Securing Shade Structure, Among Other Questions

[s_ting]

Hello again all!

Everyone was incredibly helpful in my original thread last year, and I wanted to get more opinions as I scramble to work through logistics of a couple remaining things. Apologies for the wall of text to come...

Shade Structure
My boyfriend and I are currently building a shade structure that can be transported via our checked bags on the airplane, and can cover our 9'x8' Kodiak tent. I realize many people say throwing aluminet over the tent works fine for the purpose of gaining extra sleep, but for some reason my boyfriend (who I think really just wanted to build something) wanted to go bigger and have an actual shade structure so we can hang out during the day. I have some questions, and any insight would be greatly appreciated. I tried to run a search but couldn't find anything specific to our situation.

We are currently building something similar to the tensegrity shade structure. We have replaced the wood beams with PVC pipes and are transporting them in a checked speaker bag. The wood beams in the original structure are 8' long and we cut the PVC pipes into two sections of 4' so that it can fit in the speaker bag, and telescoped a section over it with screws and a washer to secure it. Picture below since I suck with words...



Anyway, so there's that. We have three 8' sections of PVC pipe to hold up a large shade cloth, which will be secured with zip lines to the rope. I realize our shade cloth is not triangular so there will be some weird flaps at the top, but hoping to clip them back or something so they don't flap in the wind. The cloth will cover just the top and the side facing the sun so that we can get some more sleep in the mornings. We bought truck rope that will run through the holes that are drilled into the bottom of the PVC pipes as seen in the picture above, and will be staked down as guy lines.

Now my first and biggest question... Should we use rebar to stake down the lines? I really wanted to avoid use of rebar because it seems so painful, but my boyfriend thinks we'll be able to bend rebar into the candy cane top *just* by using leverage from an extra PVC pipe that we have, and that it won't be *that* hard to pound into the playa. There are six points where the lines will be staked down. I have extra 12" military stakes, but according to the original post I will be a sad panda if I try to use tent stakes. Should we play it safe and use 3' rebar? Any other suggestions? I know FIGJAM's lag screw method is highly recommended, but I admit I haven't researched it enough yet at this point. We're also going to be a bit limited on the tools we can bring on the plane. So far we just have a 2.5 lb club hammer (dear lord I hope this will be enough to hammer in our military stakes for our tent) and a pocket knife. We'll be getting vise grip pliers and some other small tools, but that is probably the extent of our hardware.

Second question, the footprint of this shade structure is frickin 14' x 14'. We are unfortunately arriving Wednesday evening, and I'm afraid that we won't be able to find enough space unless we're super far out, especially because we're arriving later in the week. Valid concern? Should we just accept that we'll be in the outer ring?

Third and probably the most important question... any thoughts on how to improve our structure / if it will work? We'll obviously be doing a test run before heading out, but we need to cut through 200' of truck rope first this weekend... I am a rather pessimistic and skeptical person (as my boyfriend says, I "do not inspire confidence") and am worried this just won't hold up out on the playa.

Light
Okay, we're gonna have an f-ton of rope running everywhere. Would something like these solar powered lights work if we were to zip tie them to the ropes? Based on other threads, I think we'll be getting some solar powered lawn lamps and duct taping them to the rebar (if we use rebar, in which case if we do we'll put a section of a pool noodle over it) at the six stake points. Any other suggestions for lighting would be awesome.

---

Sorry (again) for such a long-winded post. Thanks in advance for any help and advice! This burgin is clearly feeling a bit overwhelmed right now!

[C.f.M.]

On my "I didn't know how much I needed this until I had it" list:

https://www.niteize.com/product/Reflective-Rope.asp


My new tent lines are this stuff, and it's pretty great - I was surprised at how helpful it was. I don't know if it's sturdy enough, but I plan on bringing some to use for my tent.

I'm also trying to figure out the shade question, with flying!

[s_ting]

On my "I didn't know how much I needed this until I had it" list:

https://www.niteize.com/product/Reflective-Rope.asp


My new tent lines are this stuff, and it's pretty great - I was surprised at how helpful it was. I don't know if it's sturdy enough, but I plan on bringing some to use for my tent.

I'm also trying to figure out the shade question, with flying!

Oh wow, this looks awesome! I totally left camp lighting as one of the last things on my to do list and now I feel like I'm all over the place trying to figure it out.

Flying makes everything such an interesting challenge. We managed to fit the canvas portion of our 9'x8' Kodiak tent, two sleeping bags, our ground tarp, and our two self inflating air mattresses and pillows into one 62", 47 lb duffel bag to be checked. Did a huge victory dance after that feat, but trying to build a shade structure that fits and structurally can work has been a pain!

[LowePro]

You won't be able to bend rebar into candy-canes with a PVC tube. Please if you prove me wrong come back and post how you did it.
Once bent, rebar is not hard to pound into the playa with a mini-sledge hammer. Don't use a rubber mallet or regular hammer tho.

