A prime example of how well hemp can be used on the house is given by the recently concluded energy-orientated refurbishment of a row of six single-family houses built in Nuremberg-Gartenstadt. They were built in the second half of the 1920s as accommodation for people with no exacting demands for comfort; the architecture and the room division were acknowledged as progressive, but thermal insulation of the building shell was then still a long way off. Since then however the needs of residents and expectations regarding comfort, health, protection against the cold of winter and the heat of summer as well as the technical building facilities of apartments and houses have changed enormously. The Gartenstadt Nürnberg eG therefore decided to carry out the imminent renovation of initially six existing buildings under monument protection with the natural insulation material hemp, in fact with the system Capatect Natur+. Hemp insulation panels, 100 mm thick, were professionally fitted to the outer walls and then coated with a thick mineral render and attractively decorated with Caparol ThermoSan NQG facade paint. The result pleased the residents and the project managers at Gartenstadt Nürnberg eG who are planning facade insulation for other existing buildings using the Capatect Natur+ system.
Restful living
Along with the increase in room comfort, which is noticeable even shortly after fitting, and the unmistakeably enhanced appearance of the house, facade insulation with hemp insulation panels has a further significant advantage. The Capatect Natur+ system proves to be a real blessing for the ears, because street noise is only noticeable in the insulated building at a much reduced extent. Consequently, the new hemp insulation from Caparol is the ideal choice in densely populated residential areas and property locations which are situated in the audible vicinity of air fields, railway lines, motorways and similar sources of noise. Further information can be found in the Internet at www.hanf-daemmt-gruener.de.
Photographs: Caparol Farben Lacke Bautenschutz