Dome on the Range

Like many American families, the Smiths live in a small wood frame house. The traditional square home is located in a wooded area in Orange County, Texas. But that’s about to change. David Smith is a dome builder, and he’d like his family home to be the first of many that he builds in the area in the years to come. The Beaumont Enterprise featured the project after Smith inflated the dome, and it peeked out from behind the trees that surround his current home.

But the temporary nature of the Airform belies the strength of the final product. While the Airform can be inflated with a simple fan, and deflated by releasing the air inside, the completed dome home will be study enough to withstand the high winds of hurricanes and tornadoes. It also will cost much less to heat and cool than traditional structures of the same size. That will be a welcome change for the Smiths, who like most American families are facing higher gas and food prices. Click here to see a slide show of the dome home in progress by Smith Family Dome Home Builders.