Is there a natural substitute for xps foam ?

[woodie72]

I am slowly reading through the big one but have a question because i have not come across it yet.

Is there an environmentally friendly alternative to using xps foam ?

[GPW]

Wow !!! What a good question …. The way things are going , I’m sure we’ll see something like Hemp foam soon … Seems if you can bubble an oil based material , to a solid , you can do the same thing organically …
The only thing is , if your Hemp based trailer ever gets set on fire , the whole neighborhood will be sending out for Pizza …

[Pmullen503]

Wood. Cork for insulation.

[John61CT]

Nothing that won't get critters living in it, and/ or get soggy absorbing water vapour.

Rock wool maybe, but IMO not for mobile.

We really need maximum R value per inch thickness for extreme climates

or we're giving up too much living space.

Iso boards are best, with 1/2" XPS on the cold side for extreme locations.

[woodie72]

To clarify, i am talking about foam as structural component, as in a foamie.

Expanded cork board seems interesting but again heavy. A small 40 x 20 inch board 25/32 thick weighs 5.7 pounds Not an option then

I've looked into wood-based insulation panels, https://www.pavatex.com/en/products/wall/pavatherm/
Seems usable, but about as heavy as the expanded cork boards.

Might both benefit from the mix to control water ingress and pest control, but presume they would absorb quite large amounts

In a more classic stick/ply build i would consider wood wool insulation.

On the google i found something about cellulose foam board that seem to be in the works.
https://www.ecohome.net/news/1465/cellulose-foam-insulation-boards

Rockwool is not a natural material though
The base materials are natural, but after the process of turning chalk and rock at 3000 degrees Fahrenheit into rockwool, a hybrid is created that remains in that form forever. It is not biodegradable and will sit in landfills indefinetely.

[woodie72]

That hemp sounds good though

[tony.latham]

Is there an environmentally friendly alternative to using xps foam ?

Yeah. It's called wood. All-natural and renewable.





Tony

[John61CT]

Ply is hardly natural.

Solid plank boards, or steel, which will rust away in time.

[GPW]

Think of it this way , Foam is made from a resin created from Oil …. So ergo est , we just need to find a natural oil to make the resin from … Plant oil ? … Oil is basically oil , whether Butter or 90wt.

[woodie72]

Is there an environmentally friendly alternative to using xps foam ?

Yeah. It's called wood. All-natural and renewable.





Tony

Well, the average person on the other side of the pond doesn't drive cars, well more kinda trucks, that can pull 10000 pounds

[woodie72]

Think of it this way , Foam is made from a resin created from Oil …. So ergo est , we just need to find a natural oil to make the resin from … Plant oil ? … Oil is basically oil , whether Butter or 90wt.

a butterscotch trailer it is

[tony.latham]

well more kinda trucks, that can pull 10000 pounds

Swoodie:

I hope you understand, my post was humor. And I hope your 10,000 pond comment was too.

But just to be clear, here's my sis's little 800-pound teardrop that I built in 2014. Wood is good.





Tony

[tony.latham]

...or steel, which will rust away in time.

John:

Out of curiosity, what is your chassis made from?



Tony

[woodie72]

Partly about the 10000 pounds, when i see small tears weighing over 2000 pounds sometimes. In Europe we have full sized caravans for that weight, although admittedly crap construction and materials, as in the average commercial rv's i supose.

I think it's galavanised steel frame.

As a woodworker i'm all for wood, but keeping an 11,5 foot by 6,5 foot, full standie under 1650 pounds, hybrid micro tiny home style, will be quite hard with too much wood. But i like the full wood look

That is why i am giving foam with minimal framing a think and was wondering if there was a more eco friendly substitute for the xps used in foamies.

[KCStudly]

There was a guy who built a slightly larger tear, for a family of 4, out of corrugated cardboard. Don't recall the name of the project, but do recall that he had a full season camping in it before it started to have problems from water intrusion (IIRC).