I want a Dome Home

[HalloweenGale]

i am envious of that guy with the dome house

[Sanibel]

They are ugly. How are the insurance companies going to make any money from them?

The good side is you can ride out the strongest type of cyclone and experience it safely from inside. What a set-up to have - a dome with weather instruments on top with live-feed, battery-powered reporting equipment from inside the hurricane...

[vbhoutex]

If you have an extra half million laying around, I'm sure he would be happy to help. I believe his cost $415k. Since it has now been battle tested there might be some improvements so that is why I suggested $500k instead of $415k.

[Roxy]

I dont think it's THAT ugly.

I'd have one if I lived on the beach and could afford it...

LOL!

[Sanibel]

Yeah, I guess you're right. A whole neighborhood of them would be less of a contrast. Like a giant mushroom patch.


$500k? Maybe they have a mini-version?

[Stormsfury]

500k? Maybe they have a mini-version?

Igloos?

[CharleySurvivor]

I think Domes are cool also, especially, if you want something different. I have been gathering lots of info on Domes lately as I am thinking of getting one.

There is lots of info online on Domes and I would recommend anyone considering a Dome to research ALL they can about them as there are good and bad things about them, just like a regular house.

You really need to visit one and see it with your eyes; I visited 2 so far and it tells you a LOT about them from speaking with the owners and hear some of their ''Dome stories'.

[hibiscushouse]

Please share, if you will, some of the pro's and cons. I'm curious.
Perhaps if the dome home wasn't quite so 'white' in color, it wouldn't look like such a big white foam bubble. Do they make them in color, with accent colors?

[Brent]

I saw the one on Pensacola Beach back in June. I remember remarking "What an ugly house". I didn't know until Ivan came through that it was hurricane-proof.

[Sanibel]

Of course you can color anything.


My question would be how much can you cheat back from the pure dome in order to make it more house-like and still maintain the hurricane shedding ability?

[HurricaneBill]

Yeah, I guess you're right. A whole neighborhood of them would be less of a contrast. Like a giant mushroom patch.

Pensacola will turn into a Smurf village?

[jlauderdal]

i am envious of that guy with the dome house

Maybe the insurance compaines including citizens(state of florida) should tell people that have thier homes destroyed that they rebuild a dome home or no insurance. I bet the dome home would seem alot more attractive and insurance rates would decrease.

[CharleySurvivor]

Domes do not have to be a white color, you can do whatever color you want. They recommend you keep it to a light color.

The biggest problem I have heard in regards to domes is mold/mildew because they are so 'air tight' and one must install a form of irrigation system at the base of the dome to draw the water away from it - they don't have gutters like a house - unless it is built on stilts/pillars and that is extremely expensive.

Domes are not that expensive, they cost about the same price as a home. It just depends how you want it and what you put in it, just like a house...the bigger and nicer, the more expensive.

You really have to see a dome home because it looks strange even thus I like them. It even feels strange inside. You cannot get the feel unless you visit one. I say this because IMO we aren't use to a house not being 'square'.

People laugh when you mention 'building a dome' but let me tell you, living in Florida, I prefer to have something safe/worry free when the next hurricane seasons comes. Afterall, I'm the one who will live in it, not them

[hiflyer]

Florida group
http://www.aidomes.com/

1800 sq foot dome estimates out at $64/sqft finished....even has cupola's for us Florida types who want to sit high and look out....!!!!!!

[caribepr]

Here are some pics of dome homes that can give another perspective of them from the *white* house in Fla. I've been in a couple of them in the mountains (GA & NC) that were really beautiful and with a lot of work done by the owners and friends, not terrifically expensive.

http://www.insite.com.br/rodrigo/bucky/house.html

[CharleySurvivor]

Here is a link to the BBS of the 'Monolithic Dome Institute' in Texas. It's a message board with TONS of info on domes.

I have no affiliation with them - never been to their place of business either. I post the link because I found it searching on Google. It will tell you a lot about domes.

http://bbs.monolithic.com/

[inotherwords]

I wish I liked them better but I have to say I'm also in the "they are ugly" camp. There was a picture or two linked from above that showed them with cupolas and various bump-outs, and they looked better, but I don't think domes with these kinds of features would hold up in high hurricane winds.

I would guess, just as a short list, that sufficient natural lighting would be difficult, ventilation difficult. That the skylights would get dirty and hard to clean, that the skylights would have leaking problems galore over time.

The picture of the interior bedroom in that one link is just depressing.

Too bad we can't figure out a better compromise between aesthetics and practicality.

That said, they're still a much better choice than typical manufactured homes.

[The Big Dog]

Before hurricane season -- "Never. They're ugly."

During hurricane season -- "Hmm... I could get used to that."

Looks like a planetarium with drywall.

[Sanibel]

In my younger days I hitched around the Pacific Northwest and got to visit a dome house in the Oregon woods. They had constructed a simple 30 foot diameter dome out of plywood and boards. It was cool because it was obviously very cheap to build but made an exotic spacious structure. Definitely a home-made house and not a code one. What you don't get from looking at them from the outside is how much of an open and high-ceiling-ed interior they have. The only problem is the angles of the top for shingle. You are probably better off spending for a total cap skylight for the top in order to shed straight down from those shallow angles. The first panels under the skylight wouldn't hurt to have a solid metal or material side until you get to the steeper angles further down.

Probably the best design would be a round first story under the dome as a living space with rooms and bathrooms divided by walls. A nice cut stone base would be aesthetic. On top of this you could build the dome and have it as one huge room. This is the main feature of a dome. Not many houses have such extreme open space combined with high insulation value. With a bottom story you could eliminate the need for the structural bulb add-ons...

I wonder if a shallow roof deck depressed under the very top would compromise hurricane resistance or structural integrity?

[Sanibel]

Oh yeah. The "smurf village" sitting right next to a normal frame-house subdivision, in comparison after a strong storm, would speak for itself...