I think a lot of people might be looking at the texture and thinking "meh", but it looks like it'd be really easy to give the outside a skimcoat and make it really smooth and nice looking, or even skimcoat it with a texture, or heck, a block pattern.

There's an article about a 3d printed house today. Apparently it's cutting edge, I saw it first here years ago

I did not read all the comments, but many are concerned there is'nt any rebar and so it is not strong. Concrete can be made incredibly strong with additives. When special glue is added it is now "polymerConcrete". There are even tinny little fibers you can add that do work like a rebar. It could be a whole lot stronger then you think.

Now I can print and live in a GIANT SHOE!!! just like the little old lady!

Is it pretty quiet compared to normal construction? One could use this type of printer to make cob or maybe adobe houses, too. Seems like it all comes down to the right consistency of extruded material.

You wouldn't download a castle...

What I like about this is that it's so modular. You just print out the different pieces and put them together.

"would u download a car" we're so close guys so close

My son and I recently got a 3D Printer, The Micro3D, and he asked "is anyone building a house with a 3D printer?" so I found you and then found this video...simply amazing!! I can't even begin to imagine the engineering that went into scaling up a 3D printer not to mention the trial and error, well done! I hope to see this in a playground near us or the finished houses in a community near us!!

Wonderful work. I think 3d printing is the future of architecture and construction of all sorts. Even if some things can be too big or complicated to print in one piece, you can just print separate modules and put them together. Seriously, the possibilities are unlimited.

I would like a 3D printed Smurf house for my grandson. (And me) lol.

The implications of this are staggering.

you could add another head that installs steel rods into each layer bonding each layer as each layer is formed also this leaves a awesome finish for plastering over i dont see why people are complaining you have to plaster the outside and inside of most concrete buildings anyway

That's pretty incredible! Great work!

Genius. What a beautiful, long list of possibilities I can see for this !!! The prefab company near me sells over a dozen concrete and wood frame buildings, most for businesses, per month. They also work with the Styrofoam block, ( ICF ?) poured concrete forms. About a dozen years ago they built/assembled a fantastic 3 story 18,900 sq.ft. factory building for a company near Pittsburgh that cost less to heat and cool than I pay for climate control of my 3 bedroom house. Stronger, more efficient and lower insurance costs as well !

Fiber reinforcement between the layers would make this technology compelling. Reusable support material would be pretty cool too. Maybe a PE or PP in a PU foam slurry.

Show the whole machine!

I would like to see more of the printer, how the extruder works, etc.

good work Rudenko. Hope for the best with your invention

This makes a lot more sense to me than all this hype about 3d-printed cars/guns/hearts etc, basically because we already build in homogeneous materials such as concrete.

Very cool concept! I'm impressed that you've figured out the consistency and degree of over-vertical curves that can be poured. I do have a couple questions regarding this though: first, have you considered how steel or fibreglass reinforcement could be integrated into pouring with the printer. And second, how does curing time affect the rate of pouring or is the pouring time consuming enough that a constant pour can be achieved? Thanks! I'm super interested to see what can be done with this piece of tech!

This is absolutely amazing.

Could do with an articulated arm same as mx3d and perhaps fibreglass or steel reinforced somehow, perhaps by applying fiberglass on top or as a projected plaster layer. if you feed a continuous cloth of steel in there it could be controlleable?

This CAD program is easy to use. What that castle is missing is the reinforcement( the metal studs) it won’t last like that

I think he could incorporate reinforcements of metal to strengthen it, and lift it with a crane. He could also add fiberglass to the mix for strength. An inner and outer wall would leave space to insulate, and run the wiring and plumbing. There is an additive for moisture barrier.

Awesome! I wonder though if concrete is the best material for a 3D printed home in terms of strength to weight ratio? Since you have the option of a heated extruder, what about a wood fiber reinforced resin? Also, have you looked into the tiny house movement to build a livable prototype? If you build it on top of a large flatbed trailer with wheels as a base, then it's not subject to building codes.

Crushing concrete castle with hydraulic press

Famtastic job. I wonder though how well the layers stand up if they are put under stress, will the layers slide apart. Seen in the last few seconds of the Vid one of the parts being moved so looks solid enough. I just get the feeling that if you had somethig running from one layer into the other it would make it much much stronger.

Congratulations on such a great idea man ! .............

if I'm not mistaken this was based off a reprap printer but would still love to see the full plans on how to build one

Brilliant machine. Brilliant results. Kudos.

