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41 Comments
- bossm4n, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I used this process to complete a landscaping project at my office. The contractor used the same styrofoam covered in mesh then sprayed a special concrete mixture on the various walls and structures. In my opinion, one of the best options for this type of construction is that the styrofoam can be cut and shaped into virtually anything. He even used it to create a large archway and rounded steps. Houses and such built via this method are extremely durable, well-insulated and virtually fire resistant.
- saigumi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Oh hell... it's Terrafoam! Now.. if we just had Manna.
From Marshall Brain's Manna - http://marshallbrain.com/manna4.htm - tech70a, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"bubble-shaped houses" are better known as monolithic domes. They are extremely efficient and not so costly to build as normal "stick and brick" homes.
This could be a decent material for hardening temporary structures, such as in earthquake or tsunami relief areas in the future. It's not the cheapest stuff out there, but not quite cost prohibitive either. - mabba18, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Grancrete(TM) is a cement-like substance that can be sprayed onto a simple frame of light material, where it adheres and dries to form a permanent structure. It was jointly developed by the Casa Grande firm and Argonne National Laboratory and received an R&D 100 Award from R&D Magazine as one of the “most technologically significant new products” of 2004. With its low cost, 2-4 hour cure time fire resistance, and insulative properties, Grancrete(TM) promises to be extremely helpful in creating higher-quality public housing worldwide.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grancrete - jessecrouch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1pft. old news. well.. if you follow this kinda stuff anyway ;)
if you're interested in this stuff you might want to check out papercrete and gigacrete too. oh yeah.. and you'll want to check out permacrete - probably one of the coolest of the bunch
http://permacrete.com/ - Eraserhead, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0It is not original, but 20 minutes sounds quite a fast drying time.
I am surprised the 3rd world has not picked up on this
method before. - HMNSHLD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0yeah spraying concrete isnt new, but 20 mins to dry is pretty good.
- rewritable, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I think bubble shaped houses are made by pouring concrete on a large thick ballon and slowly infating it once the concrete has started to set.
- joeyjojo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"I think bubble shaped houses are made by pouring concrete on a large thick ballon and slowly infating it once the concrete has started to set."
Monolithic domes are created by first inflating the balloon, THEN spraying.
Grancrete isn't a new application technolgoy, but rather a new material technology. It's the mix that's new (and cheaper). - SadBeef, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0wasnt there an article on the front page that talked about this several months ago?
- clvrmnky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0How different is this from the usual spray concrete mix used to make swimming pools and bubble-shaped houses?
- Atom, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Amazing, I've never heard of such a thing. Is this not an original invention?
- vvaduva, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Where do you get this stuff?
- Jerk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Perfect solution for rebuilding New Orleans! Concrete jungle!
- zoomie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Here are more pics that show the process of building a structure with grancrete:
http://www.grancrete.net/storyboard_12.htm
Looks pretty similar to the Gunnite used in my swimming pool, but not sprayed on as thickly as in a pool. - DarkFactor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Ive seen stuff like this at my school. The downside to it is that it is that you can push a screwdriver through it.
- just101, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The normal spray on concrete is called " shotcrete" There may be some difference in the mixtures but the most unusual thing about this product is the lack of rebar structure and its ability to adhere to foam or wood.
- oldcyborg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The picture was non-descriptive, and gave me no insight as to what it might really look like on a house, or being a house. There is really precious little information on that site. I'll reserve judgement about true cost, etc, until I see and read what it is really all about....
Cyborg
Na - Malakin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0How is this different then the spray on concrete used on tunnel walls (used when building the channel tunnel for example) or on steep slopes above roads that have landslide problems?
- Teratogen, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0finally, a solution for the perenially leaky geodesic dome.
- rewritable, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"$20.50 to coat 15 square feet"
How thick though? I just had a 24' x 26' garage built and it cost me $2200 for the concrete. It has 1' by 1' "footers" all around but the majority of it is "4 thick. - fa_pa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Finaly: Create concrete shoes in just 20 minutes!
- gollux, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Hmmm, Gunite is another name for the process. The only thing new is possibly the formulation or a particular additive. Been around for a while in other forms.
- CronicusX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Cool...
- rautox, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I worked on a gunite crew a long time ago. It's been around for 50+ years as noted above. There's also shotcrete, which has also been around a while. The difference between those two are that gunite is mixed at the point of application. There's a big hose shooting dry concrete and another hose shooting water. The two mix on the way to whatever they're splattering. Shotcrete is wet before it goes into the hose.
It appears that the difference here is that it's being used as a component in a sandwich (ala composite construction--think surfboard) as opposed being a reinforced single component (think swimming pool w/rebar). Pretty cool application. - ironbear, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Great stuff, but only if it's compatible with UBC. Otherwise, pretty limited use in the US.
- Wolfman~K, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0bah no digg... this stuff is old. Give it to me in an spray can I can buy over the counter and now were talkin....
- carpespasm, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0looks like a better and more permanent solution to housing that old shipping boxes, but still a little too like terrafoam to not be creepy as hell
- karn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Monolithic domes are typically a bubble thats inflated, then rebar is built inside the bubble, and then shotcrete sprayed on the walls (from the inside). It's sorta messy, and only somewhat like whats mentioned in the article. Grancrete seems like it would be very beneficial to the building of monolothic domes, only possibly adding minimal cost, with increased lifespan.
- m85476585, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I knew it was old as soon as I read sugar cane stalks. This is from the November issue. I got the January one yesterday!
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I produce instructional videos for a company that manufactures most vertical concrete systems. They spray a whole hous ein a few hours and then "stamp" a pattern (brick,stone, great wall, ect...) then crave grout lines then color/antique. ***** looks amazing and is strong as hell.
http://www.fossilcrete.com - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I have been looking at this to build a new home soon.
http://www.monolithicdome.com/
http://www.domebuilders.com/
http://www.domeofahome.com/
I love the totally open floorplans you get with all the common areas in the middle and bedrooms around the outside edge of the circle. - genconkeeper, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Okay 20 minutes is cool but I saw this in a old Time-Life science book from the early 60's. A few cities used a inflatable tent as a form and made park shelters out of them. Very old news.
- ah802, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0At $20.50 to coat 15 square feet, it's quite expensive... coating to a depth of 2" on both sides of the foam and costs hit a brick wall... nothing beats the price of dung-walls.
- quentinp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I'll hold out for Wellstone so I can choose whether I want bunkerlite or something pretty :)
- Flipino, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Oh the pranks you could pull...
- super_structure, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0eraserhead: Concrete doesn't dry; it cures. It is a chemical reaction between cement and water.
This is hardly revolutionary. Spray concrete (shot-crete, etc.) has been around for decades. Saying it is "more than twice the strength of traditional concrete" is completey ridiculous since concrete strengths always specified per job and are available in strengths that vary in orders of magnitude. If it can cure in 20 minutes, that is fast, but that doesn't mean that it is actually full strength in 20 minutes. The wikipedia reference linked to above states cures in 2-4 hours. Lastly, anyone who can describe $20/ft^2 as "low cost" knows nothing about construction, if that is what it actually costs for 2-2" applications.
This "article" is hardly even worth even including here, is not news in any way, and sure isn't worth a digg. - orangetiki, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0I can't even get past all the windows XP advertisements. Cool stuff though.
- puny_midget, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0It's a weapon of war! Imagine flying over an enemy army and just dumping a plane load of that stuff onto enemy soldiers. Or even covering up mountain bunkers so the taliban fkers cant escape?
- systemghost, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0friggin awesome.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -4/+0not new no digg
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