Re: design help with dome house problems - low income

In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, "Scott Steven Riley"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:

>How about a reusable inflatable rotated parabolic mold that you cover with
>concrete, spray crete or what have you?

    Been done; very successful with sprayed foam,  You can then skin and gunite
the foam both sides,  Works good; looks good, in a Jetsons kinda way.  Dunno
how many people would wanna live in it.

    A related approach was used in Britain in WW II: make a tension structure
(i.e. a tent) out of burlap, or cover one with burlap, and spray or parge sand
mix on it.  A few of these "temporary" structures are still around, or were, at
least, last I checked about 10 years ago.  There are a lot of ways to make
cheap structures.

     Whether they are suited for human housing in the US is another question. 
Low income housing adds another layer of issues.

>Also what do you think of tip up precast concrete?

    Tilt up has its points.  Other molding  techniques have also been tried:
LeTourneau (sp) did some mave house-at-a-time site cast constrete forms, if
memory serves, in Texas.  There are a lot of good building techniques out there
that aren't used much.  Sometimes the reasons for not using them are not as
stupid as they appear at first glance.

> Free molds(the ground) 

    No, the mold isn't "free" even if it is dirt.  Lower materal cost, higher
labor.

 
>Highly configurable(put in holes for beams, windows, shelves, plug-ins,
>etc).

     Yup.