Healthy indoor climate for humans
Many studies show that existing building materials and insulators are fast and cheap (and some good energy savers) but bad for inhabitants - especially children - breathing acid air. Our products naturally purify the air by absorbing humidity and CO2
Best insulation in class
Lambda = 0.048
R-value = 3.1/inch (USA)
25 years experience shows that regular and stable indoor temperatures are obtained with hemp/lime regardless of outside temperatures. HES-Mix does not only insulate, it regulates temperatures and humidity.
Fire resistant
Tested according to EN 13501-1: 2007 +A1: 2009 our product reaches the highest anti-fire rating for natural materials (Class, B-s1, d0), with no emission of smoke or flaming droplets.
A CSTB fire resistance test was performed and reached 105 minutes exposure to fire before failure.
Benefits for Nature
Time has come to turn to Nature as our supplier of renewable building materials. Natural materials absorb CO2 and require minimal processing.
The hemp plant is able to stock 1.9 Kg of CO2 and a wall made of HES-Mix, up to 50 Kg of CO2 eq.
An economic life exceeding 100 years
High content of silica combined with hydrated lime offers a carbonating amalgame that will outlast any other building material. Buildings constructed or renovated with HES-Mix require a minimum of maintenance and will last for more than 100 years.
100% natural and recyclable
HempLime is made of carefully selected hemp hurds of different sizes, pure hydrated lime and an ingenious blend of natural minerals, all are non toxic building materials.
Hemp Eco Systems Product Info
HES has 3 HempLime products made with 4 raw materials (watch how a HES-mix is made here)
Products:
HES-Mix is cast in-situ and is used for insulation and new buildings
HES-Wall for interior linings and decoration
HES-Finish for exterior and interior renders
Equipment
HES-Mixer: 100/200 Liter (220 V), specifically designed mixer to produce a consistent mix.
HES-Formwork: Metal formwork brackets developed by HES
Application
HES-Mix:
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Roofs: 25 cm HES-Mix without membranes
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Floors: 25-30 cm HES-Mix preferably on gravel
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Insulation of existing walls: 15-20 cm HES-Mix mounted with formwork
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Mono walls on new-buildings: 35 cm HES-Mix as insulation and wall in one membrane.
HES-Wall:
For indoor lining of 3-8 cm, as humidity regulator and finish
HES-Finish:
for outside and inside finish in 1-3 cm, based on sand and lime.
Placing and Curing
HES-forms are lifted instantly after HES-mix has been placed
HES-mix should cure for 2-5 weeks before applying renders and finishes
Materials used in HES products and how they function
1. Selected hemp hurds
Hemp hurds is the wood part of the cannabis plant (cannabis sativa the THC free species. If hemp was chosen 25 years ago, it was because of its high content of silica (sand), making the material resistant to fire and rot. The hurds lodge thousands of macro and micro pores taking up moisture quickly and release it gradually, making it a natural humidity regulating material.
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The Hemp plant (Cannabis Sativa) grows in most climates;
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It has been of use to Man for thousands of years;
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It grows up to 4 meters in 3-4 months and, while growing, it takes up large amounts of CO2;
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1 kg of hemp hurds is able to store 1.9 kg CO2;
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Apart from Hurds the plant supply us with seeds and fibres;
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It requires no pesticides or irrigation.
2. Pure hydrated lime: the binder
Hydrated lime (calcium carbonate) was used by the romans and up through ages as a base for all building materials. It lost its importance and disappeared from the market when cement was invented. We have re-introduced the use of this natural material for its mass availability, its stability and because it's a living material that can produce an alkaline in-door climate by a constant uptake of CO2. Obviously it contains no cement. When in contact with water, a process named "carbonation" starts. This process is natural, require a small amount of water, takes up CO2 and enters into a long process whereby the lime powner returns to its original state as calcium carbonate. It turns hard as stone and the process is 100% natural. It makes all HES products "living materials", compared with cement or hydraulic lime which are dead materials. It is precicely this process that is used to produce optimal thermal and humidity regulation and a long lasting product. The process is natural and is produced at no extra cost.
3. HES-plus PATENTED mineral blend
Hydrated lime has one drawback: it cures (hardens) very slowly. To overcome this problem we have invented a natural mineral additive that is able to cure the lime in 2 days and this without losing the uptake of CO2. By adding certain natural minerals to the hydrated lime, we could make the curing of the lime within a few hours, but the effect must be not to lose the CO2 uptake. This was achieved and the result was a curing time of 2-3 days with continued CO2 uptake. With this important invention we were granted a patent and a 1st price at the annuasl bio-conference in germany 2014.
Our invention allows:
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a reduction of the basic binder from 60 to 25 kg per batch;
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a weight reduction to 240 kg/m3;
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a more porous product and therefore an improvement of thermal effect and humidity regulation;
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a quicker drying process matching standard material
Insulation and heat buffering
The unique effect of the combination Hemp, lime and minerals makes it possible to regulate heating and cooling, living comfortably in 18-19° and reduce considerably energy cost. This is caused by two phenomena:
1. The Hemp hurds ability to take up and release micro quantities of moisture. Warm day temperatures cause a micro evaporation and cold night temperatures a micro condensation. This is micro energy which blocks the temperatures from transiting the walls. (Bath University).
2. The heat storage and heat buffer capacity found in HES-mix is greater than in any other building and insulation material.
This contributes to keeping a stable and constant in-door temperature regardless of the outside temperatures and humidity (Holcroft & Shea 2013). Consequently HES-Mix functions completely differently from all other building and insulation materials. Concluding this important element in healthy, confortable and economic living, we note that the adapted so-called lambda method to measure the effect of insulation materials, is only a small and in reality not very important element of the total picture. To obtain comfortable and healthy living with optimized energy savings, several contributing elements must be considered and measured.
Temperature and humidity
Low energy consumption combined with in-door health and comfort depends on temperature and humidity.
These are tightly connected and, of the two, the dominant is humidity. It is therefore necessary to be able to control both, obtain the optimal level temperature (around 18-19°C) and humidity (55- 60%) and make it stable. The heating has been explained above. As for humidity, it builds up due to environment and the inhabitants. Regulating humidity has to be done by the wall membranes that absorb the excess of humidity and send it through the walls to the outside. This can only function if no so-called vapor membranes or other barriers are present in the wall and roof. If the insulation and building materials allow for this, the regulation is assured without the use of ventilation or other mechanical means. Opening the windows twice a day is sufficient and necessary. We name this “vapout open” construction.
This is precisely what HES bio-composites can do.
