I lived in a cinder block building (apartments) built in the 50s...sand was poured in to sound proof....we stayed warm in the winter but the cool in the summer was incredible...used less to cool and stayed cool longer
My workshop is also made of cinder block and I had the same experience, although the roof is made of asbestos sheets, which certainly also contributes to the insulation (fortunately there is a solid intermediate roof so that none of the fibres get inside).
@@Finny_finn_finn , I owned an 8 inch cinderblock building I southern New Mexico. It was far too hot in summer and too cold in winter. I wrapped it in 2" foam with an elastomeric plaster. New windows and insulation made a huge difference, with the thermal mass inside the insulated envelope.
@@tinkeringtim7999 Usually, it depends on if there’s enuf cleared area around as a firebreak. There’s a wind generated by wildfire, which paradoxically can cool (relatively). If even very significant flames stay at least 10’ away, those usually consume the fuel fast enuf, the block walls won’t be damaged, & won’t transmit the heat fast enuf to oven the interior. Similar for thicker stucco walls. Things that can reduce the temperature transfer thru a concrete block wall, include filling the inside of the blocks with sand (the ones not Code required to be filled with concrete); About 3’ to 4’ or more roof overhangs & properly screened soffit vents; R-50+ roof insulation; Non-flammable roofing. The deep overhangs have multiple benefits, besides fire resistance; they are great for temp averaging year around, & provide porch/veranda/patio transitional space. If you have resources, wrap the outside of walls with about R-20 insulation, then, cover that with a fireproof siding that is vented, making the siding like a shield.
In masonry, we use a pattern called herringbone. Now, it is mostly used with brick and on the ground as patios, but in Florence, Italy, they used that pattern to build a cathedral's dome roof. The pattern makes an interlocking arch that then carries its own weight as it rises and leans inward. Now they did it with brick, but it would work with block.
I think they actually used tiles, but perhaps it's a very thin squarish brick. In any case, the medieval mortar retains flexibility and the wide thin bricks make for a large contact surface between layers. That's something to factor in when considering to copy that dome in Florence. I am not familiar with shapes and sizes of building materials in the US, but the standard brick here in Europe probably wouldn't work, and a cinder block not either. But I am not a bricklayer, I would be happy and honoured to be corrected by expertise.
Possibly your best video. Took me right back to 1966 when I got my GI Joe (and SuperBall). I remember going over to Jed's house to play GI Joes. I don't know why we didn't think of building an igloo for our little soldiers. But, here you are, thinking of the things I missed.
Now THAT is pure genius! I could almost see that buried in the south side of a mountain, with some of those "glass cube" blocks, for letting in sunlight on the southern exposure! Right? Thanks for the inspiration, Paul! 🙂
Your "obsessions", Paul, are always inspirations for all of us - your subscribers. Thank you for new ideas, as well as for presenting some old ones in amazing way! The dome is my personal obsession :-)
There is a monolithic concrete dome that survived a fire in California when all of the neighboring houses were reduced to rubble. Concrele doesn't burn...
Always liked dome homes but never lived in one. This is a brilliant idea for the people in Palisades California to consider this alternative of construction.
The clamp you need for your central post is something called a half cheeseborough. They are used in pipe staging and would work perfect. A half cheeseborough with a bolt through the timber would be ideal for your design. They are readily available and not expensive.
Paul … Absolutely wonderful!! Love the scale model. Have loved and wanted a tiny house since my teen years; inspired by Thoreau!!! I clicked seventy in August of last year. I may have one yet. Thoroughly enjoyable video!!! Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. God bless you and family!!! Chuck Knight from Atascocita (Houston), Texas. ✝️👨🌾🙏👍🏼
I’m 61 , and have been wondering if my dream of alternative living is too late , still dreaming though ! Good to know at least one other person still has ideas that may come to fruition , and there may be many more out there somewhere!
The coolest idea similar to this I have seen is when they used an special inflatable and covered it with concrete. Then once it cured, they deflated the form so they were left with an empty structure.
If it's the one I'm thinking of they spray the inside of the inflatable membrane with urethane foam first. Then put clips into the foam that supports the reo. Then they spray cement onto the reo. You end up with a water tight and insulated dome.
@@paulwelkinsdiy Latex Concrete can be used like this with fiberglass mesh applied in multiple layers. I had actually hoped your outer layer was latex concrete in this video. Thank you for doing this video. I wanted to also add that you could integrate an evaporative cooling system to the structure by running water to the top (even with standard water pressure) where it would wet the outside. The heat would evaporate the water as it went down the sides of the structure causing a phase change heat reduction. In cases where there was a fire this could be left running passively to avoid the temperature inside the structure from heating up too high and combusting.
@@paulwelkinsdiy Wondering if there is a cost effective way to DIY the inflatable cement impregnated cloth. I know from my UHPC research, the ability to source materials is more challenging now with less coal utilities. However, I wonder about the remediation opportunities before is long gone as well as cost effective ways to bring the price point down feasibly ways and means. Sad such a waste in resources that at the least the skeletons of the erection and sheathing can be built to last centuries and millennia.
The greatest threat from a hurricane isn't usually the wind, it's the storm surge. Built on a hill it'd probably be fine, but 6 ft of water is hard to beat. Some rare events have storm surges that would go over the dome here.
This is such a groovy home. I think the toilet needs a sink in the top of the tank. Grey water fills the tank and is used to flush. I would choose this over most tiny houses I've seen. A biggish window may help with claustrophobia.
This also looks sturdy plus naturally cooled also Cinder block with cooled water flow pipes in-between the layers like a jacket with cooled earthen tiles and cooled paints that you use in home usage and drinking should be another useful addon. Nice idea ..Sir ~Regards and Namaste~
Ive seen one where you stitch together tyvek in a dome shape then baton its permiter to a slab base, inflate it with an air compressor. You then spray a mixture of aerated concrete then place rebar then spray more concrete. Anyway very detailed mock up there and a great design you have
Awesome work! The thought occured to me, if you found a bicycle seat quick release clamp that fit the vertical pipe of your form tool, it would be a cheap and convenient solution to quickly adjust and set the tool angle.
