TEMPLE OF DOME
Assembled in just six hours, could these £17k smart pods be the ecohomes of the future? Lizzie Rivera finds out more
Modern smart domes are taking the ideas of pre-fab, self-build and mobile homes to new levels.
The central idea behind these eco-friendly pods is that they can be erected on uneven mountainsides or among forest treetops, making them perfect shelters for intrepid travellers keen to get up close and personal with nature. They could even one day replace traditional garden rooms, sheds or tree houses.
When erected on a small elevation, they could provide room to park your car beneath – with planning permission, of course.
Smart design
Although futuristic looking, the smart dome has its roots in the famous geodesic dome design – using a thin lattice to create a hemisphere – and first used by Carl Zeiss in 1926 to house a planetarium. The structures use the “do more with less” principle, enclosing the largest volume of space with the least amount of surface area – saving on materials and cost.
Similar domes have been used to build accommodation in getaway destinations, including an eco-camp in South America’s Patagonia, designed after the “leave no trace” dwellings of the ancient Kaweskar tribe, with the domes erected on elevated platforms to minimise landscape disturbance. The design is back in fashion, with companies across the world, including the UK’s Smart Europe and Fugu in France, marketing and selling dome structures.
One of the latest designs to hit the market, by Smartdome.si in Slovenia, is made from laminated, moisture-resistant timber framework with a set of UV-resistant rubber gaskets to prevent leaks and galvanised steel.
The simple design means they can be pre-made in factories so they will be relatively cheap, costing between £17,000 and £31,000. They can also be adapted for almost any terrain: “sky domes” are raised off
the ground; “aqua domes” can be installed over water; “tree domes” can be suspended in forests; while “snow domes” are suited to colder weather conditions.
With a surface area of just under 25 square metres, each dome offers as much living space as some of London’s micro-flats. The height rises to 3.25 metres in the middle – almost a metre higher than the ceiling height in the average British home, so they feel bigger, too.
An additional bonus is that for those seeking something more spacious, the modular design means a network of domes can fitted together to create as many rooms as you need.
Beautiful and functional
The method of construction – two deltoids fitted together to make a dodecahedron – means they can be connected without the need for extra supports. This means they are relatively easy to construct – it takes six hours to assemble the prototype – and leave minimal long-term environmental impact after they are removed.
Just as crucially, the hemispherical structure created from triangles provides unparalleled strength – they will stand up to 12 metres of powdered snow, winds of up to 140kmh and even small earthquakes.
A double-tiered floor cleverly creates space for plumbing for showers and lavatories and the wall design is flexible, ranging from transparent to opaque, so each owner can decide how much privacy they want. The domes’ reflective surfaces also mean the building will blend beautifully into any environment.
Each dome is encircled by a double gutter which collects rainwater that can be used to hydroponically grow plants without soil. The opaque panels are insulated and the design creates good air circulation and minimal heat loss.
“It is not enough to create products that work and are useful,” says Zeljko Hocevar from Smartdome.si. “We also have to create products that bring joy and enthusiasm, pleasure and entertainment; to inspire people with the beauty of living in nature.
“More and more people live in urban surroundings and the trend will continue. But the demographic structure of the population is changing. In well-developed countries, the ageing of the planet’s population will continue – such a population has different needs and a different style of living. The best way of overcoming stress in life is nature.”