Had you considered adding dyes to the mix to change the color? Did you fill the space in between the inner and outer walls? I think a spray foam would work well to add some insulation value to the walls. Thank you for sharing.

The potential for this is astounding. The reinforcement will have to be figured out but I see this being used to make low cost housing.

Guy: I built a castle with a 3D printer Land lord: o-o ...................... oh

What a great idea ! A couple of years ago I was at a machinery auction , because thats where we buy most of the machines for my shop . There where a row of X Y Z welding robots that went for next to nothing , complete with power supplies and computers , I was sad to think they were going to go for scap metal , but I couldnt think of anything I could use them for , I badly wanted to rescue them . Some one like you could turn them back into gold . I noticed you leave a space between the walls , I take it that that could later be line pumped , and a heavy mess inserted , then theyd be similar in strength to concrete culvert ?

Print dome houses that have multiple applications for both above and below ground. With concrete thats Hydrolitic. With fiber optic cables to bring in sun light and for power for them and to heat water. All self contained.

amazing that they built it by hand too. hauling up those turrets. wow.

Making buildings using computer controlled extruded concrete actually isn't a new idea at all. This only shows that this kind of technology is becoming so common that its within the reach of the hobbyist.

How many layers can you do at a time for the castle roof without falling in on itself?

In case of clay plus baker - he could create reinforced walls on the fly. Also. He could use metallic chunks in the mass to get reinforcing too. Also. What doesn"t let to put a wire with fixators in the concreate mass right after the extruder and fold it the way it needs.

Amazing work, I’m sure it’s strong enough the guys obviously put a lot of thought into it

This is in Shoreview? Holy crap, I live like 15 or 20 minutes from there. Minnesota represent!

I wonder if you had some sort of flap on the side of the nozzle hanging down if you could smooth the layer lines at the same time...

I love how ingenious this engineer is to design a massive 3D concrete printer and know nothing about employing a crane to hoist his creations into place. Should make that his next pet project.

Have you considered building plumbing into the walls to decrease production time? I'm currently in the process of building a desktop 3D printer do you have any tips about programming the printer? What kind of control process are you using?

that's amazing! now you need foundations and some reinforcement, great work 👍

Well... how do you rebar it tho? Concrete is perfect for heavy compression projects but the tensile strength is really very poor. (in non leymans terms: Its great as a pillar but cant be used unsupported for longer stretches without serious breakage. Like a 5 meter span between two pillars would make a 20cm thick concrete floor break very easily).

Ants and termites use a similar way to construct their buildings

Great design! What would you say the cost ran you per square foot?

Pretty kool... I've spent alot of time reading up on this and tha mix so far they use is harder, stronger, drys faster then any other mix,. Pretty must makes straight stone was dry and how it's done, reinforcements are not needed... But time will tell if it holds true.

Can't believe how amazing this is!!

Homeless shelters. Low Cost Housing. Disaster zones. The possibilities are endless.

I wouldn't mind living in a 3-d printed house. Some of the Apis Cor models looks nice as hell. They're fire resistant, storm resistant, even bullet resistant for some of you living in Chicago. While they might not be good for redecoration, if all you care about is stable living conditions, it's a perfect choice.

This is amazing - the way forward.

Very impressive and awesome. A true inspiration of creativity

You could go to a site build a whole complex then bury it. Even print holding tanks for fresh water an waste water. To have a system to recycle the water used. To support a certain number of people.

That is mind blowing. He built that machine from scratch! The applications are endless!!!

Awesome Andrey, tnx for sharing it with the world....!!!

very cool stuff. I'm wondering if there would be a way to incorporate rebar though. Without it, I feel like the structure wouldn't last as long

all together built that various building

This is cool. Without any kind of reinforcement such as rebar I can see this cracking due to weather. Maybe some kind of fibers are mixed with the cement?

Absolutely incredible, Bravo.

Try using foamcreate, by mixing Drexal foam with concrete. It comes out very light, in fact it floats in water once hardened. 3 times the insulation as concrete and it's even stronger! Plus with each bag of concrete it doubles the batch. Look up KZfaq: Air Crete Dome Homes. MUST LOOK UP VIDEO, IT WOULD CHANGE THE OUTCOME OF THE CURRENT PROJECT TO MAKE IT ECONOMICAL.

