Design
Our dome design is based on the Timberline Geodesics "Birch" plan. The main dome is 35' and totals almost 2000sq" of living space. There are 5 extensions that extrude from the 5 natural openings in the 5/8 3V dome. These will add space for bedrooms, kitchen, conservatory and entrance. Click here for a 3D animation of the design.
What is a Geodesic dome?
A geodesic dome is an almost spherical structure based on a network of struts arranged on great circles (geodesics) lying approximately on the surface of a sphere. The geodesics intersect to form triangular elements that have local triangular rigidity and yet also distribute the stress across the entire structure. 
It is the only man-made structure that gets proportionally stronger as it increases in size.
|
Construction
Construction should be a simple straightforward process. As the structure is essentially a roof covering the living sections, the main bulk of the work is with that. Timberline supply the complete dome as a kit. This can be erected single handedly (me), or with a few additional people for speed.
The rest of the work is with the finishing of the exterior and interior work. The interior structures are standard stud walls.
© Timberline Manufacturing Inc.
|
Rain water harvesting
As the house is basically one big roof area, we plan to collect rainfall and store it. It will be used for WC flushing and heating requirements.
Rainwater runs off the roof areas into standard guttering (blue). This guttering transfers the water under the house into a large storage but. It can then be pumped into the systems that require grey water. In the event that the but runs dry, the water is switched to mains supply.
|
Insulation
We plan to use green insulation. This can either be recycled paper, or sheep's wool for the walls/roof (all one part), and recycled tyre's for the floor. As a dome is already very efficient in its heating and cooling we can probably exploit the insulation and consume less power to heat and cool the property.
|
|
|
Solar Energy
 As the property has 5 natural roof areas in a 360 degree configuration that can gather the Sun's energy throughout the day, we aim to harvest solar energy in 2 ways.
Photovoltaic*
A PV cell consists of two or more thin layers of semi-conducting material, most commonly silicon. When the silicon is exposed to light, electrical charges are generated and this can be conducted away by metal contacts as direct current (DC). The electrical output from a single cell is small, so multiple cells are connected together and encapsulated (usually behind glass) to form a module (sometimes referred to as a "panel").
Solar water heating
This will provide hot water to assist the boiler in water heating tasks. On very sunny days we should negate the need to power the boiler.
* National Grid connection will still be required for backup.
|
Ground source heating
This option is being explored, but is not yet part of the final energy plan.
 Ground source heat pumps extract heat from the ground and pump it into a building to provide space heating and to pre-heat domestic hot water. In summer months this process can be reversed to meet the cooling requirements of a building.
|
Wind generation
 Wind energy as a source of power is renewable, economic, safe and good for the environment. In addition, the UK has a vast wind resource and the development of power generation from this indigenous resource is well supported by Government policy.
Wind energy has been harnessed for hundreds of years. Wind turbines use the natural power of the wind to drive a generator and are thus able to convert the power contained in moving air into electricity. |
Heating & Cooling
The dome has no hot or cold spots because the air can freely circulate around it.  This means that we can have a very simple heating and cooling system of under floor heating and ventilation regulating windows. The ground and 2nd floor will have separate heating zones to ensure we are not heating parts of the building we are not using. |
Waste handling
At present this all depends on the location of the plot.
If mains sewers are not available then a Bio Digester and other options will be explored. |
|
