A few years ago I had a lady write and ask if it were possible to create an A-Frame earth sheltered home. At the time I had given it little thought and didn’t see how it was possible. Since then I realized that an A-Frame home was pyramidal in shape and could be included in the overall architecture. In fact as I have spent more time with designs and design ideas I have realized there are very few designs that will not work. That doesn’t mean that all are easy.

I look at it this way. Most people consider Earth Sheltered homes a niche market. Thus perhaps only 1% of Architects have given it any thought and out of that number fewer still who have pursued it seriously. I state this number based on the thousands of Architects I have studied and the works they have produced. Most designers stick with the traditional styles though I realize this is changing as people realize they don’t have to be stuck inside of the box and ask the designers to let them out.

One of the most intriguing style has to be the dome. It has to be the most stable creation in all of nature. Domes go back about 2000 years and have been built by Romans, Persians and so many others. I love the dome style for you can keep it above ground or cover it with soil without major fear of collapse. Domes have been known to withstand direct blasts of nuclear bombs. In one case a dome used for grain storage blew up but the main structure remained standing. Domes are also wonderful as they give one a feeling of openness and freedom which you don’t feel when surrounded by four walls and a ceiling.

The other benefit of domes is their size. You can build them as small as you wish and the upper limits to size are ever on the increase. Monolithic Domes is responsible for the creation of the Crenosphere. Though its upward size is now set at 1000 feet in circumference it is only a matter of time until this is doubled. I will not be surprised if the day arrives when domes will reach a mile in diameter. Such domes do not need to be set at specific heights. A 500 foot dome could have an interior height of 250 feet. A 1,000 foot dome could have a height of 500 feet. You could practically sky dive from the inside interior.

The world of Earth sheltered homes, modern style, is still a relatively new one. Thus the types of ways we build them and create them is really up to ones imagination. I am convinced that Architects must start divining ways to build more homes that work with nature instead of against them. You will not find another style on earth that works more with nature then an earth sheltered home. Unless of course you return to the rocks and caves or find a way to grow trees big enough to live in. An Earth Sheltered home not only fits with the earth but lets the earth work for it. We have to stop seeing them as homes only for the weird or strange and start viewing them as homes for the masses. Homes that will last for centuries and architecture we can pass on to our children so their homes are even more beautiful and lovely. It can happen but it must start with us or the future we offer our children will be just what I have mentioned. A return to the rocks, the caves and the mud.