I would build that, but make it at least 20ft if living with another person. Definitely a great idea for hurricane territory. But if that got caught in a wildfire it would turn into an oven. You would literally cook inside. The only way to survive a wildfire is to build underground, and even then you would have to vacate when the fires got close so you didn't suffocate due to lack of oxygen.
I don't think anyone in their right mind plans to build a fire-proof house so that they can remain IN it during a wildfire. That would be suicide. But a house which is fireproof and unlikely to catch itself on fire *or* add fuel to a fire would be a *HUGE* upgrade. Thinks don't usually end well for those who think they know everything, toss caution to the wind, and disobey evacuation orders. Hopefully they will at least get their pets and livestock out of harm's way and only *then* go back . . . if the police will even let them.
Cool! Nothing like building a model to work out the details. Might be a nice and easily transportable jig for building a huge ice dome on a frozen lake too!
The thing I find interesting about your original playing with a compass design is that the angle of incidence is going to be virtually identical depending on where the sun is in the sky, that combined with the thermal mass of the cinderblock would keep a relatively stable interior temperature year round.
Very interesting, thank you. I actually designed and made a canvas tent of the same shape. It is 14’ across and about 9’ high. I tried setting it up in the winter with a wood stove and found it difficult to heat because of the high ceiling. I decided it would be better to add some kind of ceiling to keep the heat lower. Also saw that effect in an igloo in -35C that wound up being that shape rather than a dome. It is a good shape however for maximizing headroom.
Not sure about this particular design, but there are a bunch of domes that use a tensioner around the base that seems to hold up in earthquake prone areas. Jamie Mantzel's dome house hasn't fallen down yet despite earthquakes, and that thing has pretty major sagging due to insect damage to the foundation.
Very similar to Calearth domes built with earth bags. Recently Tiny Shiny Home RUclips had an earthbag home expert there for a couple weeks and they have a whole sequence on the build and the mechanisms for the step in and maintaining the curve. Also a good series of videos by Our Self Reliant Life all built with their native soil and cob. They have excellent thermal mass, low insulation value. I like your take on dome construction material options. They would be faster then earth bags with an added cost.
Earthbags are a simple and cheap way to make a structure, but time consuming and energy rich. Lots of back work and repetitive motions tamping the courses. At a cost of roughly $1400 for the light-weight blocks, and a few hundred for the mortar, erecting the small blocks for this dome would be much quicker and have a smoother surface saving money on the outer finishing coat material. You could even just paint the interior to save money.
I have always liked your ideas and your approach to things. Domes are an excellent way to deal with extreme environments in my opinion. I have never really been fond of cinderblocks though. The structures are cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Aircrete, or aircrete mixed with shredded foam make a great building material, especially as brickes. They are cheap and best of all light with excellent insulation value. In places like California, a cinderblock dome in an earthquake would likely kill people inside should it collapse. An aircrete dome however is less likely to first, fail, and then if it did, kill people as it is so light weight. Here in Las Cruces, NM, there is a tent village for homeless. there are several three sided frame structures with a roof to protect a tent inside. How much more would a similar sized aircrete dome cost, I don't know at present, but it could offer a shelter that would be easier to heat and cool. Thank you for your ideas Paul. I wish city, state, and federal governments were more creative with their solutions for these problems.
Interesting concept. If you want it insulated, you should just build it with ICF blocks. You could shape the blocks, when you start the dome section, to make them fit better. Because they interlock, you wouldn’t need your support, and you could pour the concrete.into the centres as you go, as long as you only do a couple of courses at a time. I love the finished model. And you’re right….. if you are going to make the sofa and bedcovers…. You may as well go all in. 😄
An essential aspect of a wildfire proof home is the defensible open space around it. A space free of anything that can burn. An exterior that can take impacts from burning limbs carried aloft that land on the roof, or up against exterior doors, windows, and walls. Possibly surround the building with a sidewalk, and a wall built from corrugated metal outside of that. It would take the brunt of radiant heat and protect the structure from damage. Evacuation is always the best option in case of wildfire, especially with a structure this small. I believe larger fireproof homes have been built designed to be safe to remain inside of during a fire event. Or at least remain undamaged for when you return to them.
Amazing ! I’m wondering about putting the staircase around the inner perimeter of the home and building storage into them As someone who has never built a model, I am totally inspired to try !
The advantage of aircrete is, the insulation is in the air bubbles in the brick itself and that is partly why they are so thick. The other reason they are thick bricks is they are more fragile than ordinary cement and they need the thickness for structural strength. This kind of air-crete brick structure is finished with a coating of some kind of nylon or fiberglass fabric that is cemented on with bubble-less cement. Then there is commerical autoclaved aircrete bricks which are factory made. Autoclaved aircrete brick structures can be made safe for earthquake standards, but they need to engineered with reinforcements and California has all but banned them instead of setting engineering standards. This kind of brick is used successfully in other earthquake prone places like Japan and Brazil. California really needs to get with it. Hopefully these fires with support the push for engineering standards for autoclaved aircrete.
Love your design, but it seems just a few more feet in diameter would make it less tight (claustrophobic) and much more comfortable and functional. But you have an excellent idea here! Thankyou for sharing!
Hi there, saw you on Kirsten Dirkson's video. I love your creativity in meeting various design challenges. I would love to see you make shelters for homeless with the materials they have around them, trash. Each build would be different because each site would have different materials available and particular challenges over the course of a year, including varying levela of legal oppression. It'd be so cool if you could figure out all sorts of tools for homeless survival from within the actual context they are facing. Going to lowe's is expensive and complicated if you don't have money and a car and a workshop. Being able to start from found materials and build the tools necessary to make good stuff is the entire challenge. The idea that an Inuit could just lie down in the snow and sleep because their furs were so perfect for that ecosystem comes to mind for some reason.
Brilliant! Having the water closet near the front door is great. Monolithic Domes may have solved some issues you could bricolage from. Homes in the Australian outback are designed to deal with common wildfires, too. "Hayas masiem, Tyee" (Chinuk Wawa for "Many thanks, Chief").
I would have vents that can open at the base of the structure, and have that top window be able to open - that gives you a passive cooling option, and that through draft is how termite mounds Thermo-regulate their structures (hot air leaving out the drop draws in cool air from the lower vents, bonus points if they can draw from an under-ground area). Also, thermal tiles on the outside would be a nice premium upgrade, then you've got a really good desert structure (important for the Climate Change era). Lots of desert structures are domes.
