Hexayurt with sleeping wings

[ProfessorChaos]

So... need some advice whether or not I am biting off more than I can chew (or even need/want) for this year in regards to a large hexayurt.

In the past I have completely gutted (literally just the shell and some plumbing) and rebuilt an entire RV from the ground up for LIB/motorcycle trackdays in SoCal. I am NOT doing that again. Ever. No, I don't have the RV still. In my mind... this hexayurt thing should be a cakewalk *famous last words*.I feel like RVing it pretty much counts as cheating anyhow.

We are going to rent a uhaul trailer in Seattle and make a hexahurt to bring down to the burn. Our friends are meeting us later in the week, coming from SoCal, so it is our job to build/bring the hexayurt and cooling system. We are going to do the 13' option with two 4'x8' wings to sleep in. This bad boy is going to be huuuuge. We will only have 4 of us staying in it in total and only the two of us for most of the week. Possibly a 5th if she can find a ticket (I'm sure she will). Below I put up pics of my 1/12th scale model. Simple enough construction... right?

Going for the short and wide version of this


this is my scale model


Another shot of the scale model



Questions I have for the hexayurt vets out there:

1. Do I need this much room? Do I even need/want to add the sleeping wings if we are doing the large scale model?
2. Has anyone added the wings before? If so, did you have any issues keeping them up?
3. I am thinking I am going to use 1/2" board for it rather than 1". Everyone says no real reason to use 1" but I would HATE to make a mistake that made me pay for another full set of boards.
4. Do you think one swamp cooler running off a deep cycle marine battery will be enough to cool this bad boy?
5. Any other experience/ words of wisdom.

Thanks and see you all on the playa
~Namaste~

[GreyCoyote]

From an engineers viewpoint, that variant is a bit of a nightmare. It retains none of the good aspects of the original yurt, and turns it into a structure that is weaker and tangles with the wind a bunch more.

Personally, I would look at other options. Not trying to piss on your plans, its just I would hate to see you doing an impromptu imitation of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz.

Suggestions: look at a monkey hut, regular hexayurt, or (my favorite) a dome.

Welcome to eplaya!

[ProfessorChaos]

Thanks man! I was super active in race forums for a long time. This is like being back at home, just trading engine dynos and tire compound discussions with swamp coolers and heayurt plans.

When you say "that variation" are you talking about the short and fat hexayurt or the additional wings on the outside?

[GreyCoyote]

Mostly the wings. The core yurt is good, once you take the Frisbee Factor off the ends.

And btw it looks like we share roots! Did you prefer straight, left turns, or both directions?

Psst: The sEkRiT playa word is "domes". Really-really. Mondo space. Uber strong. You will have many friends when the winds come howling!

www.desertdomes.com
www.simplydifferently.org

[Captain Goddammit]

Just popping in to say hi, I'm in Seattle, long time burner, and I speak "hot rod" fluently!
There are several other burners here who have mechanical roots... It's a perfect background for Mutant Vehicle building. If you're a gearhead I think you'll find more to like about Burning Man than you thought!

[GreyCoyote]

Professor: pay no mind to the Captain. He has been repeatedly spotted commanding a boat in the middle of the high desert. (I will tell you in confidence there is some concern his elevator may not go to the top floors!)

[ProfessorChaos]

GreyCoyote- two wheels, turns both directions. competed for a few years. got out when I realized I wanted to be able to walk at 30. Crazy how similar personality types seem to flock to events like this. I am so excited for the challenge ahead. Funds for a mutant vehicle arent really in my budget this year but I see this becoming an annual and would love to make one in the future.

Captain- Ay Aye sir! Love to see the PNW represented on here. I just relocated back to my home up here after hyadis in SoCal. I will definitely be looking for your ship on the playa. The prep is so exciting to me. I love to build and create- this seems like a perfect fit for me

[theCryptofishist]

When you say "wings" I have got to worry about whether or not there will be a butler.

[theCryptofishist]

[media]

[burner von braun]

...
3. I am thinking I am going to use 1/2" board for it rather than 1". Everyone says no real reason to use 1" but I would HATE to make a mistake that made me pay for another full set of boards.

Welcome ProfessorChaos!

I would strongly suggest staying with the full 1" boards, made of polyisocyanurate, such as R-Max, Tuff-R, or Super Tuff-R. One of these years, we're going to experience the return of some seriously strong wind on playa during the event. Overbuild your stuff and secure it mightily. There's a great hexayurt thread around here somewhere with tons of good ideas and advice, definitely a worthwhile read if you haven't found it already.

I hope you have a great burn!

[ProfessorChaos]

[media]

I'm going to emerge from my hexayurt in a full tuxedo one morning with this playing. A team of butlers, also fully uniformed, will be there to present my breakfast at a dust covered table with the finest silver serve ware. As the top is lifted off, four pieces of bacon, delectably dust covered, will be presented. I will them eat them as fancy as can be.

