Straw Bale Geodesic Dome

[BigHeadFarm]

nice job!

[Patriotgal1]

Wonderful!!! I was wondering if anyone would ever put these two simple, great construction ideas together! (I'm building some sililar structures now- well, on hiatus til Spring!).

Straw-bales are wonderful- if sealed from moisture! My observatory is on a concrete slab (w/holes for telescope piers), a simple wood frame- thick adobe bricks (for thermal inertia), and strawbale exterior w/stucco. It is almost invisible against the background, and virtually bulletproof!

[Rhinoch8]

Nice! i'd dig some kind of roof. I always think about rodents and critters. How do you deal with them not drilling through the daubbing?

[practicalwhacktical]

Watched it once because it's an awesome design. Watched it twice because you used Daft Punk. :-)

[SteveArpo]

Love what you are doing.

[robinamsa]

How are the windows put in? Especially seeing as how the sections of the struts are all triangular, how do you get the hay in tight between the window and the strut?

[PreuschoffPerrier]

very nice! Greets Inge

[medicineman4040]

Easy to waterproof straw bales...first cover with stucco/concrete mix and smooth...then acid wash the stucco/concrete...then paint with elastomeric paint. Done and easy....well except for troweling the stucco/concrete. Just remember that straw will wick moisture so the bottom of the bales on the first/bottom row must be sealed-this should be done before they are placed.

Also if you can do this with straw bales you can do it with sandbags full of earth/sand/mix.

[Lotum4n]

LOL Welcome to the Gettos LMFAO

[justgivemethetruth]

that music is so annoying

[yourboykarp]

what's the name of the song?

[ThePrezidentialbey]

What if you could build a Monolithic dome with 2,600 sq ft of living space, costs 10% of a the average home to build, and provides protection and efficiency from its 24in thick wall? Watch A HOME FIT FOR ROYALTY

[SinnNorth]

The link doesn't work?

[10mac10s]

It's fall apart in 2 years, but I hope you guys had fun building it.

[davetileguy]

you can't tell me those wall's are'nt full of bugs and rhodents!!

[FALCO64125]

Awww, you put mud and bricks on a perfectly good jungle gym... sigh

[johnlvs2run]

Too Loud.

[n7c7m7p8]

so what is this dome for? sorry, but not having any idea... first time seeing such thing. :) great video.

[89239dfkdk]

Thanks for wasting my time.

[FiestaSWfan]

whats the song? its good! =) =) =)

[TanusIndigo2009]

felicidades gracis por compartir

[oopmaak]

Would love to buid such structures on my farm ... responses?Costs etc.

[assym2006]

@SokPop77 they is no "up stairs" they is no god.

[darris321]

@assym2006 there is no god, true, but there should be no israel for the same reason

[SokPop77]

BUILT ON STOLEN PALESTINIAN LAND

[whitelabelz]

the music is daft punk - faster better stronger and fits well with constructing a green home. i did chuckle when it came on, but made sense.

[rmcdaniel423]

One thing I like about these natural dome type homes (regardless of building material) is how they really blend with the environment, but often feature a really beautiful decorative door. Reminds me of the hobbit houses in LOTR. I loved those round doors and the details like interior woodwork, arches, windows etc. The basic structure sort of disappears and the details get to really shine!

[charkee1]

The music stinks. Other than that thanks for the video.

[jmosler9]

MUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[theGreenBackpack]

now THAT is COOOOOOL...... nice work!!

[pheenix42]

Ooh, I'll bet that's warm at night...if I remember, nights in that part of the world can be pretty frosty at times!

I would like to see how the finished structure turned out, though!

[DominickBlack]

I think Super-Adobe might of just seen it's match.

BRAVO!!!!

[fireseed23]

Why did you not finish the video?? We are considering making one to live in in a northern climate, they can be waterproofed quite nicely, but an actual finished example would be great!

[EbolaV1rus]

That looks so awesome. I bet it is cool in the summer and warm in the winter as well. I love the look of the house, how it blends in with the colors of the earth in the hills behind it.

I also liked how people worked together to build it.

[arbonac]

Straw bail and cob covering for geodesic domes are only a good idea in dry, arid places in this world.

[vatrenikrug]

and what,you cant make a tent over it? just simple thing to ceep watter of it :)

its no so expensive and its ok for 10 years :D

[shalashaska615]

Strikes me that if it was made of ice it's an igloo. Geodesic must be a model of a dome along set points. Anybody know of other unusual frameworks that have a simple geometric formula?

[weberly2]

good question, i'd like to know myself.

[AutoBat1]

Ask the Egyptians, they could tell you how to construct a pyramid. Is there anything triangles can't do?

[themrsgoggins]

What do you need the geodesic bit for? Domes stand on their own. IS it just formwork you took away afterwards?

[shalashaska615]

I think calling it geodesic scaffolding wouldn't be far wrong.

[ugotpimp]

awesome

how much did it cost??? less than

$5k i bet!!!! i hope this is the way of the future.!

[123nolan123]

I am so interested in building one of these, it is not possible for me to attend a seminar. I was wondering if anyone knows of any online instructions?

Please and thanks

-Nolan

[GreenLearning]

I would so like to build one of there, but it rains a lot here :(

Love the natural hay and earth plasters, but looks like plastic is all that would work here.

[julialachman]

you can use the straw bale and earth plaster method for your walls, as long as you have a roof which will hang over them to protect them

[Julianagmortari]

you can plaster with Lime mineral, or cover with a proper roof. Or both. What works in the desert is not supposed to work for wet climets. Lots of mud in rainy places, it is possible.

