Dome, Sweet Dome

February 21, 2012

San Diego Life: By Sofie Kinnefors

FIRST OF ALL, IT’S NOT a geodesic dome. Hal Brody’s uber-unique home design in Point Loma is a curved-steel structure that uses no dimensional lumber.

The fact that it was billed by Brody, a mechanical engineer, as the new model for environmentally friendly construction didn’t bother his neighbors. It’s just that the yurt-like exterior is so … not Point Loma (or anywhere, really).

But we’ve been warned not to judge a book by its cover. The dome home’s two-story, open interior (designer: Denise Homme; muralist: Patrese Alexander) has four bedrooms and two baths. Total square footage is 2,235 — in a structure with a diameter of just 42 feet.

Per square feet of living space, Brody says his dome uses less material — and green-friendly material at that — than any other type of structure.

There’s radiant-floor space heating that uses solar-heated water, a grey-water system used for landscape irrigation and a host of enviro-friendly attributes (for more information, go to: DomicilesForANewAmerica.com).

Brody hopes to inspire architects and builders to design and build green. In fact,
he’s hosting an open house for San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles’ readers on February 25 and 26 (10 a.m. to 7 p.m.).