Thank you for this! The dearly departed architect and author of Emergency Sandbag Shelters who also founded the Cal Earth Organization spent his entire life trying to make housing more affordable for poor people and described the process of your cinder blocks (or sandbags) moving inward towards the center point of the top as, “Corbeling”. I bought a copy for roughly $20 off eBay and am currently trying to figure out which parts of the book to synopsize for a DVD on how to survive being homeless. But this World needs more people like yourself who has been well trained to think outside the box for better solutions to these problems. Also, your reverse motorcycle trike reminds me of this Motor City Pulse Autocycle I saw at auto shows in the late 1980s and ended up parked on the streets of Hill Valley in Back To The Future Part Two. I really LOVED the fact that they were supposed to get 70 MPG, but with the one exception of Steven Speilburg, I’m not sure who else was buying them. But I always wanted one for myself. I’m glad you were able to build one for yourself. 😇
💕 Loved what Nadir Khalili has done at CalEarth! He actually got San Bernardino County (considered a highly seismic area), to his dirtbag dome & arch building! Almost anyone can do it right….there’s even been one old gal, over 70, who built her own & blogged about it 🤗 Also, his ceramicized dome buildings may be a solution for certain uses. CalEarth is still selling rolls of bulk sandbags & other resources, I think.
@ CalEarth is continuing onward with a younger generation of students who have been studying Nadir’s legacy. Not just Nadir’s children, but also this former musician with a stunning English accent who was in one of their videos talking about how if they prefill some of the earthbags, they’ve timed the process of getting emergency shelters erected in record time. As I watched, I thought to myself just how amazing this happens to be, as well as wondered why more people don’t know about it at the same time. They really have shown people many of the possibilities if only they’re willing to think outside the box (not unlike Paul Elkins). 😇
I especially like the concept of using the chloroplast campaign signs as shelter walls. A kind of FU to the incompetent clowns in office without really saying it. Brilliant.
These bricks could be adobe (clay, sand, straw). You could do a mold like legos, already with the curve you need for your desired radius, let the bricks dry 2 days in the sun, then stack and glue them with cob. You'll then have your thermal mass, which stock and release heat when you warm up your house. Usually, you want your insulation on the outside, so you can stack straw bales, tie them to one another, pierce stakes to hold them to the layer below, and glue them with cob. The angle would be achieved with some cob or a roll of straw. Then, a clay slip on the outside, and then some more cob (1-2 inches). Then 2-3 thin layers of cob + increasing % of lime to become waterproof. Alternatively, you could have added a ventilating space (of about 2 inches), and use any cladding you want (tiles, water barrier, etc.). With all that, you have a very solid, insulated structure that distribute force, from natural materials. Cinder blocks are concrete. Dome Gaïa too, though much less (there's also styro-crete, mixed with waterproof polymer, if you want a much better option). It's also important to prevent capillarities from the soil, with a drained foundation, or a raised deck.
Australian fire victim here. I love this BUT in a massive all consuming fire the air gets sucked out of the atmosphere and people suffocate. Air breathing apparatus is necessary to survive that.
Cool design! I love all the work you put into this! I would definitely look into spray foam insulation if I built a house like this. How does this compare to ICF house prices? I can't see how poured cement into the foam blocks in ICF buildings can be that much more expensive than buying cement blocks and spending that much time and energy gluing each one together like that, but you would definitely get a unique house, that would resist fire from outside being aerodynamic like that, you will be warmer in the bedroom upstairs! Will you have heating and air conditioning? Maybe a dual zone mini split heat pump? the one up in the bedroom could cool in the summer, and the one in the living room heat in the winter? Or I guess a fan to move air from one level to another?
This would really work well with earthbag construction. I was thinking of how to design a system to easily calculate the vault arch while placing the earthbags. Your design made it easier and safer. Earthbags is cheap, could insulate the building, proven to resist earthquakes if used with barb wires reinforcement and I believe could be fire and hurricane proof. I'm not so sure about fire. We had testing of fire resistance of materials in lab. The issue is not about direct burning but the heat that gets transferred through the material. The heat could cook, melt or even ignite the material inside if it's hot enough.
As for 'insulation', it might be possible to plaster the outside of the dome in refractory cement, the same stuff used to make fire bricks in blacksmith propane forges. If this is meant to also be a wild fire shelter, might be a good idea to keep it from turning into a brick oven.
wow, what the hell!? you really outdone yourself with this one. very elaborate, yet so simple at the same time somehow. i would start by digging a bit of a hole before building the wall, that way you have under-floor storage space. after the wall is already in place it gets more difficult to move soil out of the circle. i like the nail shower head. i would suggest building it from extruded polystyrene foam, that way your insulation is taken care of, except it also means your waterproofness is a bit of a question. the bricks could be cut with a hot wire, which drastically reduces the mess compared to saws, could be made very accurate using a purpose built jig, and could also very easily be made solar powered. it wouldn't be hurricane proof of course, more like a temporary dwelling
One benefit of making this 16ft diameter round cement floor is the end of an 8 ft long screed board could attach to the central pivot and sweep in a circle, with the worker screeding on the outside of the cement floor.
I was wondering if you could make every building block a 2-layer [not-quite sandwich because it's only 2 layers], with polystyrene foam on the inside and the cinder block on the outside. You'd need to be able to place the foam against the boom, and then the rest the cinder block onto the foam without it being squished. But that _shouldn't_ be a problem, since the brick would lay flat onto the foam, evenly spreading the weight.(*) And the angle of the wall is at most 30° from vertical, which means at most 50% of the weight of the cinder block goes through the foam. And you'd want a sufficiently hard foam anyways so that it can resist denting when you elbow it. And you'd also want the inside of the wall plastered anyways; putting that onto the foam instead of the brick will provide the scratch and dent protection to the foam. Maybe there would even be a way to layer some kind of plastic sheet, fiber board or dry wall as the inner most layer. (*) You'd just have to give the end of the boom a flat surface too if you go with the "2-layers plus plaster" strategy.
