How can I save money when building with hempcrete?

As with all construction, the best way to ensure cost-efficiency when building with cast on site hempcrete is to be efficient with the material. This means ensuring you have a designer who understands how hempcrete works, an engineer who understands its racking abilities, an installer who does not over tamp the material and a project manager who manages the construction schedule to allow sufficient drying. It may be tempting to accept a low fee for technical detailing, but this often ends up being far more expensive when the building is not designed correctly or efficiently.

Hempcrete is a low-tech material because, unlike conventional construction techniques that rely on layers of materials doing different things, hempcrete does the work of several materials. Installing cast-on-site hempcrete is labour-intensive, so much of the construction cost is in the labour. If you are able to install the hempcrete yourselves (ideally with family and friends), a large proportion of the cost can be saved, though it’s important to not underestimate how much work is required to install hempcrete to an entire house!