[GreyCoyote]

Prof: make sure to keep that pinky-finger up while eating

[Captain Goddammit]

Hell I wear a suit and tie at Burning Man all the time. And cook fancy breakfast too.
This is the wrong camping trip to camp crudely like you were pitching a tent at a KOA!

[maladroit]

Just chiming in to agree that 1/2" board is too weak. One vertical face could be experiencing over a ton of wind load at times.

I built a standard H12 hexayurt using 2" side walls and 1-1/2" roof panels, and still felt like I needed to be careful with it during taping and construction. I'd be afraid of snapping a 1/2" wall like a graham cracker just getting it from the store to my trailer.

[ProfessorChaos]

Just chiming in to agree that 1/2" board is too weak. One vertical face could be experiencing over a ton of wind load at times.

I built a standard H12 hexayurt using 2" side walls and 1-1/2" roof panels, and still felt like I needed to be careful with it during taping and construction. I'd be afraid of snapping a 1/2" wall like a graham cracker just getting it from the store to my trailer.

Awesome. Thanks so much. We are going to doing the thicker ones like everyone said. Def worth the extra $$ to not be left shelterless on the playa.

[Wrath]

Do I need this much room?

You could get away without the wings with four or five people, although it might start getting tight after four. Are any of you sleeping together? Things could get interesting if one of you brings home a stranger.

Do you think one swamp cooler running off a deep cycle marine battery will be enough

Yes, if it can move 600+ cubic feet per minute.

[watchyourfeet]

Last year I camped near a group that brought a hexyurt with 4 or 5 sleeping wings, made out of 1" r-max. They built it extremely well and were very smart with their anchors and I thought it felt as solid as any other shade/sleeping structure I saw out there. They actually told me to try and break it. I didn't, but I did watch it very closely during the highest winds we saw last year, and it was really impressed. My camp is actually planning on doing something similar this year if we can ever get our act together.

Point is, think about how you're going to anchor it down and keep the wings attached to the core yurt. Consider ever scenario, wind speed/direction, drunk people stumbling into it, etc, and it should be fine.

As far as how much space you need, that will depend on what you're gonna be doing in there

[LowePro]

1 swamp cooler should be enough, as long as you get the correct fan model and pump as specified in Figjam's excellent thread. My campmates who used different fans did not have the coldness my "official" Figjam spec'd model. And the hexayurt has to have a vent for the swamp cooler to function properly. A yurt sealed tight will not cool very well--this may be counter-intuitive based on how a normal AirCond or a Refrigerator works, but the Swamp Cooler operates on a different principle. There's a detailed thread on this somewhere and how to build the optimal vent while minimizing dust re-entry---Something about hanging a vent pipe inside the yurt roof. Campmates who didn't put in a vent regretted not having one for foul smells and general ventilation as well.

[ProfessorChaos]

1 swamp cooler should be enough, as long as you get the correct fan model and pump as specified in Figjam's excellent thread. My campmates who used different fans did not have the coldness my "official" Figjam spec'd model. And the hexayurt has to have a vent for the swamp cooler to function properly. A yurt sealed tight will not cool very well--this may be counter-intuitive based on how a normal AirCond or a Refrigerator works, but the Swamp Cooler operates on a different principle. There's a detailed thread on this somewhere and how to build the optimal vent while minimizing dust re-entry---Something about hanging a vent pipe inside the yurt roof. Campmates who didn't put in a vent regretted not having one for foul smells and general ventilation as well.

Hey there fancy pants....you have my attention. Forget the wings, can anyone find this thread? Should the swamp cooler be inside or outside and how do I place a vent in this thing????

[maladroit]

Hey there fancy pants....you have my attention. Forget the wings, can anyone find this thread? Should the swamp cooler be inside or outside and how do I place a vent in this thing????

Haha, there's a whole subforum for Keeping Cool...the thread you want is the big one, near the top.
viewforum.php?f=280

[ProfessorChaos]

Last year I camped near a group that brought a hexyurt with 4 or 5 sleeping wings, made out of 1" r-max. They built it extremely well and were very smart with their anchors and I thought it felt as solid as any other shade/sleeping structure I saw out there. They actually told me to try and break it. I didn't, but I did watch it very closely during the highest winds we saw last year, and it was really impressed. My camp is actually planning on doing something similar this year if we can ever get our act together.

Point is, think about how you're going to anchor it down and keep the wings attached to the core yurt. Consider ever scenario, wind speed/direction, drunk people stumbling into it, etc, and it should be fine.

As far as how much space you need, that will depend on what you're gonna be doing in there

So glad to hear someone with a good experience with this type of yurt!!!! Since this is my virgin burn I am going to stick with the proven methods and branch out from there. So much to figure out already... I'm going to K.I.S.S. and hope for the best.

[FIGJAM]

Page 82 of the cooler thread has the latest recap.

[ProfessorChaos]

Page 82 of the cooler thread has the latest recap.

Damn FIGJAM !!! You are a ninja! Thanks a million!!!