JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — Hemp is a material most people may not realize can be used for building a house. A local construction company is building the first hempcrete home in Jefferson County, with the homeowners eager to inspire others to 'think outside the box.'
Darren and Sarah Straus are the new homeowners who said they try to be as environmentally conscious as possible. They learned about hempcrete over a decade ago and thought this material would be the best to create a safe and sustainable home.
"It seemed like a no-brainer to build a house. If we're going to build a house, to use a product like that, and it's also something we were really looking forward to getting our hands dirty with. It's something that we can help participate in without really having any skills in the construction trade, but it's something we've been helping out with, and we'll continue to work on together with the rest of the team as we build the house," Darren Straus said.
As exciting as it is to watch their new home be built, the Straus' have been part of the build, helping with the installation of the hempcrete. Not only has this been a new learning experience, but they hope it will inspire others in the community to follow in their footsteps and use alternative construction materials.
"It's nice to be a trailblazer. It's scary to be a trailblazer as well, because we're learning a lot of things about how we have to go about this, and there have been some obstacles, but nothing insurmountable. What we really want, ideally, is to have this be a showcase as well, for people to see that this can be done, and that there are better ways to build homes than the traditional sticks and drywall that most people look to and that new construction seems to use, and that the alternatives are definitely worth exploring, Darren Straus said.
The head builder is Eric Milburn, who also is the founder of Healthy Hemp Homes. Milburn said his fascination for hempcrete started when his grandmother returned from a trip in Southeast Asia and saw they were building with bamboo and hemp. He decided to attend a workshop in Fort Collins to learn about building with hempcrete and discovered this organic option.
"I've always been fascinated with construction, and the older I've gotten, the more I see that we have deviated from natural uses and we kind of will use kind of petrochemical products, and while some of the performances are good, I think the long-term disadvantages are related to your health," Milburn said.
You may be wondering, 'What is hempcrete?' Milburn explained it is a mixture of hemp hurd, lime and water. He went on to explain it is fire-resistant, pest-resistant and mold-resistant.
"Hempcrete is known to stand for hundreds and hundreds of years. The conventional homes that we build need repair. Any water intrusion starts to tear that house apart. So hempcrete, even if you spend the money up front, you know that house is going to last much longer once it's fully completed. Hemp does have the potential to change and improve the construction industry completely," Milburn said.
There is a process for installing hempcrete, starting with preparing the mix and then packing it onto the walls of the house. Milburn explained that the overall cost is higher in labor than in materials.
"This hemp is grown in Kansas, then the lime comes from South Dakota. So, in terms of actual material costs, it's very cheap. Where you actually spend money is the labor, and that's where I'm trying to speed up this project. So that way we minimize the labor hours on site," Milburn said.
Milburn works alongside his wife Kayla, who shares the passion for this alternative building material. What they're building isn't just a home; it's a milestone for the construction industry.
"Here in Colorado, there are about six hemp homes. This is the very first in Jefferson County and the closest to Denver. You can see kind of the view behind is a view of the Front Range and down into Chatfield and Littleton," Milburn said.
