Friday, September 17, 2010

Hippy, Treehuggin' Building

It looks a little bit like a organic, healthy, bland chicken salad sandwich but it's actually organic, healthy rigid insulation. Greensulate is a rigid board that uses organisms to actually grow the board. "We use a growing organism to transform agricultural byproducts, like cotton burrs and rice hulls, into energy-efficient insulation." It uses mushroom roots to bind everything together without glues or VOCs. With two different density options it has good strength characteristics, making it great for SIPS panels. It also passes testing standards for vapor transmission, water absorption, and has a Class 1 fire rating. Of course if it does burn, blackened mushrooms and rice hulls go great with a grilled pork loin with an orange glaze.


Hemcrete is a lime plaster product that uses hemp stalks as the filler. This isn't just a plaster coating, this would be your wall. After framing up a stud wall, you create forms and pour the mixture in to create a solid, insulating, sound proof, energy efficient, carbon dioxide absorbing (yeah, that's right), breathable wall. One article claims you could mix this plaster up yourself if you happen to be growing a crop of hemp in that secret field out back. Though most of the projects that have used it are in the UK where they can grow hemp legally I suppose, Push Design was able to build one in North Carolina.
This product is also fire resistant. Of course if this one does happen to burn... It's all good, man...just relax...giggle...dude, your house is burning...cooool

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