies and illness from chemicals. No formaldehyde, latex, urethanes or VOCs. Certainly something we are looking forward to enjoying, but these are subjective issues too difficult to measure.
http://hempcretehouse.coffeecup.com/