The inside of a Monolithic Dome gymnasium.
One of the first drawbacks about Monolithic Domes for many people is their shape and appearance. Several people I’ve spoken to on my travels have commented that space is lost around corners, that they are the homes of the future and they are reminded of Star Trek when they see one! Certainly looks matter and the practicality of losing space around corners is important. To those concerned with looks I would highly encourage you to take some time to par ooze the photos on http://www.monolithic.com/. Click on any photo to enlarge and get direct access to more photos and/or use the search box on the top right-hand corner. A stand-alone Monolithic Dome can be discouraging in looks, but the reality is that both the interior and exterior surfaces can be decked out with mostly any kind of front facade to make it look more traditional.
Some of the other aspects of adjusting to dome living? FEMA has rated Monolithic Domes as earthquake, fire, tornado, hurricane, mold and termite proof. This means we could adjust to several things:
- Safety through storms! Those of us living in areas prone to these types of risks should especially be able to appreciate the value in this, both in the physical sense and the mental piece of mind.
- Lower home insurance premium cost.
- Extremely lower maintenance costs in not having to rebuild after a natural disaster or replace walls because they’re termite infested or rotted out from moisture. Type in the Monolithic website’s search box, “fire” or “hurricane” and you’ll find some relevant articles.
- Lower monthly energy bills because of the superior insulation achieved.
Many of life’s choices are based on weighing out the pros and cons of a situation. Certainly this is not always an easy thing to do. Change is not widely accepted by many and envisioning a landscape of dome buildings instead of our traditional buildings is hard to do. Yet, history has shown that new concepts and revolutions occur and what today some might consider normal others will consider outdated tomorrow.
I wonder how many people who are first learning about Monolithic Domes are prompted to or able to envision a future where they are the norm instead of the exception.