[cdltpx]

I wonder if you can fill in the gaps on the frame with wood then place concrete on the exterior. Insulate the interior with foam then fill in the cracks interior with spray cans of foam. After that take the interior and apply something to make it look better sheetrock or some other non flamable option. If you make the concrete shell up to 2-6 inches it should be able to withstand a tornado.

[mobyindisguise]

You probably can, but part of the point of straw bale construction is its sustainability. Concrete on the other hand is extremely unsustainable. You also do not get the insulation benefits (sound and heat) that straw bale provides, handy if constructing in cooler climates.

[cdltpx]

Straw bale is not considered a wise choice the humudity level here is too high. With tropical weather around every June we want a structure that can take on hurricanes and tornado. I could move but I find it hard to take the land that I have almost paid off. Besides we ahve decent jobs here and plenty of work.

[2Halifaxion2]

If you build your house partially underground with a nice windbreak, you can insulate yourself from hurricanes pretty nicely. Straw would still be a good choice though.

You heard of permaculture yet?

[cdltpx]

One problem we have a high water table dig 3" and walla water.

Currently we are very close to paying off this place once that happens we will begin saving for a new home to build or buy and that is why I am learning every construction method around the pros and cons.

So far it looks like the best solution is shipping container to store stuff like food cloths etc and build a small MDIdome with screened outdoor areas and plenty of shade since we live in the tropics and heat is our enemy.

[DebStep7]

If ferro-cement (wire embedded in cement) is used, it should only be necessary to have a 1/2" to 1" thick layer. You don't need that much cement going to waste (as in the suggested 2' to 6" concrete structure). Ferro-cement would be stronger anyway. (They build huge boats that way!)

[shaburbalak]

yes ..isaw this one in maine where they covered the frame with big sheet of rubber...which is a natural product,airtight,and water proof ,then they seeded the stawbales and after a couple of years it looked like a big green mound with windows.....

[pleimnAir]

the house @the end looks really NICE!

I found out about your projects via Youtube and I´m starting to love it!

Best regards, pleimnAir.

[PhotoNika]

awesome that you used daft punk!

[MondoBeno]

If you weld steel mesh between the rods, you can trowel concrete over it and make a domed house. You can leave open triangles for windows. But I'm not sure if the concrete would be waterproof. You might still have to tile the roof.

[2Shye]

i'm wondering how you managed to water proof it.

most of the straw bale constructions have large overhanging roofs so that the rendered bales dont get exposed to heavy rainfall.. but with that doam the entire structure is exposed.. im wondering how its holding up over time..

[julialachman]

I mentioned in an earlier comment, but it's probably worth repeating, that this dome was built in one of the driest deserts in Israel. That is the main reason we could get away with no additional roof to protect the mud. We did use several layers of oil to waterproof it, but that is sufficient only in dry conditions.

[virgojeep1]

I would rather use sand than straw because straw can burst into flames if it gets bacteria in it. Seen it happen to a barn once. Burnt to the ground in an hour

[mobyindisguise]

@virgojeep1 As long as the straw is compacted and covered with mortar of some sort there should be no oxygen available to fuel any fire. As long as your walls are maintained properly there should be very little fire risk. Indeed safety testing has been carried out in some countries and states (UK, Cali.) that surpass official standards regarding fire and earthquake..

[sonianson]

I would like to know how did you fit the rectangular or square bales into the triangular shape? The video doesn't show how.

Please explain.

Thanks,

Sonianson

[korovev]

Just a question... If I wanna build a 3v geodesic dome (with straw bales, mud and lime outside) in a moderate climate, what do you advise to do to protect from rain?

[julialachman]

You can also cover the dome with a lime plaster when you are done. But be careful, lime is very tricky; good idea to consult a professional.

[tomterahedrob]

how bout this?cover with a Tyvek welded seam plstic sheeting,Soit has a waterproof cover,Then layers of free scrap synthetic carpet impregnated with dirt so you have a thin living roof.Idid this for a4by8 shed I made to protect the waterproofing from UV rays.

[gregorysgordon]

Check out the 1,400 dollar polyethylene dome by WorldShelters-org. Perhaps not as environmentally friendly but it does stand up to snow, rain and wind loads and is fire retardant. Comes with options for solar electricity and composting toilets.

[ArtistIreland]

Fantastic.

Peace be with you always.

[sistermitzi]

Does that crew work for free? I guess if you put a roof over it you could live in that anywhere. I'm building a strawbale doghouse for my dog in the Texas Panhandle and I'm putting a gable roof on it to protect it from rain. It will be stucco as well. Good job. This is cool. I would like to know in American dollars how much this cost to build.

[julialachman]

I'm not entirely sure how much the dome cost to build since I didn't pay for it. However, I know that we got the sand and clay pretty much free (which helps), so we only had to pay for the cement (base), metal pipes (frame), straw bales, and some odds and ends. My very rough estimate is about $1500-$2000.

[jvrop]

hello,

great vid and tune. is the dome for dry area only?

thank,

Peace & viva straw bale!!!

[julialachman]

We built this one in the driest part of the Negev (desert in Israel).

You are right in noticing that the lack of a roof over the straw bales means this design is best suited for dry areas. To protect from the few centimeters of rain each year we put several layers of oil on at the end.

Thanks for the question!

[DriftwoodChairs]

Until I saw this video I didn't think a straw bale geodesic dome was possible. Now I know otherwise.

It opens up a whole bunch of possibilities for practical and affordable shelters.

Well done.