Moss on dome

[Erfus]

I live in the Pacific Northwest and would like to have a dome in the woods with a vibrant moss growing on it. Would this cause any problems inside the dome?

[Cloud Hidden]

No, no interior problems. You'd need to be extra careful with the waterproof coating though, so that it wouldn't degrade in a long, long time. That means not using any acrylic, because the constant moisture would dissolve it. Probably need a polyurea with extra coats, and then something over that that will be a good base for the moss.

[Erfus]

Thanks. I may be over glorifying the reliability of moss to survive on such a large surface. Size would present problems such as patchy growth making it look more like a plauge. At least it could be removed quite easily if it wasn't matching what I had in mind. I read that blending moss with buttermilk and then using a spray bottle makes it proliferate on concrete or rocks. I'm testing this method. I also was imagining a large mossless area that begins wide and slowly narrows circling to the top of the dome . This idea came to my mind because domes in a rain forest area remind me of that massive turtles shell in the movie "the never ending story".

I also was having a structural idea for the outer surface. Can the outer dome shell be shaped with either 2 or 3 wave like ridged troughs? (with drain holes) Possibly a wavey surface. The way that the waves are before they break. Small continous humps (ridge rings) rolling to the top of the dome. This may even allow you to climb up the side of the dome. In the case of three ridges, each successive ridge could host a variety of plants such as ferns etc. This might work to camaflouge the dome well and be quite interesting, but is it possible?

Another idea would be a single sloped ridge that circles up to the top of the dome that catches the rain and creates a small river. This could collect a good amont of water if I captured it at the bottom. Are ridges of concrete on the outer shell possible?

[Cloud Hidden]

The effects you describe could be created, but would entail a lot of labor. The air form wouldn't inflate with the shapes mentioned, but you could achieve them with ferrocement techniques and sweat.