Could you make a bigger dome first, then build a second dome inside of it, since the contraption fits inside of the structure itself. Thus leaving a small gap between the two walls for insulation and whatever else, or make the gap big enough that you could walk around the inner structure, use the space as sheltered storage. It would also allow for more specialized materials, one type of brick more suited for the exterior and one for the interior.
Awesome model and funny timing: I just finished up my own mini dome project. If you ever wanted to build this thing as a permanent, permitted structure then I could be a good resource to bounce questions off of.
To fireproof or hurricane-proof the windows and door, could likely place some sort of shutters of a fireproof/resistant material such as aerogel and kevlar so that the glass does not get damaged or broken due to heat or impact.
I came here to say that. Yes they are fantastic and beautiful. I love how they can be joined together and even totally dismantled and the put back up again.
Could set up your block laying jig to place a double wall block placement. And inner wall and outer wall at the same time for each layer. The as you go you can the insulate the gap inbetween. Just means you'll either be decreasing your interior space or increasing the outer diameter of the structure.
You mention aircrete. They mould the blocks on site. I've always thought that it would make more sense to mould tapered hexagonal prisms. Set the taper to equal the radius of the curve. That way as you stack they'll naturally form the curve.
Good idea. On my Coro dome I love the shape but a waist of material. I was thinking of something similar, making triangular curved panels using possibly air Crete. It's been done, but not well done.
@paulwelkinsdiy thinking more about this and I'm not sure now. You might need to shrink the size of the blocks as you get closer to the "pole" or have some pentagonal blocks. Not as easy as I was thinking initially.
Imagining one half buried under the ground, a bit like an Icelandic turf house. The top of the dome only, peeking out. Maybe even a more trap door like entrance. Would probably help the insulation conundrum greatly too.
dude, get a proxon wire cutter for cutting your foam. It is safer for your fingers. This is pretty damn cool. I am thinking of a dome home. I have been studying dome homes since the 80s. If I had land and built my own house, I would do it.
The Cal Earth domes have also proven to be earthquake resistant. I think they had some in Nepal that survived quite a strong earthquake. I love your interior layout.
I had one fellow mention the Bam Iran 2003 earthquake, where many mud dome homes collapsed and killed many. With some rebar here and there and a core block fill of whatever, it should be able to take on a nominal earthquake. But it depends on the type of shaking too.
Many times I have wondered how to treat straw bales to be longest lasting and more sealed. Not as much load bearing, though gets me wondering and thinking again if maybe dipping in UHPC and then setting in a mold. I have wondered about urethane that is an optimal formulation for waterproofing more so, though for load bearing purposes I am wondering about some way to like place a rebar and pipe through maybe as well for some applications. Then again, can drill, drive and mortar seems.
I could see a gap, then a second wall enclosing the entire structure. . With concrete or stone, the interior acts as thermal mass. Insulation wraps the exterior.
In a wild fire that thing would become a giant oven so no not even close to fire proof. In a hurricane its not only about the wind but the water and debris as well, could that structure support both slamming into it or would it crumble and become a giant cinder block coffin?
It would not become an oven unless is was surrounded by flammable materials. If it was in the middle of a backyard, and not surrounded by plants, I bet it would have survived where the homes in LA did not. And even if you weren't in it, you would have a temporary home while you rebuilt.
I’m building domes using the Domegaia Aircrete method. To get an egg shape dome, on the the compass arm shown in your videos, I added an extended boom which then pivots on the center pole. I wish the comments section could allow photos. If you’re interested in seeing the pictures and a video I made on how it works, let me know.
Yes, that would be great, but city governments are usually looking for ways to increase their tax base; hence, the slow uptake for tiny homes and the prevalence of zoning laws to restrict their use in city limits. People without the means for housing in a city probably don't have the means to commute to a city job from the county, Building affordable housing like Paul is working on definitely needs to be accepted and implemented by city councils and the zoning laws amended to allow their use.
I lived in a cinder block building (apartments) built in the 50s...sand was poured in to sound proof....we stayed warm in the winter but the cool in the summer was incredible...used less to cool and stayed cool longer
My workshop is also made of cinder block and I had the same experience, although the roof is made of asbestos sheets, which certainly also contributes to the insulation (fortunately there is a solid intermediate roof so that none of the fibres get inside).
@@Finny_finn_finn , I owned an 8 inch cinderblock building I southern New Mexico. It was far too hot in summer and too cold in winter. I wrapped it in 2" foam with an elastomeric plaster. New windows and insulation made a huge difference, with the thermal mass inside the insulated envelope.
Looks like an oven for wildfires though.
@@tinkeringtim7999 Usually, it depends on if there’s enuf cleared area around as a firebreak. There’s a wind generated by wildfire, which paradoxically can cool (relatively).
If even very significant flames stay at least 10’ away, those usually consume the fuel fast enuf, the block walls won’t be damaged, & won’t transmit the heat fast enuf to oven the interior.
Similar for thicker stucco walls.
Things that can reduce the temperature transfer thru a concrete block wall, include filling the inside of the blocks with sand (the ones not Code required to be filled with concrete); About 3’ to 4’ or more roof overhangs & properly screened soffit vents; R-50+ roof insulation; Non-flammable roofing.
The deep overhangs have multiple benefits, besides fire resistance; they are great for temp averaging year around, & provide porch/veranda/patio transitional space.
If you have resources, wrap the outside of walls with about R-20 insulation, then, cover that with a fireproof siding that is vented, making the siding like a shield.
The idea is not to be inside. If the structure survives, that is less to build.
In masonry, we use a pattern called herringbone. Now, it is mostly used with brick and on the ground as patios, but in Florence, Italy, they used that pattern to build a cathedral's dome roof. The pattern makes an interlocking arch that then carries its own weight as it rises and leans inward. Now they did it with brick, but it would work with block.
I think they actually used tiles, but perhaps it's a very thin squarish brick. In any case, the medieval mortar retains flexibility and the wide thin bricks make for a large contact surface between layers. That's something to factor in when considering to copy that dome in Florence. I am not familiar with shapes and sizes of building materials in the US, but the standard brick here in Europe probably wouldn't work, and a cinder block not either. But I am not a bricklayer, I would be happy and honoured to be corrected by expertise.
