Title:
At Home in a Dome
Author(s):
M.K. Hurd
Publication:
Concrete International
Volume:
30
Issue:
9
Appears on pages(s):
48-51
Keywords:
dome; history; inflated fabric form; layered construction; residential concrete; shotcrete
DOI:
Date:
9/1/2008
Abstract:
After years spent making the heavy architectural fabric forms used for layered construction of dome structures, it seemed only natural that Jack Boyt would turn to this method when it came time to build his own concrete house and garage in Iowa. The dome portions of the structures were constructed on top of 8 ft (2.4 m) tall vertical stem walls. To avoid expensive curved formwork, the stem walls were constructed of flat, single-sided plywood forms topped with a curved wooden ring beam. Both the roof and the walls were constructed using layered construction with a layer of spray-applied urethane foam between two layers of shotcrete. Details of the method employed to construct the garage and multi-domed house are presented.