Can you use hemp insulation to cover the ground for a GEODESIC Dome?
Hi there
Im looking to cover the ground for a 24' GEODESIC Dome. I'mInterested in or combination for inside flooring. My plan is to lay down landscape cloth then hemp insulation blanket or rolls, then cover it in crushed lava rock, pea gravel, some other decorative stone/rock. I'm building in BC Canada
Hemp insulation is a natural and non toxic insulation material that we like and recommend, but it has to be used in the right appication, and a slab is not the right place for it. Hemp is an organic material, and through it is resistant to moisture damage, using it as the floor insulation right on the ground seems like a risky move. Here are a relevant pages you might find valuable -
It's obvious you are conscious of the materials you use and are aiming for natural non-toxic building products, we commend that and want to help. But we would not want to see your efforts go to waste and have to re-do it, so for the slab you'd really be best to stick to either a rigid foam insulation like EPS, and the only other option I think that even comes close to being considered 'green and natural- would be using mineral wool / Rockwool.
Mineral wool is not commonly used for slabs, but it is an excellent alternative to foam if that is your goal. It was our goal when we build the LEED Platinum Edelweiss House, and you can see here where we used mineral wool rigid boards under the slab foundation. I imagine us and the company Rockwool who use it under their own manufacturing facility slabs may be the only ones who ever have, so you'd join a pretty exclusive club:)