[Chowski]

Those solar lights work okay. They won't give you a crazy amount of light, but they will provide a nice ambient light. Enough that you can see your camp as you walk toward it on the street, and enough that if you wake up ion the middle of the night, you will see everything around you. Think night-light levels of light. My only caution is, those cheapy Chinese lights often don't work. I'd say one out of three or four just never work. So I always bring one more than I think I'll need.

Zip tie or tape the solar panel to the top of your shade structure so they get all-day sun, and if it's a really dusty year, maybe wipe them off once or twice mid-week.

[s_ting]

You won't be able to bend rebar into candy-canes with a PVC tube. Please if you prove me wrong come back and post how you did it.
Once bent, rebar is not hard to pound into the playa with a mini-sledge hammer. Don't use a rubber mallet or regular hammer tho.

I personally was under the impression that heat would be needed. Currently, my boyfriend is thinking of attempting to bend the rebar into candy canes with a PVC pipe and some vise grip pliers. Will definitely let you know if we are able to do it when we try...

Sounds like our mini sledge hammer should work okay then, thank you!

Those solar lights work okay. They won't give you a crazy amount of light, but they will provide a nice ambient light. Enough that you can see your camp as you walk toward it on the street, and enough that if you wake up ion the middle of the night, you will see everything around you. Think night-light levels of light. My only caution is, those cheapy Chinese lights often don't work. I'd say one out of three or four just never work. So I always bring one more than I think I'll need.

Zip tie or tape the solar panel to the top of your shade structure so they get all-day sun, and if it's a really dusty year, maybe wipe them off once or twice mid-week.

Okay, great. That's exactly what we need--just something to mark our camp / the guy lines so I don't clothesline myself on a regular basis. We will load up on extras. And thank you so much for addressing the solar panel! I was worried about how we would be able to hammer the cheap plastic stake into the ground. Using zip tie / tape at the top of the shade structure is a brilliantly simple solution.

[kevinwells]

Hi,
I have built a few different tensegrisity structures over the years. Last year I did a 20 ft tensegrity shade structure with aluminet top. I used 6 - 8 ft - 2x2 inverted "v"'s. They were ultimately a bit light so I would be concerned about your choice of PVC pipes, they may be too flexible, maybe consider using a larger diameter pipe..

Please do build the structure before hand and see how it goes when you wrench stuff down to the ground.

some ideas... Since you are using pipe, take a straight piece of rebar and drive in at an angle and then put each pole on top. That will lock that pole laterally. You may find that you still get some lift on the pole, unless you are really well tensioned.

I like to use ratcheting tie downs for the tension straps to the playa. They can be adjusted.

forget about the candy cane rebar idea. its hard to make and hard to pound in. better to use straight stuff and put tennis balls on the rebar. If you can get ahold of a welder, best is a big washer welded to the end of the rebar.

personally I am a big fan of 12 inch lag bolts. They stay in, and can be unscrewed from the playa.

The lateral side winds really plays with your string tension, so unless you are REALLY tightened down, you may find that you get some loose cables on the leeward side of the structure.
Hope this helps.
Kevin

[C.f.M.]

Fair warning, it's REALLY reflective, so somebody "disoriented" might see it out of the corner of their eye as animal eyes glaring at them out of the dark and freak out. I mean, you know, so I've heard.

[BBadger]

The lag bolts are definitely a nice way to go. I brought a full drill set and box of lag ~40 bolts home on a plane. Packing an impact driver, batteries, charger, and bolts won't take up too much space. Of course they usually cost more than the rebar + hammer, so there's always that.

I don't much like solar lights. Not very bright, bulky, prone to being kicked and damaged, and are relatively expensive for what you get. Mostly you just want something that will get noticed under ambient light. I've used LED foam sticks and they worked nicely. That reflective rope or tassels and stuff work good too. You could also use those LED copper fairy lights which last forever, are bright, and don't cost too much.

[s_ting]

Hi,
I have built a few different tensegrisity structures over the years. Last year I did a 20 ft tensegrity shade structure with aluminet top. I used 6 - 8 ft - 2x2 inverted "v"'s. They were ultimately a bit light so I would be concerned about your choice of PVC pipes, they may be too flexible, maybe consider using a larger diameter pipe..

Please do build the structure before hand and see how it goes when you wrench stuff down to the ground.

some ideas... Since you are using pipe, take a straight piece of rebar and drive in at an angle and then put each pole on top. That will lock that pole laterally. You may find that you still get some lift on the pole, unless you are really well tensioned.

I like to use ratcheting tie downs for the tension straps to the playa. They can be adjusted.

forget about the candy cane rebar idea. its hard to make and hard to pound in. better to use straight stuff and put tennis balls on the rebar. If you can get ahold of a welder, best is a big washer welded to the end of the rebar.

personally I am a big fan of 12 inch lag bolts. They stay in, and can be unscrewed from the playa.