The phone cam walk through was a nice touch. I really does give you a sense what it might be like full sized.
Possibly your best video. Took me right back to 1966 when I got my GI Joe (and SuperBall). I remember going over to Jed's house to play GI Joes. I don't know why we didn't think of building an igloo for our little soldiers. But, here you are, thinking of the things I missed.
These dwellings remind me of Luke Skywalker's home on Tatooine, great against desert wind, not so great against Imperial entanglements. 😢
That looked fun to design and mock up! Always always always enjoy a new Elkins video!!!!
Now THAT is pure genius! I could almost see that buried in the south side of a mountain, with some of those "glass cube" blocks, for letting in sunlight on the southern exposure! Right? Thanks for the inspiration, Paul! 🙂
Loved this video, informative, interesting and chucklesome - GI Joe clearly enjoyed himself too.
Thank you!
This was so fun to watch!! The view from inside was awesome!!
Your "obsessions", Paul, are always inspirations for all of us - your subscribers. Thank you for new ideas, as well as for presenting some old ones in amazing way! The dome is my personal obsession :-)
There is a monolithic concrete dome that survived a fire in California when all of the neighboring houses were reduced to rubble. Concrele doesn't burn...
Nevertheless, concrete if heated up sufficiently can explode.
What about smoke, toxic fumes?
This confirms what I have always known... You are a model citizen, Paul. Fab 😊idea
I have to say I really like it. I especially like how the model looks, it reminds me of those DIY books from the 70s / 80s
Always liked dome homes but never lived in one. This is a brilliant idea for the people in Palisades California to consider this alternative of construction.
@carlos,
You would think so.
And yet, at that level of wealth, practical is way down the list compared to impressing the rubes with fancy.
Pretty cool Paul! Thanks for sharing. A green exterior might work. Kind of like a Chea pet.
LOL!
That… would be kind of cool. I’m multiple ways.
The clamp you need for your central post is something called a half cheeseborough. They are used in pipe staging and would work perfect. A half cheeseborough with a bolt through the timber would be ideal for your design. They are readily available and not expensive.
Paul … Absolutely wonderful!! Love the scale model. Have loved and wanted a tiny house since my teen years; inspired by Thoreau!!! I clicked seventy in August of last year. I may have one yet. Thoroughly enjoyable video!!! Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. God bless you and family!!! Chuck Knight from Atascocita (Houston), Texas. ✝️👨🌾🙏👍🏼
I’m 61 , and have been wondering if my dream of alternative living is too late , still dreaming though ! Good to know at least one other person still has ideas that may come to fruition , and there may be many more out there somewhere!
Paul
This is immensely charming! Great model!
The coolest idea similar to this I have seen is when they used an special inflatable and covered it with concrete. Then once it cured, they deflated the form so they were left with an empty structure.
Even better is the inflatable cement impregnated cloth that once blown up can be sprinkled with water and set up as a hard shell. But the cost....
If it's the one I'm thinking of they spray the inside of the inflatable membrane with urethane foam first. Then put clips into the foam that supports the reo. Then they spray cement onto the reo.
You end up with a water tight and insulated dome.
@@paulwelkinsdiy A mycelium brick would be nice
@@paulwelkinsdiy Latex Concrete can be used like this with fiberglass mesh applied in multiple layers. I had actually hoped your outer layer was latex concrete in this video.
Thank you for doing this video.
I wanted to also add that you could integrate an evaporative cooling system to the structure by running water to the top (even with standard water pressure) where it would wet the outside. The heat would evaporate the water as it went down the sides of the structure causing a phase change heat reduction. In cases where there was a fire this could be left running passively to avoid the temperature inside the structure from heating up too high and combusting.
@@paulwelkinsdiy Wondering if there is a cost effective way to DIY the inflatable cement impregnated cloth. I know from my UHPC research, the ability to source materials is more challenging now with less coal utilities. However, I wonder about the remediation opportunities before is long gone as well as cost effective ways to bring the price point down feasibly ways and means. Sad such a waste in resources that at the least the skeletons of the erection and sheathing can be built to last centuries and millennia.
A pleasure to see what's in your mind come to life. What a blessed channel
Sweet, thanks Paul. I felt like i was inside it too. Great work!
The greatest threat from a hurricane isn't usually the wind, it's the storm surge. Built on a hill it'd probably be fine, but 6 ft of water is hard to beat. Some rare events have storm surges that would go over the dome here.
Reminds me of a tandoori oven. I was wondering how that would work in a fire situation.
Yeah, I like. I used to watch you before I came to being a new member.I like how you built stuff
Thanks Donald. I appreciate you watching.
Very neat concept. I really like the model you created and the phone video did feel like you were actually walking around your model.
Very cool. Would love to build such a thing & watch the neighbors go crazy....
This is such a groovy home. I think the toilet needs a sink in the top of the tank. Grey water fills the tank and is used to flush. I would choose this over most tiny houses I've seen. A biggish window may help with claustrophobia.
Hey brilliant idea!!! 😯😯😯😯💞💞💞🥰🥰🥰
Great idea and very cool animation! Good luck for this project!
I've seen a couple builds of the Aircrete domes here on Hawai'i Island and I do like them for a couple reasons. Fire, storm and bug proof.
I absolutely love it Paul, brilliant thinking.
Oh, I like it! Love the model, great idea. 👍
Absolutely loved the phone guided tour ......
Great video and very cool idea. Highly durable, and budget friendly
This also looks sturdy plus naturally cooled also Cinder block with cooled water flow pipes in-between the layers like a jacket with cooled earthen tiles and cooled paints that you use in home usage and drinking should be another useful addon.
Nice idea ..Sir
~Regards and Namaste~
Fantastic video and model Paul.
I'm new here, but I'm impressed. You have earnt a like on the video, and a new subscriber!
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing your clever idea!
Ive seen one where you stitch together tyvek in a dome shape then baton its permiter to a slab base, inflate it with an air compressor. You then spray a mixture of aerated concrete then place rebar then spray more concrete.
Anyway very detailed mock up there and a great design you have
Awesome work! The thought occured to me, if you found a bicycle seat quick release clamp that fit the vertical pipe of your form tool, it would be a cheap and convenient solution to quickly adjust and set the tool angle.
