How to Make a Brick Dome

Preparation

• 1

  Ensure the foundation of your brick dome is strong enough to support the structure. Use concrete slabs placed in a rectangular shape to add to the strength of the foundation.

• 2

  Use an extending ruler to measure the circumference of the site on which you plan to build the brick dome.

• 3

  Tie a piece of chalk and a nail to opposite ends of the string, and adjust the string so that it is half the length of the measurement you took earlier. Hammer the nail into the center of the building site, and use the stringed chalk to draw a neat circle.

• 4

  Mix mortar with water in a wheelbarrow until it takes on the form of a thick paste.

Construction

• 5

  Use the trough to place mortar along the circle you have drawn on the building site.

• 6

  Butter a few uncut bricks with mortar, and lay them along the circle of mortar.

• 7

  Use a rubber mallet or your trough to gently tap the bricks into position.

• 8

  Repeat steps 1 to 3 (of this section) with bricks cut at an angle until you reach a point where no more bricks can be placed to extend the structure. Your structure will be in the form of a topless dome at this point.

• 9

  Place a hard aluminum sheet on top of the brick dome. Press it until it acquires the shape of the cavity. Remove the mold from the cavity, and fill it with slightly hardened mortar. Allow the mortar to set and solidify. Remove the solid mortar from the mold, and butter the lower sides with mortar paste. Place it on top of the structure, and gently tap it into place to complete your brick dome.

Finishing touches

• 10

  Mix half a gallon of muriatic acid with two gallons of water.

• 11

  Dip an acid brush into the solution, and gently scrape away the excess mortar from the exterior.

• 12

  Repeat the exercise to clean away the excess mortar from the inside.

• 13

  Wash the structure down with water after you have scraped away the excess mortar.

• 14

  Use a hard bristle brush to scrape away the hardened mortar that the muriatic acid does not remove.