While we wait as patiently as possible for spring to dig holes for our new perc tests my posts will be directed towards general dome related things.
Most people I talk to know what a dome home is but are clueless about the different types of domes. This post is to help show the differences between geodesic and monolithic domes with a few pictures of each. The saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" is true and a video must be worth 100000 words. (Watch a video of a monolithic dome being constructed at the end of this post to really wrap your mind around the process.)
Many people have asked me how a monolithic dome is different than a geodesic dome. The answer can be quite simple. A monolithic dome structure is all one piece and geodesic domes are made up of many pieces (triangles) connected together.
Monolithic domes are sprayed concrete like some inground pools. Here are some photos of interior and exterior monolithic domes.
Both types can be designed to create very interesting spaces but Mr. Dometastic and I think the monolithic domes offer more positives than the geodesic domes. Just a few things that made us choose monolithic: Design freedom not tied to triangles, better insulation and thermal mass than any other home, storm proof and fire proof, no wood to rot or maintain, no roof to maintain or insure. Speaking of insurance, I have yet to look into this personally but I have heard that since it is a cement building without a roof your home owners insurance is basically the contents of your home and the windows. I will be sure to do a post on that in the future after it is built! I anticipate some amusing phone conversations similar to my experiences talking to lenders a few posts back!
If your interested in how they make a sprayed in place concrete home. Watch this short (less than 3 min) video of a monolithic dome being constructed. We will be pouring the slab areas after the dome exterior shell is up. Otherwise this is a good quick video showing the process we will be going through soon.
Most people I talk to know what a dome home is but are clueless about the different types of domes. This post is to help show the differences between geodesic and monolithic domes with a few pictures of each. The saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" is true and a video must be worth 100000 words. (Watch a video of a monolithic dome being constructed at the end of this post to really wrap your mind around the process.)
Many people have asked me how a monolithic dome is different than a geodesic dome. The answer can be quite simple. A monolithic dome structure is all one piece and geodesic domes are made up of many pieces (triangles) connected together.
Monolithic domes are sprayed concrete like some inground pools. Here are some photos of interior and exterior monolithic domes.
Compare the above Monolithic domes with the below Geodesic domes. You can see that geodesic are clearly made up of many triangular pieces connected together to create a dome shape.
If your interested in how they make a sprayed in place concrete home. Watch this short (less than 3 min) video of a monolithic dome being constructed. We will be pouring the slab areas after the dome exterior shell is up. Otherwise this is a good quick video showing the process we will be going through soon.
Cool! Thanks for sharing this, I was wondering how the cement was poured. Do you leave the airform covering on? Then do you have to replace it after a while or can you just take it off? Can't wait to see this house!
ReplyDeleteYes the airform is left on and covered up from the outside. There are a bunch of different exterior treatments. Everything from just painting it to covering it in stone. We will be doing a spray on stucco. The airform is a water barrier and it protects the sprayed foam from direct sun. There are some people that have taken them off and reused them but the company recommends leaving the airform.
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