Architect / Home Construction Feedback

[redpoint5]

Saw a dome home on my 6 mile Segway trip today and thought of freebeard. I'm still trying to warm up from the cold. Also saw another one on S Abiqua road today, so I hope to get a photo of that too next time I'm out there. Was just spending the afternoon house looking.

Took another photo of the cliff plot, and I'm liking the idea more and more. It has about 18' of flat ground before it drops off, but at least 5' of that would be consumed by extending the sidewalk, so about 10' of usable flat ground before it drops away. I'm liking the view more and more, and noticed today that you can hear Silver Creek below.

[freebeard]

Does the lot run all the way down to Silver Creek? [potential thumbup]

You could build a retaining wall downslope and throw fill uphill to make a deeper driveway and a flat spot lower down.

That dome at 4260 Wherever is from an Oregon Dome kit. I laid out the geometry of those sloped canopies for Roger Booth. It was one of his two innovations when he cut ties with Catherdalite Domes. Their designs never evolved from then. Note the lack of an oculus. Dummies.

They don't answer their phone (last I checked).

They got in early and grabbed the 'dome.com' domain, now it resolves to Omega Dome in Littleton, New Hampshire. Their site shows an Oregon Dome Youtube video. Maybe someday I'll drive to Veneta. In addition to Oregon Dome I'd like to look into Veteran's Legacy Camp Alma office.

I think I called Omega Dome once some years ago.

[Angel And The Wolf]

This design, I think someone brought up earlier, would give you your roof top deck, with a partial cover for rainy days. Just leave a ring of triangles
un paneled.

[freebeard]

A rain cover should overhang the deck. Making the upper level a deck precludes getting light and ventilation into the main space. And it would require engineering for the stresses that pass over the top surface of the dome. From wind loads and such.

Consider the attached tower in Permalink#20 with vertical openings on the top level and a[n] hemispheric roof.

Which reminds me: Oregon Dome IIRC spent $1500 on the engineering that they used for each building they put up for decades.* For a skylight panel, they inset a smaller triangular opening in the standard panel. Which is framed with 2x4s ripped on the long edge.

If you rip a 4x4 in half and put triangular gussets in the angles, you'd get a full width hexagon opening.

*Making your own panels would involve using Fuller's Hexapent design for the engineering approval (and other advantages), a table saw that will rip a 4" cut**, and two chop saws with a clamp in between so you can cut both ends at once. And an assembly jig.

The raw materials, plywood and 2x4, were $1500 in 1980 and the kits sold for $6-7000.

**I have one (11" blade) but the motor needs to be rebuilt or replaced with a VFD induction motor.

[freebeard]

The deal I mentioned in the other thread is that if you need a table saw, the one I mentioned above is free. But you have to pick it up. But you get to see where I live.

Since you mentioned clinging to a cliff-face, here are these. First how to put a foundation on a slope:



Then how to progress from a tent to a permanent edge-vertex dome:



Finally, a 40ft square that you could cantilever as necessary and have one level with a 24x40ft hole through it.



edit:
I just redid the math, a 39ft dome will cover a 20x32.3ft rectangle. It would have an hexagonal skylight at the top.

[redpoint5]

Well perhaps I was way off on the slope pitch. Looking at the county topo map, a 50ft run drops 10 ft, giving a slope of only 20 degrees. It seemed much steeper than that.

The property does not extend to Silver Creek, but the entire area below is city owned, so it's like getting property to the creek without having to pay for it. On that note, I'm wondering how feasible it is to walk through the city owned property to the nearby park. There's also a bridge that crosses into downtown there, which is super convenient.

[freebeard]

Is it up or downstream from Silver Falls?

https://oregonstateparks.org/index.c...age&parkId=151

People call it the “crown jewel” of the Oregon State Parks system, and once you visit, you know why. Silver Falls State Park is the kind of standout scenic treasure that puts Oregon firmly onto the national—and international—stage. Its beauty, boundless recreational opportunities and historic presence keep it there. Nestled in the foothills of Oregon’s Cascade Mountains, less than an hour east of the state capital of Salem, the sprawling 9,200 acre property is the largest state park in Oregon, and one of the most popular.

Waterfalls: Where else can you walk behind a waterfall? Check out the famous South Falls and see what a 177-foot curtain of water looks like from behind. It’s part of the Trail of Ten Falls, a spectacular, nationally recognized hiking trail that weaves through a dense forested landscape. The trail passes a series of breathtaking waterfalls along a rocky canyon, and descends to a winding creek at the forest floor. This 7.2 mile loop is considered to be a moderate hike, with an overall elevation change of 800 feet. Several connecting trails with separate access points make shorter routes.

I was looking for something else when I ran across this:

https://archive.org/details/a2_Hi_Re...arde_Creations

Hi-Res Architectural Design
by Avant-Garde Creations

Publication date 1982
Language English
Create architectural floor plans. Select from one of 76 different plans, rotate shapes and move them around the screen with game paddles or joysticks while the computer handles the calculations.

I worked for Avant-Garde Creations at that time.

[Angel And The Wolf]

Originally Posted by freebeard

A rain cover should overhang the deck.

Redpoint didn't say anything about a covered patio:

Originally Posted by freebeard

"It would be great to have a patio on the roof of the house.".

Originally Posted by freebeard

Making the upper level a deck precludes getting light and ventilation into the main space. And it would require engineering for the stresses that pass over the top surface of the dome. From wind loads and such..

Light tunnels can be put on the deck for solar lighting the inside., and the framing can be beefed up to compensate for the missing panels.

Originally Posted by freebeard

*Making your own panels would involve using Fuller's Hexapent design

there are numerous calculators out there. Here is one, and the calculations for a 35 ft dome using struts that can be mmade from standard 8 ft wall studs.:

[redpoint5]

Silverton is downstream of The Falls.

In my youth, I repelled down the big one (south fall) in snow covered winter conditions in nothing but my skivvies. Talk about brain freeze.

[ksa8907]

Another thing to consider is the roadway and utilities. You wont be allowed to dig near the road that would compromise its integrity. Also, is sewer available?