Monolithic Dome cameo in upcoming ABC TV show

Dome cameo

A shoutout for the Monolithic Dome making a brief cameo in the trailer for ABC’s new show, Stumptown. The trailer clearly shows the cement storage facility built for Lone Star Northwest, Inc. on the Willamette River in downtown Portland, Oregon.

Judy Lynne Bates South, 1940-2019

Portrait of Judy South

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Judy Lynne South — loving wife of David B. South and beloved mother of ten. She died in Waxahachie, Texas, on Monday, February 25, 2019.

Animals—and people—sheltered in dome during Hurricane Michael

Main entrance

Forecasts predicted Hurricane Michael would land in Panama City as a strong, but still manageable, Category 3 hurricane. Employees of the Humane Society of Bay County — along with their families, friends, cats, and dogs — spent the day preparing to ride out the hurricane under the protection of their Monolithic Dome. As everyone settled in for the night, no one expected anything too severe. Then Hurricane Michael intensified into the strongest hurricane to ever hit the Florida panhandle.

The Vanguard School charters K-12 education in new Monolithic Dome

The “V” logo

Facing west toward the Front Range of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, The Vanguard School in Colorado Springs provides a dramatic foreground thanks to its royal blue sports field and the dome structure situated nearby. The 20,000-square foot Monolithic Dome houses twelve classrooms and two science labs for the school’s 215 seventh and eighth graders. “It looks cool,” says student Ciera. “A lot of people see it and wonder what that thing is and I get to tell them it’s the junior high building!”

Hurricane Michael smashes power transformer into Monolithic Dome home

Destroyed house

Hurricane Michael smashed a power transformer into Margaret Clayton’s caterpillar shaped Monolithic Dome home. The home is a few miles southeast of Mexico Beach in Port Saint Joe, Florida. Clayton stayed in her home during the hurricane. Everything was going well — until her neighbor’s house exploded.

The mud couldn’t keep dome fans away from the 2018 dome tour

Bruco, the Texas landmark

Hundreds of dome fans toured the Monolithic Dome Research Park on Saturday, October 20. After weeks of constant rain, the weather turned sunny, and it was a beautiful day. Even the with all the mud and standing water, people toured the offices, shops, and Bruco: The Texas Italian Caterpillar.

No word yet from dome owners hit by Hurricane Michael

Mexico Beach devastation

We haven’t reached any dome owners in the area hit by Hurricane Michael. The city manager of Panama City Beach, Florida, was on NPR this morning talking about the damage. He said his city fared okay, but the area around Mexico Beach — east of Panama City Beach — was devastated. Widespread power failures, destroyed cell towers, and damaged infrastructure is making communication difficult.

Fire safety comes standard, no sprinklers required

Cosmetic fire damaged Monolithic Dome

Years ago, a late night fire started next to a 10,000-ton urea storage in Channelview, Texas. It consumed three wood structures built against the Monolithic Dome. Over 300 gallons of transformer oil fueled the blaze. For an hour, strong winds blew the inferno directly over the dome.

Different location, same great workshop for Fall 2018 attendees

Fall 2018 class

There are so many domes around the Monolithic Dome Research Park that for the first time the Monolithic Dome Builders Workshop was held out-of-town — mostly. Over 20 students attended the Fall 2018 workshop. They built two, 20-foot diameter domes and one concrete-only Ecoshell in nearby Dawson, Texas.

Colorado dome home visit by dome fan

Exterior

Dome fan, Harry Maldonado, shared this video of his recent visit to a monolithic dome home in Colorado. We believe this home was constructed by Mert Hull near Colorado Springs.

Hartshorne gymnasium and safe room grand opening

Hartshorne gymnasium interior

Earlier this summer, Hartshorne Public Schools opened its new Monolithic Dome gymnasium. Adrian O’Hanlon III of the McAlester News-Capital reports that the 150-foot diameter dome will seat over 1,100 people for sporting events. Moreover, the dome doubles as a FEMA rated safe room that can hold around 3,000 people during a tornado emergency.

Aerated concrete vs. thin-shell concrete

Holes and voids in aerated concrete

Aerated concrete is conventional concrete infused with air bubbles or styrofoam beads to make the concrete less dense and lighter — like pumice compared to granite. It’s often used to replace heavier concrete blocks in small to medium-sized buildings.

Could this lightweight material replace shotcrete in constructing a Monolithic Dome? No, because the dome is already “aerated” using an entirely different method.

Eye of the Storm for sale

Dome home from beach

This iconic beachfront dome home has come up for sale, offering potential buyers a million-dollar view.

Illinois dome home remodeled mostly by hand

Dome home

A hastily finished home is now being restored to its full glory thanks to the hard-working remodel efforts of its current owners. How one family transformed their dome home.

Out on the job site

Oregon dome

Let us take you back to the early days of building Monolithic Domes through the eyes of our Vice President of Sales Gary Clark, who has been building domes for many years.

A shelter from the storm

Front of dome

Protecting students in an area at risk for tornadoes is serious business. For this school district, building a storm shelter almost didn’t happen.

A desert escape

Cabin

A family’s summer cabin in Northern Arizona offers an escape from the heat of the desert, all inside a Monolithic Dome.

Ideas to secure dome home financing

Prospective dome homeowners can sometimes run into trouble securing financing for their home. Let us offer some tips on how to do just that.

Safe room going up in Alabama

Saferoom

A new Monolithic Dome safe room is under construction in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s part of a broader initiative to provide community storm shelters following the devastating Tuscaloosa-Birmingham EF4 tornado in 2011. It is the fourth dome built in the Pratt City area, which was hardest hit by the monster tornado.

The Woodard story: a place to call home

Dension dome home

When Don and Julie Woodard set out to build a home, a Monolithic Dome was not in their plans. But a Monolithic Dome home is what stands on their property today.

PCalc Dome Functions

Dome results from PCalc Pro for the iPad. Supports both algebraic or RPN modes.

An overview and how-to guide of the calculator app PCalc. Learn how the app can do dome calculations.

First steps to a dome

It’s a new year, and that means new resolutions. Here’s how to start on your resolution to build a Monolithic Dome.

Iowa dome home for sale [SOLD]

The Monolithic Dome home in Ankeny, Iowa that has come up for sale.

Three parcels of land plus the security a Monolithic Dome. This property featuring a beautiful dome home has come up for sale in Ankeny, Iowa. UPDATE: The house sold in September 2018.

AL.com picks domes for best sci-fi locations in Alabama

Alabama dome home

Have you ever thought about where you would film a sci-fi movie? Plenty of us have done it. The folks over at AL.com did and came up with a list of places in Alabama that looked like something from a sci-fi movie. As part of the list, two Monolithic Dome locations were chosen.