Cool design and awesome walkthrough tour!
I would build that, but make it at least 20ft if living with another person. Definitely a great idea for hurricane territory. But if that got caught in a wildfire it would turn into an oven. You would literally cook inside. The only way to survive a wildfire is to build underground, and even then you would have to vacate when the fires got close so you didn't suffocate due to lack of oxygen.
I don't think anyone in their right mind plans to build a fire-proof house so that they can remain IN it during a wildfire. That would be suicide. But a house which is fireproof and unlikely to catch itself on fire *or* add fuel to a fire would be a *HUGE* upgrade. Thinks don't usually end well for those who think they know everything, toss caution to the wind, and disobey evacuation orders. Hopefully they will at least get their pets and livestock out of harm's way and only *then* go back . . . if the police will even let them.
Cool! Nothing like building a model to work out the details. Might be a nice and easily transportable jig for building a huge ice dome on a frozen lake too!
If only Joe would fix that huge hole in the side! :)
Great concept!
Great video, Paul...👍
The thing I find interesting about your original playing with a compass design is that the angle of incidence is going to be virtually identical depending on where the sun is in the sky, that combined with the thermal mass of the cinderblock would keep a relatively stable interior temperature year round.
Very interesting, thank you. I actually designed and made a canvas tent of the same shape. It is 14’ across and about 9’ high. I tried setting it up in the winter with a wood stove and found it difficult to heat because of the high ceiling. I decided it would be better to add some kind of ceiling to keep the heat lower. Also saw that effect in an igloo in -35C that wound up being that shape rather than a dome. It is a good shape however for maximizing headroom.
Fire - check
Wind - check
Earthquake - needs rebar
I really did like that catwalk feature, I have not seen that in a tiny home before.
Not sure about this particular design, but there are a bunch of domes that use a tensioner around the base that seems to hold up in earthquake prone areas. Jamie Mantzel's dome house hasn't fallen down yet despite earthquakes, and that thing has pretty major sagging due to insect damage to the foundation.
Very cool design inside and out
So cool, Paul! A giant egg as a tiny house.
eggxactly! The strength of an egg shell is amazing. Not sideways, but pointy side up!
Very similar to Calearth domes built with earth bags. Recently Tiny Shiny Home RUclips had an earthbag home expert there for a couple weeks and they have a whole sequence on the build and the mechanisms for the step in and maintaining the curve. Also a good series of videos by Our Self Reliant Life all built with their native soil and cob. They have excellent thermal mass, low insulation value. I like your take on dome construction material options. They would be faster then earth bags with an added cost.
Earthbags are a simple and cheap way to make a structure, but time consuming and energy rich. Lots of back work and repetitive motions tamping the courses. At a cost of roughly $1400 for the light-weight blocks, and a few hundred for the mortar, erecting the small blocks for this dome would be much quicker and have a smoother surface saving money on the outer finishing coat material. You could even just paint the interior to save money.
I have always liked your ideas and your approach to things. Domes are an excellent way to deal with extreme environments in my opinion. I have never really been fond of cinderblocks though. The structures are cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Aircrete, or aircrete mixed with shredded foam make a great building material, especially as brickes. They are cheap and best of all light with excellent insulation value. In places like California, a cinderblock dome in an earthquake would likely kill people inside should it collapse. An aircrete dome however is less likely to first, fail, and then if it did, kill people as it is so light weight. Here in Las Cruces, NM, there is a tent village for homeless. there are several three sided frame structures with a roof to protect a tent inside. How much more would a similar sized aircrete dome cost, I don't know at present, but it could offer a shelter that would be easier to heat and cool. Thank you for your ideas Paul. I wish city, state, and federal governments were more creative with their solutions for these problems.
Insulation and water infiltration would be my main concerns here in the Pacific Northwest, but you've made great use of the interior space.
Interesting concept. If you want it insulated, you should just build it with ICF blocks. You could shape the blocks, when you start the dome section, to make them fit better. Because they interlock, you wouldn’t need your support, and you could pour the concrete.into the centres as you go, as long as you only do a couple of courses at a time.
I love the finished model. And you’re right….. if you are going to make the sofa and bedcovers…. You may as well go all in. 😄
Very cool idea 👍
Love it mate .
It could also be covered ground as used as a shelter
The first three seconds my eyes were trying to adjust It’s perception. 😂
Nice work, man!
tupang
Always the coolest ideas!
An essential aspect of a wildfire proof home is the defensible open space around it. A space free of anything that can burn. An exterior that can take impacts from burning limbs carried aloft that land on the roof, or up against exterior doors, windows, and walls.
Possibly surround the building with a sidewalk, and a wall built from corrugated metal outside of that. It would take the brunt of radiant heat and protect the structure from damage.
Evacuation is always the best option in case of wildfire, especially with a structure this small. I believe larger fireproof homes have been built designed to be safe to remain inside of during a fire event. Or at least remain undamaged for when you return to them.
This is quite a build, very unique!
Basement would work too with safe room. Make sure you have air. Smoke kills.
Awesome floor plan
Pumicecrete is by far the best building material on the planet
Gooooo Joe! Knowing is half the battle! 👍🏼😁👍🏼
Amazing ! I’m wondering about putting the staircase around the inner perimeter of the home and building storage into them
As someone who has never built a model, I am totally inspired to try !
Very cool and timely.
The advantage of aircrete is, the insulation is in the air bubbles in the brick itself and that is partly why they are so thick. The other reason they are thick bricks is they are more fragile than ordinary cement and they need the thickness for structural strength. This kind of air-crete brick structure is finished with a coating of some kind of nylon or fiberglass fabric that is cemented on with bubble-less cement. Then there is commerical autoclaved aircrete bricks which are factory made. Autoclaved aircrete brick structures can be made safe for earthquake standards, but they need to engineered with reinforcements and California has all but banned them instead of setting engineering standards. This kind of brick is used successfully in other earthquake prone places like Japan and Brazil. California really needs to get with it. Hopefully these fires with support the push for engineering standards for autoclaved aircrete.
Love your design, but it seems just a few more feet in diameter would make it less tight (claustrophobic) and much more comfortable and functional. But you have an excellent idea here! Thankyou for sharing!
