Growing Dome Technical Specifications

The Growing Dome^® is a greenhouse kit ready for owner building or installation by a Growing Spaces crew.

This page provides more details of the Growing Dome features, what is included in the greenhouse kit, owner supplied item costs, installation options, and shipping.

We provide a detailed instruction manual, owner supplied items list, installation video on CD-Rom, along with many other useful documents to ensure your success in constructing the Growing Dome.

Geodesic Dome Structure

Structural units of the Growing Dome are 2x3, 2x4 or 2x6 Douglas Fir lumber (#2 & better) treated with a high quality deck treatment ready to fasten to connecting hubs of 1/8" aluminum. The Growing Dome comes with a 10 year warranty on the structure.

Foundation Wall

The wall is built from 2x4 or 2x6 lumber studs and plates clad with fiber cement exterior siding. It is insulated with R-12 insulation and lined with galvanized metal flashing. The bottom plate of the wall is normally pressure treated lumber to prevent rot and termite damage but other options are available.

Most of the domes come with a standard 16" high foundation, excluding the 12' (32" standard wall), 15' and 22' (24" standard wall). The other sizes can be upgraded to a 2ft wall so you can enjoy the benefits of raised bed gardening!

Outer Polycarbonate Glazing Panels

The high quality POLYCARBONATE GLAZING is a clear translucent covering that allows 70% to 90% light transmission. It resists breakdown by ultraviolet light and harsh weather impacts, like hail. Life expectancy is over 20 years and both glazing densities come with a 10 year warranty by the manufacturer against yellowing and hail damage. You and your plants will love the soft diffused light inside!

The 8mm double or twin wall glazing STANDARD carries an R value of 1.8, whereas the 16mm multi-wall or PREMIUM glazing is rated R 3.05 and is recommended for domes above 7000 feet altitude.

The Following Features
are included with the Growing Dome Kit

North Wall Insulation:

Reflectix® insulation pre-cut panels are provided to cover the northern 2/5ths of the Dome, cutting down heat loss in the winter months and shading the water tank in the summer months, thus keeping the dome warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. The reflective surface increases the available light inside the Growing Dome.

Automatic Vents:

Temperature activated openers open and close the vents and prevent the Growing Dome from overheating. The openers are adjustable and work by the natural heating and cooling of a tube of compressed wax.

The 26 ft. dome comes standard with a thermostatically controlled, solar powered, 12V cooling fan, as well as four automatic window vents. The larger domes (33'-51') come standard with 110V cooling fans which require an electrical power supply. Solar powered cooling fan upgrades are available at additional cost.

Undersoil Heating/Cooling System:

A small fan blows warm air in winter and cool air in summer through a duct under the soil, raising the soil temperature to enable plants to grow better during cold weather conditions. The kit contains the fan and distribution box. The fan is powered by an included photo-voltaic cell that is mounted high on the outside of the dome. The duct is one of the locally purchased items.

Water Tank:

The main thermal mass of the Growing Dome is a large vesica pisces (elliptical) shaped water tank for the 12'-26' domes. This is an oval tank similar to an above ground swimming pool. However, round tanks are standard for the larger domes (33'-51') and can be substituted by 2 oval tanks upon request. Pre-drilled brackets, hardware, & pool liner are provided by Growing Spaces. Locally purchased items include sheet metal and some oversized pieces of lumber to complete the tank.

Dome Size	Dimensions	Volume	Sq. Ft.
12'	7'x3'x4'	400 Gallons	15'
15'	9'x3'6"x4'	600 Gallons	25'
18'	9'x4'x4'	700 Gallons	30'
22'	12'x4'6"x4'	900 Gallons	35'
26'	13'x5'6"x4'	1200 Gallons	45'
33'	11' Circular	2300 Gallons	75'
42'	Custom	Custom	Custom
51'	Custom	Custom	Custom

Don't think of it as taking up space ... it can be used as an indoor pond to grow aquatic plants and fish and is a critical feature of the domes passive solar design! Ask us about our solar waterfall option!

Items Supplied by Owner

The Growing Dome is purchased as a kit and is designed to be owner installed. However, there are items that are very costly to ship and inexpensively available at your local building supply store. These items are not included in the kit; doing so lowers the overall cost for the dome owner. A detailed list of these items with measurements and quantity will be provided along with the installation package you receive from Growing Spaces.

Some of these locally purchased items include: the undersoil temperature management system ducts, perimeter and wall insulation, sand, 3/4 inch washed gravel for Growing Dome perimeter, sheet metal** and lumber for the water tank.

Below is an estimate of the cost of the above items, but they can vary according to local suppliers:

Dome Size	Est. Cost
12'	$550
15'	$550
18'	$600
22'	$700
26'	$900
33'	$1200
42'	$1600
51'	$1700

^**The sheet metal can be found at a heating & air conditioning or sheet metal supply store.

Installation Options

• Complete Owner Installation
• Complete Growing Spaces Installation
• Growing Spaces Supervisor will assist your local crew

Please see the installation page for more information on each of these options.

Shipping

Once you purchase your Growing Dome it can be delivered to you in the following ways depending on your location. We are located in Pagosa Springs, Colorado so the dome will always be shipped, delivered or picked up from our shop.

The overall cost of the Dome Greenhouse Kit does not include shipping or crating. We can provide you with personal shipping quote to your location.  

• Shipping by Freight: We use several different freight companies to ship all over the country and internationally, but can assure you with our discounted pricing that we'll get you the best rate possible! These quotes vary greatly depending on dome size and your location so call or email us for a personalized quote.
  • Crating costs also apply when the domes are shipped. International crates cost a little more due to the special lumber that has to be used to construct them.

    Dome Size	USA Crating Cost	International Crating Cost
    12'	$150	$185
    15'	$165	$190
    18'	$195	$210
    22'	$175	$195
    26'	$195	$225
    33'	$290	$350
    42'	$395	$395
    51'	Varies	Varies

    
    **Freight costs can change often due to fuel surcharges so please keep in mind that estimates are just that ... an estimate!
    
    
• Delivered by Growing Spaces: When Growing Spaces is hired to build your dome, most of the time we will deliver the dome ourselves. If a supervisor is hired we will compare the cost of shipping the dome to you and flying a supervisor out VS. the supervisor delivering the dome themselves. We will also deliver domes within 300 miles of Pagosa Springs if our per mile rate is better than the cost of shipping it to you by freight.
  
  
• Customer Pick up: You are welcome to pick the dome up yourself of course. Most of our Greenhouse Kits fit in the back of a standard sized pick-up truck. However, the larger domes may require a trailer, but we are always happy to advise depending on your situation.

More details on our Hobby Greenhouse Kits

Seven Features of our Hobby Greenhouses : There are seven features of the Growing Dome when combined set it apart from all other Hobby Greenhouses and make it possible to grow during all four seasons!

8 different Sizes: Choose from our 8 sizes of Hobby Greenhouse kits to insure that is right for your interests and needs.

Compare to other greenhouses: Compare our Hobby Greenhouse kits to others on the market and you'll find that ours not only costs less per square foot, but they are designed to grow during all four seasons, not true with the typical Hobby Greenhouses.