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Historic Bucky Dome Needs Help
Anonymous Coward writes "Buckminster Fuller's Geodesic Dome is falling apart and one man hopes to save it. Read more at http://www.msnbc.com/news/748889.asp?0bl=-0" The Buckminster Fuller Institute has a page on the dome, which has contact info for donations.
Not as much of a perfect, long-lasting structure as they thought, eh?
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" It can be built relatively cheaply with environmentally friendly materials." - the same problem we had. The government built a lot of council high-rise flats from re-inforced concrete in the 60s. Now a lot of them are crumbling too.
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its the other way around.
:) (diamond is another form of carbon. Graphite is, too. Its all about how the carbon is arranged)
Buckminster Fuller designed the geodesic dome, which is supposed to be an ultra-stable, aesthetically pleasing dome structure.
Then they discovered C60, which looked remerkably like of of buckminsterfuller's domes. And, being fans, the researchers named it after him. Its a cooler name than "diamond."
Of course, considering how crucial C60's formation and structure is to carbon nanotubules research, one would think that all the companies making money off (or planning to) it would at least be generous enough to support its namesake. But thats neither here nor there.
bucky domes are/were the perfect thing for protecting radar antennas from the elements, and for covering the tops of large otherwise open tanks.
they're not so good for building houses, though, as a retrospective shows -- the labor to fit drywall, the impossibility of making windows and roofing that don't leak, the impedence mismatches of standard rectanglar building materials and furniture; all make life with a dome a pain and not very cost effective.
but cool, man. the big dome in montreal for expo 70 was awsome; it too fell into disrepair.
-dB
"It if was easy to do, we'd find someone cheaper than you to do it."
Less well known than the Geodesic Dome is Fuller's Dymaxion House, a very cool hangout in my opinion with lots of features like "O-volving" shelves built in. See the nice restoration project pages at the Henry Ford Museum for more info.
A man, a plan, a canal: Suez!
Of course, considering how crucial C60's formation and structure is to carbon nanotubules research, one would think that all the companies making money off (or planning to) it would at least be generous enough to support its namesake. But thats neither here nor there.
you would think so, but very few companies are making money off nanotubules. while the demand is there, the inability to mass produce nanotubes has prevented any industry from taking advantage of their unique characteristics.
i spoke with someone a few weeks ago from the doe. they basically said the word 'nano' is more of a fad and the people in the funding agencies dont see much promise in the near future (10 years or so). in the last few years, people have been sneaking the 'n' prefix into grant titles to increase the chance of funding. since little industrial applicability has resulted, it appears funding is going to shift more into the biomedical arena.
-- john
I'm pretty shocked that since 1999 when he bought the place to restore it, he only managed to raise $100 for renovation!!! Either he's incompetent (which I doubt), or he just hasn't been trying very hard. So why the sudden push now all of a sudden?
Ceci n'est pas une sig
I for one fail to see the historic significance of this thing. Yes, it was the only dome Fuller ever lived in. So what? He himself sold the damn thing.
Aside from being a very slightly distinguished example of a concept that utterly failed to revolutionize housing as we know it, it's just a house. I can respect that it was this guy's buddy's house, but apparently it's nevertheless a shoddily maintained moneypit with not much else to recommend it. Bulldoze it and reuse the land.
research into geometry ???
Uh, that subject should have read:
"For those who are NOT into chemistry..."
from the article:
He is also considering bequeathing the dome to SIU in his will.
He believes the university should buy the building or pay for its renovation.
If he wants the university to buy it from him, why did he say he might give it to them in his will? Now all they have to do is wait for him to croak (and he looks fairly elderly from the picture)
I'm out of my mind right now, but feel free to leave a message.....
My house is also falling apart. How do I get it nationally recognized as a historical landmark?
The frost on the roof once resembled Buckminster's face (although he was missing a nostril). Is this enough to qualify?
Table-ized A.I.
I mean, 10 seconds of experimentation shows that http://www.msnbc.com/news/748889.aspworks just as well, and is at least 30% less messy looking.
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Ask the Ya-Hoot Oracle Anything!
structure is falling apart much quicker than my presure-treated-wood ad brick home?
Actualy that is a very valid question. A lot has been learned in building domes in the last 40 years. The biggest lesson learned is that roofing the thing to keep the water out does cause problems trapping condensation in the shell promoting decay. The shape was good. The early ventilation was poor.
Almost all new domes now have building code requirements to have the shell ventilated to prevent condensation from building up inside the outer shell. If you built a traditional home and didn't put in eve and roof vents, they also would rot out due to condensation under the shingles in the winter. Roof ventilation is required in both types of homes. More information on dome wall cavity ventilation using a cupola can be found here; http://www.domesnorthwest.com/Explanations.htm
The truth shall set you free!
I'm wondering how it could possibly cost $100K to renovate a little teeny geodesic dome like that one? I mean, it's presumably built out of inexpensive materials: where does that kind of money go on this project? Couldn't someone find a couple of college students willing to do it for $15K ea + materials over a summer? For that matter, wouldn't someone donate the materials?
and coworker's parents has a dome house.
I cost a lot to build, and they couldn't sell it when they put it on the real estate market.
I've been in it several times, it's interesting. It's bigger inside than it looks on the outside. The heating/cooling does seem to always be very consistant, it seems to have less temperature variation than a normal square house.
Someone mentioned leaks, my friend never mentioned problems with leaks, even though it has several skylights.
He reads slashdot, but he never posts, maybe this will be his first story to post in, after all, he is pretty qualified to post on this one!
I've had enough abrasive sigs. Kittens are cute and fuzzy.
if it was rebuilt to code. A code that onw includes
domed constructions...
I've volunteered for the Buckminster Fuller Institute ( http://www.bfi.org/ ) as a means of puting my money (or absence there of,) where my mouth is.
Fuller ranks right up there with Steve Wolfram as far as I'm concerned.
MSBPodcast.com The opinions expressed here are my own. If you don't like 'em... Think up your own stuff.
I think we now have the technology to make domes worthwhile again. Roofing can now be sprayed on polymer. Inexpensive, long-lasting, and absolutely leak proof. Insulation can also be sprayed on, and can look nice enough that it need not be covered. Traditional drywall is not necessary... Windows, OTHO, I know little about.
:-)
I will definitely consider a dome as a vacation home off in the woods. 1000 acres, some solar panels, and a really tall mast for my cellphone antenna.
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