Conceived and designed in the late 1920's but not actually built until 1945, the Dymaxion House was Fuller's solution to the need for a mass-produced, affordable, easily transportable and environmentally efficient house. The word "Dymaxion" was coined by combining parts of three of Bucky's favorite words: DY (dynamic), MAX (maximum), and ION (tension). The house used tension suspension from a central column or mast, sold for the price of a Cadillac, and could be shipped worldwide in its own metal tube. Toward the end of WW II, Fuller attempted to create a new industry for mass-producing Dymaxion Houses.
Bucky designed a home that was heated and cooled by natural means, that made its own power, was earthquake and storm-proof, and made of permanent, engineered materials that required no periodic painting, reroofing, or other maintenance. You could easily change the floor plan as required - squeezing the bedrooms to make the living room bigger for a party, for instance.
Downdraft ventilation drew dust to the baseboards and through filters, greatly reducing the need to vacuum and dust. O-Volving Shelves required no bending; rotating closets brought the clothes to you. The Dymaxion House was to be leased, or priced like an automobile, to be paid off in five years. All this would be possible now if houses were engineered, mass-produced, and sold like cars. $40,000.00 sounds about right.
In 1946, Bucky actually built one in Wichita. I had the honor to lead a bunch of volunteers that took it apart in 1992. It was mostly intact despite being abandoned (except for the incumbent herd of insolent, astoundingly filthy raccoons) for several decades. The 747 First-Class ambience was faded and smelly, but you could still sense the elegance of a living room with a 33-foot window.
The Dymaxion's round shape minimized heat loss and the amount of materials needed, while bestowing the strength to successfully fend off a 1964 tornado that missed by only a few hundred yards. And the Dymaxion only weighs about 3000 pounds versus the 150 tons of an average home!
In 1998, you'll be able to see the restored Dymaxion House at the Henry Ford Museum/Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan. A modern Dymaxion could bring house design and construction out of the 18th century for the first time.
See also:
Henry Ford Museum site
Thank you for the citation. That drawing clearly shows the effect and theory.
.
Interestingly, no one I know who has built a dome home has integrated this concept, including my friend, the late Dave Jensen who built his in the Vale Community at Yellow Springs in 1959. Unfortunate, I think.
.
Am still wondering if any drawings exist showing specific design and dimensions/locations of the low vents on the hexagonal Dymaxion Dwelling Machine and showing the construction design for the venturi-windscoop?
.
I'm wondering just how far above the floor, the honorable Dr. Fuller put the lower intake vents, and how large they were (in scale with the home size). And I'd love to see dimensions and design of the windscoop so that, possibly, I could replicate it.
.
Again, grateful for your pointing me to this drawing in "Critical Path."
.
Best,
kwc
---------------------------------------
k e n . w i n s t o n . c a i n e
editor, www.MindBodySpiritJournal.com
I believe that you might be referring to Fuller's image in
Critical Path, page 211.
In several bios and in some of Buckminster Fuller's own writings, the Dymanxion home's "cooling effect" is cited. His Kansas model exhibited it.
Not sure in which book, but Fuller explained that the shape of the house created thermals which would rise around the structure. These would suck air out of close-to-floor-level vents (also drawing out settled dust -- part of the home's self-cleaning design) and, amazingly, draw a flow of cool fresh air in through the top of the roof venturi vent.
I would love to incorporate this effect in an experimental hexagaonal home I am designing and expecting to build within a few months. (I am starting with a small -- but liveable -- test model.)
Has anyone seen drawings showing how this cooling effect works? The optimal location and design for the floor level vents? How the center rooftop venturi vent is designed (and how the "chilling effect" is turned off in wintery months)? In winter months, does the house still somehow self-exhaust settled dust?
I'm eager to learn more about this particular element of the Dymaxion 4D home design. I understand that Fuller designed domes that worked the same way in regard to self-cooling. I don't think any modern ones I've seen built had that effect at all. I suspect it is not endemic to the geodesic shape, but rather is a separate design element that can be incorporated.
Any knowlegeable input is welcome.
Thank you,
kwc
---------------------------------------
k e n . w i n s t o n . c a i n e
editor, www.MindBodySpiritJournal.com