Finding a Reliable Contractor and Subcontractors

For those who prefer to stick with what they do best and leave the building to others, we have help. Some previous dome owners and dome builders have expressed an interest in assisting others and have authorized us to give out their names. All of these builders have succeeded in the construction of their dome home and/or have worked to build a dome for someone else.

Although we would not pass on a builder who we know to be a problem, this list does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement. These individuals are not American Ingenuity employees and therefore we can not guarantee their performance. As with any builder, acquire references and recommendations from recent customers. Before selecting a contractor read our information sheet on Choosing a Contractor and before committing to a builder, call us for our latest review/input.

If you do not have the time or do not want to assemble the dome shell kit we know of a working consultant that will supervise your laborers or your contractor’s laborers and assemble the shell. The working consultant’s charges a daily rate and travel expenses.  Using three to four good laborers and depending upon the size dome and type of hoisting mechanism, the shell assembly (kit with two entryways and four dormers) can take from 9-16 days or more depending on the number of entryways and dormers your floor plan calls for. Click on Kit Assembly Consultant to learn more.

Once your Building Plans have been ordered, we can estimate the number of days needed for the shell assembly (entryways and dormers take longer to install than triangles).

You or your contractor will hire local subcontractors to do the normal jobs like forming and pouring the slab, plumbing, electrical, framing, drywall finishing, the installation of your locally purchased doors and windows, etc. We figure you should not pay some one to come in from out of state to do work that your local subs can perform. The subs follow the Dome Building Plans, Assembly Manual and call us when they have questions.

The Kit Assembly Consultant travels all around the USA and the world supervising your workers or subs to get the dome shell assembled. Because the Consultant is on a job site, he cannot be disturbed. If you are considering utilizing the Consultant, call American Ingenuity at 321-639-8777 Monday through Friday, 9 to 5 eastern time.

A few years ago prior to the working consultants that would supervise the shell assembly, some of Ai's dome owners had to hire contractors or individuals that had never assembled an Ai dome shell kits. As a result the contractor had to overcharge the dome owner because they did not know what problems they would run in to. Many times the contractor would charge as much as the cost of the building kit for the labor cost to assemble the kit.

A helpful book that gives you overall insight in building your own home is called The Complete Idiot's Guide to Building Your Own Home by Dan Ramsey.  A helpful web site is EZ Home Build.  It has construction manuals, construction estimating CD's, etc.  Another helpful web site to assist in your cost estimating is rsmeans.comezhomebuild.com

**Be Prepared to send a copy of your building plans to your prospective builder. He won’t be able to discuss working with you with out them.**

Finding a Reliable Contractor or Subcontractor

 Locating a contractor in your area with the requirements you need can be time consuming and frustrating and if you are not very careful you may regret your choice end up with someone not compatible with  you.

SERVICE MAGIC.COM Maintains a list of Reliable Contractors and Sub contractors and Engineers.

Others have used Service Magic and found them to be very helpful.

It is assuring that they follow up on each referral to assure that professional quality service was provided.

Their web site is http://servicemagic.com  Once you are on their web site do the following.  If you have any difficulty, you can contact them directly at 877-800-3177.

• Click on "Start Request"
• Then "Find Contractors"
• Follow the prompts.  You'll be asked for your specific requirements: framing, electrical, plumbing, etc.
• And your specific location and zip code is requested.