Dome houses – practice for when we live on the moon
I’m a bit of a sucker for innovative design, especially when it comes to architecture. These dome houses, by the International Dome House Company, put me in mind of either the Hobbit or something NASA would knock out as a moonbase concept.
These dome houses are a very interesting idea… you buy polystyrene parts and put them together in whatever configuration you want. You can build a simple dome, add windows (a door would be handy), or add side sections to create a long building instead. The polystyrene acts as an insulator, meaning that the dome stays warm in winter and cool in summer. The fact that it won’t rot, rust, or attract termites are also billed as great selling points. My big worry would be that it would burst into flames at the slightest ignition source, but apparently it will only blacken without producing any toxic fumes. The material has also been treated with a fire retardant.
Should you want more than the standard designs, there’s the possibility to build two or more domes and connect them up. This is where we start to get into moonbase territory… have a dome for your living space, some for your bedrooms, games room, whatever, and connect them up in a network of discrete buildings. At least that should make it fairly easy if you want an extension.
The single dome has a diameter of 7.7m and a height of 3.85m – not quite tall enough for two floors, but certainly not feeling low. The promotional material mentions that you can have a loft in these buildings, which would be handy since it looks like there might not be too much storage space in them otherwise!
So, that’s the concept – what about the application? Well, these have been approved by the Japanese Land and Transport for home-building. I’m not sure what the official stance would be in the UK, but it’s hard to imagine this being approved over here (if anyone knows differently, please let me know!). I also have to say that, although the polystyrene is tougher than normal packing foam, I’d still be worried about someone putting a foot through it!
I really love this concept – the idea of an easy to build, easy to extend house that looks distinctive really catches my imagination. But, in practical terms, I’m afraid that’s as far as I could go. Perhaps I’m just not adventurous enough, but I can’t help thinking, “Great idea… but it’s not for me”.
