GalaxyHut Shade structure

Ideas, advice, tips, and tricks regarding shelter, shade, tents, and camping. Yes, this includes RV's too.
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galaxybeing
Posts: 30
Joined: Wed Sep 10, 2003 12:08 pm
Burning Since: 2001
Camp Name: Opulent Temple
Location: Chicago
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GalaxyHut Shade structure

Post by galaxybeing » Sat Jul 05, 2014 11:09 pm

For anyone who is looking for a shade structure to build that's fairly inexpensive and doesn't require a lot of tools or skill, I made some modifications to the original monkey hut design to make it wider and taller and solve some of the problems that it had. I have posted the instructions and photos here: http://galaxybeing.com/galaxyhut/.

I have taken the larger "Advanced Galaxy 20' x 14' Hut" to the burn 3 times and it worked great. Held up in heavy winds without teardropping and we only had a fine layer of dust on our stuff. Not pretty but very functional. I have an RV now and so I just put up my Galaxy Hut and modified tent for sale on Craigslist.

I've gone to the burn 10 years now, and the first time 2 times I took a little camping tent and roasted each morning at 10 after staying out till 4-5am and by the end of the week my sleeping bag was filled with dust. My goal? After a night of dancing till sunrise to be able to come back to a clean place to sleep to be able to sleep during the day. So next I added just a lean-to tarp. We started covering up the tent mesh, and covering our bedding with a sheet when we were away so when we got back we'd have a nice clean place to sleep. Big difference. Then I added more... tried sun cloth, added a gazebo, until finally I started with the monkey hut style. I never had one of my structures blow down in a wind storm. One time a really bad storm came through and everyone around me had their structures blown down... but not mine. Use 2 foot rebar. Use vice grips to pull them out later. Rope the top corners down tight at 45 degrees, especially the SW where the wind usually comes. Add extra ropes and rebar. When a storm comes up it starts whacking everything back and forth and in all directions and all your rigging will change . The ropes will get lose. Go out there and tighten them again. If it looks like something is getting a lot of stress, pound in another stake and add another rope. Well, after 10 years, lots of Ambien, ear plugs, finally getting the sun completely blocked... I still can't sleep during the day, dammit! There's just too much energy going on there I guess. :)

I mentioned I just put up my Galaxy Hut and modified tent for sale on Craigslist. Last year I created a large scale Honorarium art installation called "Star Stuff" and I'm trying to raise enough funds to bring it back again this year, or at least half of it. I tried raising funds last year on Indiegogo. I raised most from family and friends, but out of the 70,000 burners who went last year, I think i only got donations from... 3. About $30. And I think 2 of them were other artist also raising money and just being supportive :wink: But I did get a lot of hugs at the event and heard a lot of "that's awesome". I enjoyed giving something back for all the great art I've enjoyed over the years. The folks that had agreed to help me setup ... the "100% committed" and "I'm a hard worker" and the "I want to be and ARTIST!" types unfortunately turned out to be flakes and I wound up doing most of the work it myself. :( I was so exhausted and in pain I didn't enjoy the week at all. And in the middle of the week at 1am I stop to get a hard earned Mocha at Center Camp and come out to find my bike missing! But there, about 15 yards away I see blinky lights on the ground that look like my bike. It is my bike! I had a cable lock on it and someone didn't see it and took off on my bike and it got all wrapped around the real axle and they just dropped it and... probably stole another bike. My bike was fine. Always lock your bike, ESPECIALLY at Center Camp. And especially if you need your bike to carry your bike trailer out to your art installation everyday to maintain it. I'm hoping this year I can get some honest, reliable, hardworking people to volunteer to help me (hint, hint) setup. Ok, well, I guess I've gone off topic a bit so... what was this topic about? Oh, yeah...

Here's what the GalaxyHut looks like. And if anyone over the years has built one from my plans I'd love it if you would send me pics or tell me how it worked our for you!

Image

Rilopie
Posts: 74
Joined: Sat Sep 11, 2010 10:18 pm
Burning Since: 2008
Location: Sacramento

Re: GalaxyHut Shade structure

Post by Rilopie » Thu Jul 10, 2014 11:42 am

Thank you so much for posting this! My boyfriend and I have a larger Coleman tent that is too big to fit under the standard monkey hut. This looks like it would be perfect for us to build! Where did you get the sun blocker tarp?

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