Hi there, saw you on Kirsten Dirkson's video. I love your creativity in meeting various design challenges. I would love to see you make shelters for homeless with the materials they have around them, trash. Each build would be different because each site would have different materials available and particular challenges over the course of a year, including varying levela of legal oppression. It'd be so cool if you could figure out all sorts of tools for homeless survival from within the actual context they are facing. Going to lowe's is expensive and complicated if you don't have money and a car and a workshop. Being able to start from found materials and build the tools necessary to make good stuff is the entire challenge. The idea that an Inuit could just lie down in the snow and sleep because their furs were so perfect for that ecosystem comes to mind for some reason.
Brilliant! Having the water closet near the front door is great. Monolithic Domes may have solved some issues you could bricolage from. Homes in the Australian outback are designed to deal with common wildfires, too. "Hayas masiem, Tyee" (Chinuk Wawa for "Many thanks, Chief").
I would have vents that can open at the base of the structure, and have that top window be able to open - that gives you a passive cooling option, and that through draft is how termite mounds Thermo-regulate their structures (hot air leaving out the drop draws in cool air from the lower vents, bonus points if they can draw from an under-ground area).
Also, thermal tiles on the outside would be a nice premium upgrade, then you've got a really good desert structure (important for the Climate Change era). Lots of desert structures are domes.
When you mention wildfire and small stone egg shaped building, my first thought is "Sure, who wouldn't want to live in a kiln?"
Thank you for this! The dearly departed architect and author of Emergency Sandbag Shelters who also founded the Cal Earth Organization spent his entire life trying to make housing more affordable for poor people and described the process of your cinder blocks (or sandbags) moving inward towards the center point of the top as, “Corbeling”. I bought a copy for roughly $20 off eBay and am currently trying to figure out which parts of the book to synopsize for a DVD on how to survive being homeless. But this World needs more people like yourself who has been well trained to think outside the box for better solutions to these problems. Also, your reverse motorcycle trike reminds me of this Motor City Pulse Autocycle I saw at auto shows in the late 1980s and ended up parked on the streets of Hill Valley in Back To The Future Part Two. I really LOVED the fact that they were supposed to get 70 MPG, but with the one exception of Steven Speilburg, I’m not sure who else was buying them. But I always wanted one for myself. I’m glad you were able to build one for yourself. 😇
💕 Loved what Nadir Khalili has done at CalEarth!
He actually got San Bernardino County (considered a highly seismic area), to his dirtbag dome & arch building! Almost anyone can do it right….there’s even been one old gal, over 70, who built her own & blogged about it 🤗
Also, his ceramicized dome buildings may be a solution for certain uses.
CalEarth is still selling rolls of bulk sandbags & other resources, I think.
@ CalEarth is continuing onward with a younger generation of students who have been studying Nadir’s legacy. Not just Nadir’s children, but also this former musician with a stunning English accent who was in one of their videos talking about how if they prefill some of the earthbags, they’ve timed the process of getting emergency shelters erected in record time. As I watched, I thought to myself just how amazing this happens to be, as well as wondered why more people don’t know about it at the same time. They really have shown people many of the possibilities if only they’re willing to think outside the box (not unlike Paul Elkins). 😇
I especially like the concept of using the chloroplast campaign signs as shelter walls. A kind of FU to the incompetent clowns in office without really saying it. Brilliant.
Earthbags are a great meathod of building domes. Realatively cheap too. There is a method of using chains to make the dome shape as well
In furnace bricklaying we can the centre pivot a tramil
A trammel is an apparatus consisting of a center point, a beam and a scribe used to draw circles or using a trammel of Archimedes, ellipses.
Great work. I hope to see one built.
These bricks could be adobe (clay, sand, straw). You could do a mold like legos, already with the curve you need for your desired radius, let the bricks dry 2 days in the sun, then stack and glue them with cob. You'll then have your thermal mass, which stock and release heat when you warm up your house. Usually, you want your insulation on the outside, so you can stack straw bales, tie them to one another, pierce stakes to hold them to the layer below, and glue them with cob. The angle would be achieved with some cob or a roll of straw. Then, a clay slip on the outside, and then some more cob (1-2 inches). Then 2-3 thin layers of cob + increasing % of lime to become waterproof. Alternatively, you could have added a ventilating space (of about 2 inches), and use any cladding you want (tiles, water barrier, etc.).
With all that, you have a very solid, insulated structure that distribute force, from natural materials. Cinder blocks are concrete.
Dome Gaïa too, though much less (there's also styro-crete, mixed with waterproof polymer, if you want a much better option).
It's also important to prevent capillarities from the soil, with a drained foundation, or a raised deck.
Neat! Not just the concept, but the excuse to build a miniature. 😁👍
Nice. A livable brick oven.
Australian fire victim here. I love this BUT in a massive all consuming fire the air gets sucked out of the atmosphere and people suffocate. Air breathing apparatus is necessary to survive that.
Cool design! I love all the work you put into this!
I would definitely look into spray foam insulation if I built a house like this.
How does this compare to ICF house prices? I can't see how poured cement into the foam blocks in ICF buildings can be that much more expensive than buying cement blocks and spending that much time and energy gluing each one together like that, but you would definitely get a unique house, that would resist fire from outside being aerodynamic like that, you will be warmer in the bedroom upstairs!
Will you have heating and air conditioning? Maybe a dual zone mini split heat pump? the one up in the bedroom could cool in the summer, and the one in the living room heat in the winter? Or I guess a fan to move air from one level to another?
This would really work well with earthbag construction. I was thinking of how to design a system to easily calculate the vault arch while placing the earthbags. Your design made it easier and safer. Earthbags is cheap, could insulate the building, proven to resist earthquakes if used with barb wires reinforcement and I believe could be fire and hurricane proof.
I'm not so sure about fire. We had testing of fire resistance of materials in lab. The issue is not about direct burning but the heat that gets transferred through the material. The heat could cook, melt or even ignite the material inside if it's hot enough.
