Build To Last
June 26, 2003
by David B. South
 David B. South, President of the Monolithic Dome Institute |
My brother and I recently visited a family friend at his farm. It was very apparent that our friend had established and built his farm over many years of hard work and tender loving care.
I told my friend that I liked his gigantic, old-style barn. He said it looked good, but it was no longer safe-- it was in danger of collapse. As we walked to the house, he warned me to be careful where I stepped because the porch was about to collapse. I noticed he had a large cattle feed lot in the backyard. I asked if he rented it now that he was retired. He answered, "No -- it's too far gone -- too rotten."
As we left, my brother remarked that it looked like the farmstead and the owner were both growing old and decrepit together. I have thought about this many times since our visit. Because he was the one who had built the home, the farm buildings, the fences and the feed bunker, none were as old as he was. However, most of it would probably perish during his lifetime. There would be nearly nothing left for his posterity.
I wonder what might have been if he had built a Monolithic Dome barn, an Ecoshell granary, a Monolithic Dome home, and concrete fences with concrete feed bunks. If he had built to last, today he might be applying a fresh coat of paint to wonderful, still very new, structures. And at this point, their value would be more than their original construction costs.
Americans tend to build disposable buildings! Recently I saw a sign on a McDonalds: CLOSED FOR REMODELING. This structure was only 20 years old. A few days later, it was demolished and hauled off in dump trucks. A few months later, a new building took its place. You guessed it -- another McDonalds that looked EXACTLY like the one it replaced.
These buildings are made of materials and methods that do not stand the test of time.
On the other hand, properly made and placed, concrete is like granite. There is nothing like it for permanence. We can shape concrete and mix it in a variety of colors and textures, in a myriad of shapes and sizes, and with wide-ranging physical properties. I like rock! Sunshine will eventually erode even granite, but only on an epic scale. For us mere mortals, it lasts forever.
Monolithic Domes are essentially a one piece rock. They are our own private mountains. Sure, the foam protects the concrete. But even if the Monolithic Dome is left with no maintenance it will last for centuries --- certainly many times longer than anything made of wood. Can you imagine the huge amount of money and resources that are wasted every year replacing rotten, infested, burned and wind-destroyed buildings?
Let's build to last. Let's build Monolithic Domes.
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