You need a 3D brick setting machine to follow behind it LOL

Your technology is 100% similar to that being use by WINSUN construction company based in Shanghai, China. But they (WINSUN) are a 3D construction specialist for more some time now. Its good to find a fellow American can do the same and practically build it for similar cause using less money and less labor. God job!

Wouldn't squared off or shaped nozzles give a better exterior finish? Or a following rubber blade to spread the bead out more? I actually invented this in my head 30 years ago.

how do you know if the structure is sustainable and can resist light earthquakes or other situations..how do you test the designs before you print them?

Just mix in some fiberglass and it's reinforced. Also it would be cool to have a moat around it and a small draw bridge. No crocks though.

Can I make one of those with Ramps 1.4? I could really use a new Garden Gnome or two...

it probably wouldn't be too difficult adapting reinforcements you could just change the printing patterns maybe make a different tip pour easier might not even have to change the consistency of the concrete

looks Very smooth

Great prototyping! May as well print a winch and tackle while your at it...Hate to sprain a back on one of your neighbors there.

It will probably outlast his wood frame home by many decades, if not centuries.

The dudes a genius because he made it real. He'll figure out the rebar just like he figured out the rest.

wow man that is awesome to say the least, how long did it take to get the mix right? You sir are a genius. Good luck in the future with your designs. Amazing...

Andrey Rudenko. Ignore the naysayers. You are the one with the intellect and gumption to actually make it work. This kind of process is still in it's infant stage, so whatever you build with it should be considered R&D. You should be thanked instead of criticized. Whoever says it will not work without rebar is wrong. One example is a dome, whether it be geodesically self supporting or a simple dome-top earth and mud hovel. There are rudimentary mud hovels in Europe that are still standing after some 1,000 years. (I'm not well learned in European history, so I could be way off the mark in terms of the age of those mud huts).

That is so cool. But in the town we live in the city would shut you down, they would say it don't follow building codes. And before you can do any thing like that they want a lot of money for a building permit. Coal Valley IL. sucks.

You know, I didn't see any form of steel reinforcement, and it looked like mix had zero rock in it too. Infact, the mix looked like it was a grout or mortar type mix that was really dry. What would the tensile strength of that be compared to regular old concrete poured with steel reinforcement in it?

All these armchair civil engineers out in the comments smh

Just another thought on the uses for a device like this.... 3D printing has opened a lot of doors previously unavailable because of how finely it can create structures, not just the macro structure of the wall, but build a wall with an internal structure, say of triangles, polygons, etc. What do you think the possibility is of devising an internal structure to walls that can create equal or greater strength, while greatly reducing the amount of raw material used?

You know what this could really use? Some modular parts that the concrete could be poured into to give them a nice smooth look; it wouldn't even need to be all that hard, and could be made out of anything from metal to plastic. Now i wonder where you could get some of those from~

Lol a construction crew just shows up to start stacking. Not much tools required. So much potential!

This is awesome! I'm curious about two things: Does the printer mix its own cement as needed, or do you have to keep mixing and climbing ladders to refill it? Also, as the "wet" layers build up, have you had any issues with the added weight overwhelming the not-yet-cured cement's ability to support it? Like having to dynamically slow down the printing process to allow the previous layers time to solidify before adding more layers?

lets videotape the telly!

There appears to be open trenches on the top. Is there a drainage system built into the design to address that. Also, I'm curious how expansion and contraction will affect all those seams after a few cycles of frost

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Problem - previous layer is not set up before next layer goes on and if concrete is mixed to set fast - it will set inside the machine. Solution - extruder also "SQUIRTS" a line of hardener that will initiate the concrete's setting reaction. Please let everyone know if this is already a part of the technology. Thank you so much for your work. Harold

Could you make one that looks like the Boldt Castle Power house that's in Thousand Island NY? Like a replica?

Andrey Dziękuję że ulepszyłeś technologię budownictwa. Jaro

Now all you need is the Karate Kid to sand left, sand right, but maybe in another 50 years they make them as smooth as a terrazzo floor at Hoover Dam?

Even more accurate than a prusa ...

Simply awesome man!

This is cool as heck.

Love it! Great job!

Add some mica flake to the outside mix! Or color powder!

Would love to have this build one in my backyard for my daughters

Should just smooth on a final skin of concrete over the outside to hide the layers and make it look cohesive.

how much did this printer cost to build?

How would they accommodate bricks? Where is the basement? How are the pieces held in place?

Next step for prepers like the zombie apocoleps