As for 'insulation', it might be possible to plaster the outside of the dome in refractory cement, the same stuff used to make fire bricks in blacksmith propane forges. If this is meant to also be a wild fire shelter, might be a good idea to keep it from turning into a brick oven.
wow, what the hell!? you really outdone yourself with this one. very elaborate, yet so simple at the same time somehow. i would start by digging a bit of a hole before building the wall, that way you have under-floor storage space. after the wall is already in place it gets more difficult to move soil out of the circle. i like the nail shower head. i would suggest building it from extruded polystyrene foam, that way your insulation is taken care of, except it also means your waterproofness is a bit of a question. the bricks could be cut with a hot wire, which drastically reduces the mess compared to saws, could be made very accurate using a purpose built jig, and could also very easily be made solar powered. it wouldn't be hurricane proof of course, more like a temporary dwelling
One benefit of making this 16ft diameter round cement floor is the end of an 8 ft long screed board could attach to the central pivot and sweep in a circle, with the worker screeding on the outside of the cement floor.
I was wondering if you could make every building block a 2-layer [not-quite sandwich because it's only 2 layers], with polystyrene foam on the inside and the cinder block on the outside. You'd need to be able to place the foam against the boom, and then the rest the cinder block onto the foam without it being squished. But that _shouldn't_ be a problem, since the brick would lay flat onto the foam, evenly spreading the weight.(*) And the angle of the wall is at most 30° from vertical, which means at most 50% of the weight of the cinder block goes through the foam. And you'd want a sufficiently hard foam anyways so that it can resist denting when you elbow it.
And you'd also want the inside of the wall plastered anyways; putting that onto the foam instead of the brick will provide the scratch and dent protection to the foam. Maybe there would even be a way to layer some kind of plastic sheet, fiber board or dry wall as the inner most layer.
(*) You'd just have to give the end of the boom a flat surface too if you go with the "2-layers plus plaster" strategy.
Could you make a bigger dome first, then build a second dome inside of it, since the contraption fits inside of the structure itself. Thus leaving a small gap between the two walls for insulation and whatever else, or make the gap big enough that you could walk around the inner structure, use the space as sheltered storage. It would also allow for more specialized materials, one type of brick more suited for the exterior and one for the interior.
You can get combo washer dryers, they also don't need venting.
Awesome model and funny timing: I just finished up my own mini dome project. If you ever wanted to build this thing as a permanent, permitted structure then I could be a good resource to bounce questions off of.
Would like that Josh! Also, a Lake Union boating meet-up this spring? contact me: paulwelkins@yahoo.com
@@paulwelkinsdiy That would be awesome. I'll shoot ya an email.
To fireproof or hurricane-proof the windows and door, could likely place some sort of shutters of a fireproof/resistant material such as aerogel and kevlar so that the glass does not get damaged or broken due to heat or impact.
Take a look at the italian trulli. Prehistoric and also current buildings , alberobello city
I came here to say that. Yes they are fantastic and beautiful. I love how they can be joined together and even totally dismantled and the put back up again.
Could set up your block laying jig to place a double wall block placement. And inner wall and outer wall at the same time for each layer. The as you go you can the insulate the gap inbetween. Just means you'll either be decreasing your interior space or increasing the outer diameter of the structure.
You mention aircrete. They mould the blocks on site.
I've always thought that it would make more sense to mould tapered hexagonal prisms. Set the taper to equal the radius of the curve. That way as you stack they'll naturally form the curve.
Good idea. On my Coro dome I love the shape but a waist of material. I was thinking of something similar, making triangular curved panels using possibly air Crete. It's been done, but not well done.
@paulwelkinsdiy thinking more about this and I'm not sure now. You might need to shrink the size of the blocks as you get closer to the "pole" or have some pentagonal blocks. Not as easy as I was thinking initially.
Imagining one half buried under the ground, a bit like an Icelandic turf house. The top of the dome only, peeking out. Maybe even a more trap door like entrance. Would probably help the insulation conundrum greatly too.
And yet it looks like the perfect pizza oven!
dude, get a proxon wire cutter for cutting your foam. It is safer for your fingers.
This is pretty damn cool. I am thinking of a dome home. I have been studying dome homes since the 80s. If I had land and built my own house, I would do it.
The Cal Earth domes have also proven to be earthquake resistant. I think they had some in Nepal that survived quite a strong earthquake. I love your interior layout.
I had one fellow mention the Bam Iran 2003 earthquake, where many mud dome homes collapsed and killed many. With some rebar here and there and a core block fill of whatever, it should be able to take on a nominal earthquake. But it depends on the type of shaking too.
Many times I have wondered how to treat straw bales to be longest lasting and more sealed. Not as much load bearing, though gets me wondering and thinking again if maybe dipping in UHPC and then setting in a mold. I have wondered about urethane that is an optimal formulation for waterproofing more so, though for load bearing purposes I am wondering about some way to like place a rebar and pipe through maybe as well for some applications. Then again, can drill, drive and mortar seems.
I could see a gap, then a second wall enclosing the entire structure.
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With concrete or stone, the interior acts as thermal mass.
Insulation wraps the exterior.
In a wild fire that thing would become a giant oven so no not even close to fire proof.
In a hurricane its not only about the wind but the water and debris as well, could that structure support both slamming into it or would it crumble and become a giant cinder block coffin?
It would not become an oven unless is was surrounded by flammable materials. If it was in the middle of a backyard, and not surrounded by plants, I bet it would have survived where the homes in LA did not. And even if you weren't in it, you would have a temporary home while you rebuilt.
I’m building domes using the Domegaia Aircrete method. To get an egg shape dome, on the the compass arm shown in your videos, I added an extended boom which then pivots on the center pole. I wish the comments section could allow photos. If you’re interested in seeing the pictures and a video I made on how it works, let me know.
I think you could even make the blocks from aircrete or styro-aircrete, and it would add to insulation, while also reducing the cost.
Excellent concept video!
Now we need cities to zone more land for tiny houses of different shapes including this.
Yes, that would be great, but city governments are usually looking for ways to increase their tax base; hence, the slow uptake for tiny homes and the prevalence of zoning laws to restrict their use in city limits. People without the means for housing in a city probably don't have the means to commute to a city job from the county,
Building affordable housing like Paul is working on definitely needs to be accepted and implemented by city councils and the zoning laws amended to allow their use.
Why do they still make square houses? You design is spot on for surviving high winds. Great Job!