Man to 3D Print a 2-story home using a RepRap-like 3D Printer

Andrey Rudenko is setting out to 3D print a 2-story home in Minnesota, using a 3D printer that he has constructed. It prints using a cement mix, and Rudenko plans on starting construction of the home this summer. Once the home is complete, he will set his sites on an even more complicated project.

It's really very fascinating, the examples he has shown are amazing. Read the article and check out the video/photos at http://3dprint.com/2471/3d-printed-home-in-minnesota/

http://3dprint.com/wp-content/upload...home_wall2.jpg

Is this the same person who had part of a building at the convention in NYC?

No, that was Ioan Floria. He's the guy that made the 3D Printed car from liquid metal.

This is a completely different guy who seems to be doing a great job so far. I can't wait until this summer, so we can see this thing printed!

Eddie

This is really good quality for a cement printer. If he succeeds he could make a ton of money reselling his printers or even opening up a construction business. The chinese 3d printed homes were very ugly and bad quality. This looks a lot better.

Just in case anyone wants to build a 3D printer that size (or anything larger than normal), Andrey is using these 4 amp, 50 volt open source stepper drivers:
http://www.ecomorder.com/techref/ecomprice.asp?p=416074
Which work with the standard RAMPs/Marlin or other 3D printer controllers.

Thanks for sharing James. Andrey mentioned you in my talks with him :)
Eddie

It'll be interesting to see this thing progress. I'm looking forward to seeing the end results if he ends up getting the permits needed to build this thing. I wonder how he will go about doing that.

Here is a bit of an update. Here is Rudenko's latest test print. Pretty cool.
http://forums.reprap.org/addon.php?1...2FDSCN8780.JPGhttp://forums.reprap.org/addon.php?1...2FDSCN8774.JPG

I notice there is next to no reinforcing material inside these walls, which seems very unwise. This guy might be printing more visually impressive rooms, but they seems a bit less stable than the ones being printed in China. Is the sparse rebar in the first image really enough reinforcement for a wall?

Also, I notice some overhangs, which is impressive, I wonder how much overhang this concrete is capable of. (Looks like about half an inch per layer?)

Really enjoyed and felt excited when reading through the articles and watching the video.

I was just wondering how did Andrey go with figuring out the quantities of concrete required. Obviously, it is quite hard to figure out the volume given that they are printed in layers and in complex shape.

Also, I have noticed that there are no columns at all, so does it means that the printed structure is sufficiently stable? Really curious about it. :)