I'm looking towards the idea of building a large permanent dome as the central communal area for a community of 150 people.
I somehow assume that 2x4s would be the best material for constructing it, but I don't see any of the info on the various geodesic dome websites about using wood as the building material. Is it a good / bad choice?
Also... any suggestions or references for connector joins if we're building with 2x4s?
Cheers,
-Adam
posted by:
|
SF Bay Area
|
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Tue, May 22, 2007 - 9:12 PMI think some companies make star joints taht you bolt the lumber to. If it is very large you will have to go above a 2x4. The stars are welded steel joins. -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Wed, May 23, 2007 - 5:55 PMYES
Find those star joint~!
They are out there ; )
search the net
; ) -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Wed, May 23, 2007 - 8:50 PMYes. I did a google on these a while back and in the first two pages returned found a company that supplied parts for domes. They had hundred of differenct parts from about $5 to $100. Seek and you will find. Or wait for knowledge to fall in you lap. -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Thu, May 24, 2007 - 3:00 PM -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Fri, May 25, 2007 - 12:50 AM> "Starplates"
The starplates look good. But they seem to only make them for a 2V dome.
As for structural engineers, when we build this we'll be building it in Nicaragua. We most likely will not have any qualified structural engineers at our disposal.
What's the largest dome that you'd consider building without an engineer to help with the design and/or construction? -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Fri, May 25, 2007 - 5:47 AMThat depends on how good you are at engineering. I was able to find all the information for wood loads and wood strengths for construction online. If you are able to work through some analysis for wind loads you can do all of it yourself. But I have a strong physics and engineering background. If you don’t feel comfortable doing that I would very strongly recommend you find someone to look over a design or buy a set of plans and work from that. Plan sets I have seen advertised for around a hundred dollars or so. Use the timber recommendations in the plans don’t go undersized.
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Fri, May 25, 2007 - 4:08 PMAhh yes. Actually they only make 1v domes...
-
-
-
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Thu, May 24, 2007 - 3:11 AMOkay.... I'm looking.
I didn't find too much.
There is this place:
www.domeincorporated.com/concr...s.html
But it seems a bit expensive. $5400 just for the joints.
What about the material choice. Is wood best? -
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Thu, May 24, 2007 - 6:31 AMThe house kits that they sell are all wood except for the joints. You might be able to get a local welder or machine shop make the joints for you. Becareful with the choice of steel it is structural after all and you need structural steel for the joints. You can buy one and use that as a pattern.
-
-
-
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Thu, May 24, 2007 - 8:16 AMYou ought to
(1) have your design gone over by a qualified structural engineer who is familiar with dome construction.
Expense should not be spared for safety's sake.
(2) Is the dome going to be in a hot or cold area / need insulation? If so, 2/6 framing is often more economical in conventional construction, even in bill of materials.
(3) No scrimping on the joints. You will have to deal with thermal expansion and wind loading. See above about having a qualified engineer go over the plans!
-
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Thu, May 24, 2007 - 9:25 PMI would second that as sound advice. One thing I have read about domes is that they tend to get weak due to the sun heating them unevenly and shifting over the course of a day, every day.
-
-
Re: Large Permanent Dome - Materials / Construction?
Sun, June 3, 2007 - 4:18 PMHi Adam,
There is a guy in New Zealand, John Rich, who was making very sophisticated geometry wooden domes way back in the 70s and 80s. he is a nice guy, write to him directly and he may help you out quite a bit with your questions. You can purchase an e-copy of his 1983 book on wood domes using the info below, which I pulled off of www.geocities.com/geodesicsnz/links.htm
His root site, www.geocities.com/geodesicsnz, has been in the past well worth perusing, though as I look at it now content may have changed, not sure...
"TIMBER GEODESIC DOMES" by John Rich (Akron 1983)
index
Cover - Timber Geodesic Domes John Rich wrote this book on domes in 1983. It outlines basics of using geodesic domes, shows various floor plans, ideas and methods for construction. The emphasis is on building domes using timber.
While now out of print, there are copies available in most public libraries in New Zealand, and there is also a copy in the U.S.Library of Congress. ISBN 0-908667-00-0.
A copy in HTML format, is now available on the internet at a cost of $10.95USD.
If you have already have a username and password for "Timber Geodesic Domes" then click on "GO" to go to the secure directory.
Please have your user name and password ready.
The URL for direct access is:
homepages.ihug.co.nz/~jw.rich/book
If you wish to purchase the right to access the book and download an electronic copy for your own use, send an E-mail to jw.rich@ihug.co.nz with the word "buybook" in the subject line.
You will then receive an E-mail on how to purchase the book. The cost is $10.95 US dollars.
If you have any questions or difficulties in gaining access E-mail John Rich at:
jw.rich@ihug.co.nz
