square footages in

 american ingenuity domes

What does sq.ft. max mean? Max refers to whether you maximize the second floor square footage by enclosing four fifths of the second floor and only leaving one fifth of the second floor open; thus causing high vaulted ceilings over one fifth of your first floor. Typically dome owners tend to leave one half of the second floor open; thereby, having high vaulted ceilings over half of their first floor rooms. Leaving one half of the second floor open, will lessen the amount of square footage on the second floor versus what is listed above.

How does A.I. name its floor plans? The name consists of three parts. For example the floor plan named 27 Alpha 11 means; the first two digits are the dome diameter in feet, then the Greek word Alpha and then the two numbers 11.

• the first part is the dome diameter in feet (22', 27', 34', 36', 40', 45', 48', 60')
• the second part is a Greek word (Alpha, Beta, Delta, Epsilon, Gamma, Kappa, Omega, Omicron, Sigma, Theta, Zeta)
• the third part is two numbers (11, 21, 22, 32, 33)

What size A.I. Domes are best used for garages? The 22’ dome is a one car garage with loft storage. The 27’ dome can be a two car garage with loft storage. You can use other size domes depending upon you parking, storage and work shop needs.  Click on Garages to learn more.

Does American Ingenuity manufacture basement kits? No. But sometimes it is practical for our clients to build their domes on basements. Therefore we have basement plans available. We usually call these basement floor plans “Optional Basement Floor Plan.” It is called Optional because it is up to each client whether they want to build on a basement or not. If they do, then the client purchases the Basement Plans designed for that particular dome floor plan.  Click on Basements to learn more.

How many bedrooms and bathrooms can the different dome sizes have? The number and size of the bedrooms and bathrooms is up to each client. Within the Planning Kit is a Stock Floor Plan Booklet that contains stock plans for each of the size domes. If you do not find a stock plan that fits your lifestyle, our design team can modify a stock plan or design a custom plan from your sketches.  To order the Planning Kit which includes the 60 page Stock Floor Plan Booklet, DVD or CD, mini-dome and other info, click on Visit Our Store.

The following bedroom and bathroom breakout is typical for each of the size domes.

• The 27’ dome and 30’ dome can be a one bedroom, one bath size.
• The 34’ dome is a two bedroom, two bath size.
• The 36' dome is a two bedroom, two bath size.
  
• The 40’ dome is a three bedroom, two bath size.
• The 45’ dome is a three or four bedroom, three bath size.
• The 48’ dome can be a four or five bedroom size dome with either three or four bathrooms.
• The 60’ dome is usually built for a commercial building not a home.

What are some of the ceiling heights within the A.I. dome?

We do not recommend the 60' dome for a residential home. The 60' dome will cost more per square foot to assemble than the smaller domes because of the greater number of panels and the height of the dome. The 60' residential plans are custom and the kit requires two trucks for delivery.

Q: Can the dome be made handicap accessible?
A: Yes. All of the dome floor plans can be modified to be handicap accessible. Use a chair rail, lift or elevator to access the second floor. Normally the guest bedroom, guest bathroom and storage are put on the second floor.  Click on Handicap to learn more.

Q: How do I plan for expansion - the addition of another dome at a later date?
A: When designing your first dome, you can prepare for future expansion by placing an entryway or link at the location where you will later connect another dome. If we are providing you with customized plans we can design them for the future expansion. When you order your first dome we can provide instructions and materials that will make the connection easier.

Q: Do you have separate garage dome kits available?
A: Yes. We have developed two new garage dome sizes, 22' and 27'. These garage domes are two frequency icosahedron geometry. This geometry differs from our other domes in that it utilizes fewer but larger panels. By having larger panels we can create a wider opening that is needed for a garage door. You can install a 9' wide garage door in the 22'. The 27' garage dome can have a 16' garage door and it can have a second floor of 398 sq.ft. Previously a 34' dome was needed to pull two cars in side by side. Now you can have a two car garage in a 27' dome which is more cost effective. The 22' dome provides an economical one car garage using 3 1/2" E.P.S. insulation (R-14). Either of these garage domes can be connected to another dome or built independently from the house.

The 34' garage dome is utilized when you want more first floor perimeter room around the vehicles or when you want a second floor above the garage for an apartment or study, etc.

You can find the pricing for the garage kits on the bottom of the Stock Floor Plan Price List in the Stock Floor Plan Booklet or click on Stock Plan Pricing.

Q: Will l feel closed in, in the dome?
A: No. In our dome you can install an abundant number of windows and doors. Your budget and your floor plan selection determines the number of doors or windows you will have. There can be up to five entryways on the first floor of the 30’, 34’, 36', 40’, 45’, 48’ domes and up to five window dormers or door dormers on the second floor of our larger domes, 36’, 40’, 45’, 48’.

Remember on site you construct a 2x4 wall under the entryways and dormers to install the standard doors and windows that you purchase locally. For example under a 40' entryway you could have up to three French doors or a door and a picture window or a large picture window or 12' of sliding glass doors, etc. In other words on the first floor of a 40' dome you could have a maximum of five entryways with each one containing 12' of French doors.

We have a window and door specification sheet on this web site and within the Planning Kit there is a list of the maximum window sizes that can fit within the entryways and dormers for each size dome. Click on Window Sizes to view this info.

