I think it's part of the aesthetics, wouldn't take 5 minutes to have a guy with a trowel smooth the sides if desired.

Keep in mind the poverty these people live in.. when I was in Ethiopia on a UN relief mission for Kigali, Rwanda during the ethnic cleansing/genocide (US Air Force), we were backing up the C-5 we flew in on into a parking space on the Addis Ababa, Ethiopia airport tarmac. (Yes, we can put a C-5 in reverse and back it up without a Yuke... just takes a hell of a lot of fuel - probably more than the last 1000 miles of flying did). We probably weighed around 850,000 lbs at the time, so we were giving the thrust reversers (everything), plus doing a sharp turn.

There were some huts of some kind along side the taxiway.. we didn't really pay any attention to them, corrugated metal strapped on some 4x4's.. kind of looked like 2-3 stall out-houses for the airport workers we assumed - well... T/R winds at "100s of miles an hour" will certainly blow such structures over - and we did. Then out came the people.. and the children... About 10 living in each one of them actually. They were indeed for the workers, but not toilets, they were the houses for the families... I would say each one was 6 or 8 x 10 feet at the most - living next to an active taxiway servicing Lufthanse primarily with a daily jumbo jet commercial schedule.

Obviously we felt horrible when we realized what we did, but the only compensation they wanted was the lumber from our pallets we hauled the food there on - you see, the pallet wood was way better than their available replacement materials - so they went to town with some tools we gave them building some more sturdy structures that won't blow over when a jet taxis by.

I have a great photo of some kids playing marbles on the taxiway underneath the wing of a 757 as it taxied by - kids were ducking down as the GE engine rumbled over their heads.

Trust me... this is quite an improvement for the third world.

That is correct!

Unfortunately, "low prices" is a relative term. ;^)

We have have done MANY different types of concrete structures that integrate foam blocks or sheets with various concrete mixes,shotcrete and reinforcement types. Foam and concrete make a very quiet, energy efficient structure -but- despite becoming more cost competitive in the last few years, I don't see how they'll ever be considered "cheap". Labor isn't the problem, the non-existent inflation of the last decade has doubled or tripled material costs. The onerous green energy codes have actually made concrete homes more cost competitive and they will definitely long outlast wood homes.Factory built modular housing (unmodified) is pretty hard to beat for low prices.

You can print it much more smoothly, but it will cost a lot more and take a lot more time. Don't hesitate to ask me about much more precise 3D printing.

Before long, after robots are doing most of our work, humans will be living in these things en masse. Who will live in our former large houses?

how does it stand up to hurricanes?

You still need the concrete in this design. There are foam/concrete designs I saw on HGTV one day that were insulated well. Just seems like a complicated solution to a problem that already has cheaper solutions available.

True enough- in the USA concrete structures would have to include rebar in carefully regulated ways. Prefab panels made in a factory seems to me to be more practical. Especially since housing doesnt last that long, and probably doesnt need to given the collapse of civilization thats coming.

I agree. Also, prefab panels with elec and piping already installed would work better I think.

I wasnt real impressed, since most of the expensive things still have to be made the conventional way.

I still think that prefab modular panels would be cheaper, easier to contruct on site, and could contain piping and electrical inside it on a production line.

Me dino just put two and two together.
So much for my Jurassic genius, though.
My aging dino mind keeps forgetting that I want to read that book.

I think it would be pretty easy to include conduits inside the walls while it is being built -easier than with blocks, but I get your point that it does require some thought and planning for modern conveniences - just as in other types of building.
The walls do have a mostly hollow center with diagonal supports. It might be filled with insulation materials, too.
I wonder how well it can be scaled for larger structures.

Maybe you just read The Creature From Jekyll Island.
https://www.amazon.com/Creature-Jekyl...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

The MSM hate this book and revile its author. Sound like any other author you know?

The article talks about "the most commonly used material on Earth," but never says what it is. Cement? Brick making clay? If the former, that takes a lot of energy to produce. If the latter, the quality and content varies widely from place to place.

I would bet a monolithic house, using balloon forms and spray on cement, is cost competitive. The monolithic house is also more wind and weather resistant. Here in Oklahoma, the dome-shaped monolithic structures are becoming popular, as they make excellent tornado shelters.

Wait for me too!
Was hoppin the prices would go back up to cover my investment...

An article on the topic said up to 800sq ft.

Why am I suddenly thinking about bankster lawyers and lobbyists having chummy quiet talks with legislators?

Seems like you could do the same thing and just as cheaply with cinder blocks.....which can also be made on site from concrete and you don't need some fancy robot on site with the entourage of highly skilled workers needed to support it. Send in the same amount of skilled Masons in and they could build that from cinder blocks in the same time.

Does anyone know what the maximum home footprint is for the Vulcan printer? And I'm assuming that this doesn't include windows or wiring or the roofing? More details please on a brilliant idea!

OUC, I thought that was part of the charm, it has texture, although I think you will have to drill studs into the walls inside to run cables and lines and pies, then finish. But I could live with the outside, paint it brown and think they are really small logs...

Hey slow it down let me sell before the bottom falls out.

nice!

Thanks, OUC;^)
Bump back at ya.
I love the idea of robots in housing construction. Knock the price down by 50% and I might even buy something (if I could find a place that I can tolerate the government looting;^)

I kinda like it the way it looks, OUC.
Cinder blocks don't come out smooth either, unless you cover them up with something that drives up the labor cost.
I'd be more interested in whether this method can easily include super insulation that would pay for the entire structure in a relatively short period.