This group project is a case study of Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion bathroom. The patented bathroom was formed from one prefabricated piece made of metal, which inherently made the system more efficient. The drawing represents the chronological order from section cut, to pointillism, to structurally insulated panel. The section cut displays the physical structure whereas pointilism shows the thermal properties of a section. The increasing amount of points shows where heat is prevalent. Panels are created to follow point density.

Pointilism section (top right) of the Dymaxion bathroom shows the density in heat transfer of pipes and the overhead lamp. The model section (bottom) is made of wood to understand the properties of wax when placed in different water temperatures. Hot water temperatures expanded the wax, creating wide cavities. Cooler water created thin wax cavities. We looked at cavities as a possible paneling system.

A diagrammatic analysis of the wax cavities shows the ramifications of temperature properties. Each wax cavity made a unique piece that was later copied into a clay molding. Silicon pouring into the clay gave us mass replication of the cavities to form the panels.

Panels were created with expanding foam. Removing silicon displayed the cavities and exactly where heat transferred in the Dymaxion bathroom. The wider the cavity, the hotter the area. Eleven panels are fixed against oriented strand board. The drawing to the right is a scan of all physical panels together, standing at eight feet tall and four feet wide.