Q: What is a cupola?
A: A Cupola is "sort of like a hat with windows that sits on top of the dome". When a person wants to have a third floor loft in the 40' or larger domes, the cupola adds about 2' of headroom to the top center of the dome. The top five pentagon panels rest upon 18" tall concrete "legs" that are built on site. Between the concrete "legs" framing is built to install rectangular windows that you purchase locally. See the floor planners in the Stock Floor Plan Booklet for loft heights and square footages.

Cupolas are not necessary for ventilation and extra light. Domes do not need more light than conventional houses. If you build your dome without a cupola, we recommend installing a vent in an interior wall near the peak of your dome for ventilation. The electric fan vent has the added advantage of being easily controlled with a switch or timer.

The outline of the third floor loft matches that of the cupola. In wind areas you do not want the cupola windows to be more than two feet tall. Also taller cupolas just look out of proportion on the dome.

To protect the windows during high winds, the dome owner will either need to purchase windows made from impact resistant glass or have shutters installed.

Q: Why do the square footages on the Specifications Page differ from the square footages listed on the stock floor plans?
A: On the Specifications Page the first floor and second floor square footage listed is the maximum amount of square footage possible. The first floor square footage is maxed out because only one entryway is considered. The second floor square feet (sq.ft.) listed is what is possible if you only leave open one fifth of the second floor. This means you would only have high vaulted ceilings over one fifth of your first floor rooms. The first floor ceiling height would then be 7 1/2' in the 30’ and 34' domes and 8' tall in the larger domes. You can purchase a five foot riser wall and increase the ceiling height by one foot on the first floor of the 22’ through 48’ domes. This increase in height will not affect the ceiling height on the second floor.

The first floor square footages on the stock floor plans varies from the Specifications Page because more than one entryway is installed. Each time another entryway is utilized on the first floor this will reduce the amount of total first floor square footage. In the stock floor plans the second floor square footage varies from the Specifications Page because some stock plans have one third of the second floor left open while others can have up to half of the second floor not installed. The second floor square footage on stock plans consists of all the illustrated second floor space to the knee wall. On site the second floor knee wall is built along the dome perimeter out 2x4's and covered with drywall to a height of two to three feet. AC ducting and second floor suspension rods can be hidden behind the knee wall. Electrical outlets can be placed on the knee wall.

Q: What is the dome diameter and square footages converted to meters?
A: To convert the diameter of the domes to meters, take the diameter and divide by 3.25 for example a 40' dome in diameter would be 12.3 meters in diameter. To convert the square footage numbers for each floor, take the square footage number and divide by 10.5 and you will get the floor space in square meters.

Dome diameter converted from feet to Meters:

22’ Dome is 6.77 meters

27’ Dome is 8.3 meters

30’ Dome is 9.23 meters

34’ Dome is 10.5 meters

40’ Dome is 12.3 meters

45’ Dome is 13.8 meters

48’ Dome is 14.8 meters

60’ Dome is 18.5 meters

Total Dome Square Footage converted to square meters.

22’ Dome with 373 sq.ft. would be 35.52 square meters

27’ Dome with 780 sq.ft. would be 74.28 square meters

30’ dome with 1,089 sq.ft. would be 103.71 square meters

34’ dome with 1,466 sq.ft. would be 139.62 square meters

40’ dome with 2,176 sq.ft. would be 207.24 square meters

45’ dome with 2,758 sq.ft. would be 262.66 square meters

48’ dome with 3,141 sq.ft. would be 299.14 square meters

60’ dome with 5,180 sq.ft. would be 493.33 square meters

First Floor Square Footage converted to square meters:

22’: 373 sq.ft. or 35.52 square meters

27’: 555 sq.ft. or 52.86 square meters

30’: 665 sq.ft. or 63.33 square meters

34’: 852 sq.ft or 81.14 square meters

40’: 1,178 sq.ft. or 112.19 square meters

45’: 1,489 sq.ft. or 141.80 square meters

48’: 1,693 sq.ft. or 161.24 square meters

60’: 2,552 sq.ft. or 243.05 square meters.

Second Floor Square Footage converted to square meters:

22’: Not available

27’: 225 sq.ft. or 21.432 square meters

30’: 424 sq.ft. or 40.38 square meters

34’: 614 sq.ft or 58.48 square meters

40’: 886 sq.ft. or 84.38 square meters

45’: 1,127 sq.ft. or 107.33 square meters

48’: 1,278 sq.ft. or 121.71 square meters

60’: 2,004 sq.ft. or 190.85 square meters.

Third Floor Loft Square Footage converted to square meters:

22’: Not Available

27’: Not Available

30’: Not Available

34’: Not Available

40’: 112 sq.ft. or 10.66 square meters

45’: 142 sq.ft. or 13.52 square meters

48’: 170 sq.ft. or 16.19 square meters

60’: 624 sq.ft. or 59.43 square meters.

What is the cost to convert American Ingenuity’s Building Plans to metric dimensions: if it is a stock plan the cost would be the modified price. Typically the conversion price is 200 to $350 depending upon the complexity of the plan. Once we see the plan or your sketch, A.I. will quote you a price.