Geodesic Dome Tent Construction Instructions

These instructions are for an order-three icosahedral base geodesic dome.The dome is approx.
24 feet in diameter (142 inch radius.
Constructed dome! courtes" of Greg #.
It re$uires 120 struts %hich can be cut from 60 1&ft pipes. Three different length pieces are used
('! ( and C. )se 1*2 inch +,T (electrical metal tubing pipe that comes in 1& foot segments.
This is a gal-ani.ed steel conduit pipe that costs approx /1.0& per 1& ft length. 1ou can bu"
these from 2ome Despot or other %arehouse st"le hard%are stores. The" come in bundles of
1&. Get 3& pipes plus a fe% extra. 1ou %ill also need 43 bolts! 43 nuts and 42 %ashers. The bolt
%idth is not critical. 1*4 inch diameter steel bolts %ill certainl" be strong enough.
name length $uantit"
' 04 0*5 inch 0&
( 05 6*5 inch 4&
C 0& 4*13 inch 6&
+ach segment of pipe is cut into t%o pieces (of possibl" une$ual length! thus7

There should be a little tube left o-er at the end of each pipe. The final length of each piece
should be as accurate as possible (preferabl" to %ithin 1*138. 'ccurate pipe construction %ill
ma9e the dome assembl" easier.
:nce the pipes are cut! the ends of each pipe need to be flattened b" hammering or
compression. The ideal tool for this tas9 is a shop press! but unfortunatel" these are not so eas"
to come b". 2ammering %ith a hea-" sledge hammer can be a good option if "ou ha-e plent" of
agression to get out and a space %here "ou can ma9e lots of noise. :ther%ise "ou can
impro-ise a press using a -er" hea-" -ise and a piece of hea-" pipe as a handle. Don;t tr" to
use the +,T pipe as a -ise handle! because it is not strong enough and %ill bend.
<latten bet%een an inch and 1.0 inches of pipe at each end. The pipe ma" crac9 along it;s
seams at the place %here "ou flatten it. =ot to %orr" though! this %on;t significantl" affect the
construction. Tr" to ma9e the flattened parts of the t%o ends of each pipe as parallel as possible.
This is $uite important! and tric9ier than it sounds. 'lso tr" to get them prett" flat (since %e need
to bolt up to 3 pipes togther at each -ertex.
Then drill holes in each of the flattened ends of the pipe. The holes should be a little %ider than
"our bolt diameter! to ma9e assembl" easier. >ut the center of the hole half an inch from the end
of the strut. If "ou ha-e access to a drill press "ou %ill find this ?ob much easier. )se a -er" hard
drill bit! such as a titanium steel bit! and appl" a little oil to the surface before drilling.
't this stage "ou should file the ends of each strut to remo-e an" sharp corners and burrs
created b" the cutting and drilling. This reduces the ris9 of the dome co-ering cloth catching and
tearing on the strut ends.
=ext bend the flattened end of each pipe o-er b" about 12@. The exact angle is not critical.
-ie% from the sideA sections mar9ed %ith thic9er lines
+ach section of the dome uses the same struts in the same places. :f course %e don;t ha-e to
build it in sections. Be can build it top-do%n. It ?ust helps %ith -isuali.ing %hat goes %here.
-ie% from abo-e
Dome Cover
1ou ma" also need a co-er for "our dome. This can be made out of a number of segments of
cloth.
at this
distance
from
base
(in feet
%idth is
(inches
15 &
13 1&
14 2&
12 6&
1& 64
5 43
3 02
4 03
2 04
& 3&


This example sho%s ho% to ma9e the co-er using eight segments. +ach segment is 12& inches
%ide at the base and is made from t%o pieces cut from a 24 foot long! 3& inch %ide cloth. The
measurements gi-en include an allo%ance for one inch seams. If "ou are using substantiall"
narro%er cloth "ou %ill need a larger number of segments. Di-ide the circumference of the dome
(4&& inches b" the %idth of "our material (minus t%o inches! to allo% for seams! to get the
number of pieces "ou;ll need. In this case the length and shape of the segments %ill be the
same! but the" %ill be narro%er at the base. #e% the segments together to ma9e the full
co-ering.
Dome co-er! -ie% from abo-e
Building the dome
Instructions7
1 Ca" out dome mandala on ground
2 #tart at the middle and %or9 out%ards! attaching struts %ith bolts loosel"
6 :nce both ends of all struts to a -ertex are loosel" bolted! that -ertex can be tightened
4 :nce a la"er has been completed! lift the dome onto tripods to ma9e room to %or9 on the next
la"er. #upport the dome using 0 tripods placed around at the bottom most dome la"er. >ut each
tripod near a -ertex! to a-oid bending the struts.
(e careful during construction not to bend struts or put force on ?ointsA parts of the dome %ill be
flopp" and -ulnerable until all struts are attached. :nce all struts are attached "ou can tighten up
the bolts and the dome %ill be rigid.
's tempting as it is! don't climb on the dome! e-en after it;s complete - +,T pipe is made of
relati-el" thin steel! and the struts %ill bend under "our %eight.