Hempcrete is a central component in many of our buildings and is a material example of the low impact building philosophy of Balanced Earth. Our first hemp project was at Sky Farm, where the three founders of the company first met.

We primarily build hemp walls in-situ, packing a mix of hemp hurd, natural lime binder and water between formwork around a timber frame. The formwork can be removed the next day to expose a wall which is typically rendered externally and either rendered or left raw internally.

Key benefits and properties of Hempcrete:

• Whole wall system: Rendered hemp around a timber frame forms a complete wall, eliminating need for the layers of materials in a more traditional wall system such as cladding, wall wrap, insulation, gyprock plaster, paint and even skirting and architraves.

• Carbon sequestration: Hempcrete sequesters carbon from the atmosphere for the life of the building. An average home using 50m3 of hemp will lock up around 5.5 tonnes of carbon. This can be measured against the vast emissions from a regular wall system (around 45-50 tonnes), resulting in a net carbon benefit of around 50 tonnes

• Highly fire resistant: Accredited Hurd and Lime products available in Australia have been rated for use in BAL-FZ (Fire Zone), the highest possible rating.

• Hempcrete is an insulator: We typically build our walls to a thickness of 250mm. This achieves an R value of 3.55, Standard insulation batts are around R-2.5.

• Mould, damp, rodent & pest deterrent: The natural lime binder acts as a repellant to mould, rodents, and other pests.

• No paint required: Hempcrete eliminates the need for paint, one of the largest contributors of Volatile Organic Compounds in a home.

• Low impact farming: Hemp as a crop requires minimal irrigation and fertiliser and no chemicals or pesticides.

• Hempcrete as a retrofit and renovation material: We have successfully retrofitted brick veneer homes with internal hemp walls, providing much needed insulation to these notorious Australian hot boxes.

• Healthy home: All of these points combine to provide a natural, breathable, healthy home. More and more frequently we are contacted by clients with respiratory and other health concerns as well as by building biologists who recognise it as a positive alternative to traditional building methods.

(Source: carbon sequestration)

We undertook a multi-year project to asses and observe the ability and feasibility of growing industrial hemp as a crop in the Northern Rivers. This crop was grown at the property of Balanced Earth co-founder Luke Wrencher who successfully grew without irrigation or pesticides. Luke added organic compost as a fertiliser.

Hempcrete Projects