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Moon
Cocoons
by
Chuck Hall
 Back
in the 1980s, when NASA started planning for a permanent base on the
Moon, it was decided that it would be far more economical to use
materials already on the Moon than it would be to go to the expense
of shipping all the necessary building materials there. So NASA
started looking for designs that could be built from lunar
materials. Enter Nader Khalili, a California architect. At
the 1984 NASA symposium, "Lunar Bases and Space Activities of
the 21st Century," Khalili presented his unique design concept,
the ecodome, nicknamed the ‘moon cocoon.’ Ecodomes are made of
dirt-filled tubes. If you were to build one of these structures on
the Moon, you’d only need to take the cloth tubes with you…you
could use moon dust for the rest.
Ecodomes
are constructed using tubes of cloth filled with a mixture of sand
and clay or concrete powder. The tubes are then stacked,
coil-method, in much the same way we made pottery in grade school.
Barbed wire is placed between the rows of tubes to hold them in
place. Once they are stacked into the shape of a dome, they are
covered with stucco, adobe or plaster. Chicken wire can be inserted between the tubes to give the
plaster something to adhere to. Windows and doors are incorporated
into the buildings by simply stacking the tubes of earth around
them. This method of building is similar to the earth bag method,
but theoretically more sturdy and stable because you’re using one
long coiled tube instead of many bags. You can also build accents
into the domes using the coiled tubes. For example, Khalili has
built benches by stacking them, like logs, until reaching a
comfortable sitting height.
 The
unique and beautiful result of this method in the hands of a master
builder must be seen to be believed. Khalili’s site,
www.calearth.org, has a gallery of photographs of a village he
designed using this method.
Khalili
offers a kit for those interested in building their own ecodomes. A
400 square foot kit sells for $2400, and an 800 square foot kit is
$3200. Ordering information for the kits is available at: http://www.calearth.org/EcoDome.htm.
Although the kits meet code requirements in his home state of
California (according to Uniform Building Code standards), you might
want to check with your local building inspector before ordering,
just to make sure you don’t have any nasty surprises further down
the road.
Although
a 400 sq. ft. home is a lot smaller than most of us are accustomed
to, one of the principles of sustainable living is simplifying. By
getting rid of some extra ‘stuff,’ you may find life in your
ecodome quite comfortable. Another benefit of ecodome kits is that
they are expandable, if you find you just can’t live in 400 sq.
ft., you can always add on.
If
ecodomes tickle your fancy, Khalili offers building seminars, open
houses and workshops at his village in Hesperia, California. For
more information, visit: www.calearth.org.
Chuck
Hall is a Sustainability Consultant and author. His latest book, Green
Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave, is
now available at Booklocker.com.
You may contact Chuck by email at: chuck@cultureartist.org or visit
the Culture Artist Web site at www.cultureartist.org.
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