How to Build Ultra Modern Homes With a Concrete & Earth Shelter

Ask any educated architect about the best form a home could have for the purposes of strength and energy efficiency and your answer will always be the same, a monolithic concrete dome. Well insulated, strong, space conscious, easy to construct and cheaper over the life of the home, monolithic domes are clearly the way of the future. Able to have significant weight applied over them, such domes can be burmed with earth to insulate them even more against the elements, further reducing the heating and cooling costs of the structure.

Shotcrete sprayer
Inflatable airform shell
High-volume air pump
Reinforcing bars, wire and hangers
2-by-4 wood planks
Plywood sheeting
Polyurethane spray foam insulation

Instructions

- 1
  Construct a foundation ring to the dimension you wish your dome to be mounted. This should be constructed just as a standard foundation footing, with rebar exposed vertically to mate the dome to the ring securely.
- 2
  Inflate the dome airform over the ring.The airform will be round and must be mated to the round foundation ring with an airtight seal filled and inflated with a high volume air pump that will need to be in operation until the insulation layer has set.
- 3
  Demarcate and block off any door or window opening you would like to have installed after the concrete has set by building plywood mock-ups and installing them against the skin of the airform.
- 4
  Coat the inside of the dome airform with a layer, 3 to 5 inches thick of polyurethane spray foam insulation. Allow it to cure then hang rebar hangers into the foam, before spraying another 2 to 3 inch layer over them to secure in place.
- 5
  Build up a matrix of rebar slightly offset from the foam insulation, hung on the hangers. Space your reinforcing bars at intervals dependent on tensile strengths sought.
- 6
  Spray the inside of the dome with a layer of shotcrete about 6 to 8 inches thick. Allow to cure depending on the manufacturer's recommendations.
- 7
  Leave the airform in place to act as a vapor barrier, and cover the outside surfaces with whatever material you like. Alternatively, bury the dome with earth for increased insulating properties.

Roman Vs. Italian Columns

Structure of the Atrium

Architecture