Is this what future Florida homes will look like?
I read an article this morning from the Sarasota Herald Tribune's website about a couple building a dome home in Parrish, Florida. Tropical Storm Gabrielle left their Parrish home knee-deep in water in 2001. For fear of hurricanes they are building a dome home on an 8 acre plot in Parrish.
Dome homes are supposed to withstand winds of 200 miles an hour. The dome is made up of concrete and is up to 4 inches thick. This strength has led to domes being touted as the answer to Florida's hurricane and insurance woes.
The dome home they are building has 5,600 square feet of interior space, including 4,200 square feet of air-conditioned space. The unusual shape allows for neat features like a drive-through garage, so there is never a need to back out. The structure's 3-inch foam insulation and seamless shell also make it only use about half the energy of a traditional home.
For more information on Dome home you can visit the Monolithic Dome Institute.
Some of the designs of these homes are not too bad. Many of them have nice outdoor living spaces with balconies. The ongoing maintenance costs would probably be less as well. I can't imagine you need to change the roof every 15-20 years and it does not look like it would blow off in a storm.
Here is a photo of one in a neighborhood of traditional homes. It looks like it is from the Jetson's.
Labels: Florida real estate
posted by Marc Rasmussen at
6:37 AM
8 Comments:
Thank you for bringing attention to our amazing home that so successfully weathered 5 storms. My husband stayed in it with the NBC news crew during Hurricane Ivan. Thankfully, no structural damage was incurred. The dome can be a wonderful building alternative because they are disaster resistant. We are currently in the process of developing a home in the mountains that is fire resistant, as well as landslide/avalanche resistant. Our desire is to educate the public to alternatives that make more sense economically and environmentally. www.domeofahome.com
Hi Valerie,
You are welcome. Thank you for the comment. Good luck with this and your other homes.
Seems like it would crack after a while (like a driveway).
Cool concept though.
Good point. Perhaps the roof is the 4 inch thick part.
That last pic looks scary. It looks like a nice high tide will wipe those homes away (must be just the aerial view that makes it look closer than it appears).
By the way, you have a great name.
It reminds me of a home on Star Wars, just waiting to see Obi-Wan walk out the front door . There is a house in Garden City Beach, SC that looks like a UFO.
These are well cool man.
I purchase one of these bad boys if theyre apperence was more swingin,
Big ups to Valerie Sigler :)
GREENPEACE RULES NOT DROOLS
I would dearly love to see Florida builders offer these and I would love to own one. With all of us growing older and the cost of living growing with us it seems to me the most logical way to be able to live here. These domes are all but hurricane and tornado proof. They have a minimal overhead and don't come with the nightmare insurance issue Florida conventional homes have. Some of the designs are amazing. The one you feature is right on the beach in the panhandle that Ivan and Dennis ravaged. Please, builders, won't you consider looking at offering these??
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