Eco-Dome: "Moon Cocoon"

The Eco-Dome is a small home design of approximately 400 square feet (40 sq. meters) interior space. It consists of a large central dome, surrounded by four smaller niches and a wind-scoop, in a clover leaf pattern.

Learning and building an Eco-Dome is the next stage after building a small emergency shelter and provides hands-on learning experience in the essential aspects of Superadobe construction. It's small size of approximately 400 square feet (interior space), makes it a manageable structure for the first time owner builder.

The finished "very small house" is self-contained and can become a small guest house, studio apartment, or be the first step in a clustered design for community use in an Eco-Village of vaults and domes.

Some features of the Eco-Dome include:

1. Built from local earth-filled Superadobe coils (earth stabilized with cement or lime).
2. Tree free.
3. Maximum use of space through alternative options. The main dome and four niches, depending on local code approval, can function as:
   1. main living room, entrance hall, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom (called "bed-womb" because of it's small, organic form!)
   2. living room, entrance hall, and three bed-rooms.
   3. living room, entrance hall, two bedrooms, and a bathroom.
4. Self-contained single unit (potential for a guest house or studio apartment) or double unit (larger family residence).
5. Can be repeated and joined together to form larger homes and courtyard houses.
6. Can be built by a team of 3-5 persons.
7. Designed with the sun, shade and wind for passive cooling and heating.
8. Wind-scoop can be combined with a rated furnace unit, depending on local code approval. Solar energy and radiant heating may be incorporated.
9. Interior furniture can be built-in with same material.

The Blueprints for this design have been previously approved and built in Hesperia City and San Bernardino County, California, as well as other regions nationally and internationally.

1. The Eco-Dome construction kit package (single unit) includes:
   documentary step-by-step DVD "Eco-Dome, building a small home", construction documents (mini-version, including the construction specification), unfilled Superadobe roll/earth-bags, educational book on Superadobe construction entitled "Sandbag Shelter and Eco-Village".
2. The full Eco-Dome blueprint package (double unit) includes:
   construction document blueprints, engineering calculations as permitted under the 1997 UBC / 2001 California Code, construction specification, title 24 energy calculations, and the engineering record. All plans are numbered. The above plans and materials are used in the Cal-Earth apprenticeship courses.

Refrence:

Calearth.org