The lateral side winds really plays with your string tension, so unless you are REALLY tightened down, you may find that you get some loose cables on the leeward side of the structure.
Hope this helps.
Kevin

This is super, super, helpful. Thank you so much. The main PVC pipes are 1.5" in diameter and we are hoping that since we cut them into 4' sections, they will be less bendy. Unfortunately anything bigger than 1.5" won't fit that well in our checked bag... Do you think this will be too light with the wind? I like the thought of putting the pipes on rebar. We will do that, in addition to using the rope. I am a bit wary that we will not be able to keep enough tension in the ropes now though. Actually, all the rope stuff makes me very nervous. Guess it will just take some practice. I will look into the lag screw method.

Fair warning, it's REALLY reflective, so somebody "disoriented" might see it out of the corner of their eye as animal eyes glaring at them out of the dark and freak out. I mean, you know, so I've heard.

Hah! Well, that would hopefully be better than them running into some taut guy lines

The lag bolts are definitely a nice way to go. I brought a full drill set and box of lag ~40 bolts home on a plane. Packing an impact driver, batteries, charger, and bolts won't take up too much space. Of course they usually cost more than the rebar + hammer, so there's always that.

I don't much like solar lights. Not very bright, bulky, prone to being kicked and damaged, and are relatively expensive for what you get. Mostly you just want something that will get noticed under ambient light. I've used LED foam sticks and they worked nicely. That reflective rope or tassels and stuff work good too. You could also use those LED copper fairy lights which last forever, are bright, and don't cost too much.

You have, along with kevinwells, convinced me that lag bolts are the way to go. A quick Google search confirms that cordless drills are allowed in checked bags so we will reorient ourselves towards FIGJAM's lag screw method. Having a drill wouldn't be awful anyway. We may still put the pipes on rebar as kevinwells suggested for extra support. LED foam sticks look like a lot of fun. Do you just zip tie them up? I looked into the LED copper wire lights but wasn't sure if they would hold up. The copper wires seem thin and easy to damage?

[BBadger]

Remember that you will want an impact driver, because you'll be screwing things in, not drilling. They're often more portable too. You'll never look back!

[kevinwells]

Glad the info was helpful. Hey, just in case the PVC does not work out, I will go ahead and throw 3 extra 8ft 2x4's into the truck. If you find you need them, come find me at my camp. It's called Firmament. We are a placed at 7:15, and will have the entire strip between the A and B streets. Look at burnermaps.com, if you need more info.

I will be in a round 16 ft, silver Yurt (the ol fashioned kind, not a hexayurt). We will also have a 20 ft high tensegrisity tower/viewing platform .

Alternately , ask for me at our art piece,

firmament, should be "findable" on the playa It is a big LED installation that is like a big horizontal screen of LEDS. We call it the hippy trap, as you will see lots of people laying on their backs, staring up at it...

Have a great burn!

[s_ting]

Remember that you will want an impact driver, because you'll be screwing things in, not drilling. They're often more portable too. You'll never look back!

Ah, thank you for the clarification! We will get an impact driver (:

Glad the info was helpful. Hey, just in case the PVC does not work out, I will go ahead and throw 3 extra 8ft 2x4's into the truck. If you find you need them, come find me at my camp. It's called Firmament. We are a placed at 7:15, and will have the entire strip between the A and B streets. Look at burnermaps.com, if you need more info.

I will be in a round 16 ft, silver Yurt (the ol fashioned kind, not a hexayurt). We will also have a 20 ft high tensegrisity tower/viewing platform .

Alternately , ask for me at our art piece,

firmament, should be "findable" on the playa It is a big LED installation that is like a big horizontal screen of LEDS. We call it the hippy trap, as you will see lots of people laying on their backs, staring up at it...

Have a great burn!

Thank you so much for the kind offer!! We will bring beer, smiles, and our endless gratitude if it comes to that. Hopefully our PVC pipes won't fall apart on the playa, but in any case I will come find you and offer a dusty hug (: And to enjoy the hippy trap, of course!

[kevinwells]

beer...
last tip. You can buy beer in a can that you might actually want to drink at a store called Beverages and More (BevMo).

[s_ting]

Well, we attempted our test run today...




We went the lag screw method and went with 18" lag screws. We had a really tough time getting the screws in flush with our Makita 18v impact driver. We could barely get it past 16" in defaultia, which worries me for when we step onto the playa. We also managed to go through an entire battery!!! This doesn't feel normal to me. Any suggestions here? The ropes lose a lot of tension if the lag screws aren't screwed in all the way and it was a huge issue today.

I'm pretty worried about how the PVC pipes will hold up in the wind. We didn't end up putting rebar in the pipe, as it was really hard to adjust the angles of the pipes with the rebar staked down, and we prioritized getting the top ropes as taut as possible.

We got a bit lazy with zip tying the shade cloth appropriately, but we'll be staking the side of the cloth that's fluttering in the wind by the tent down with the stakes that come with the Kodiak tent and plan on using some tarp clamps to secure the shade cloth to itself and to the top ropes where my boyfriend is currently holding it.

I don't know how I feel after this test run... I am really really concerned about the integrity of the PVC pipes. I don't want this thing to blow away. Comments, thoughts, concerns, suggestions, appreciated.

[Drawingablank]

I second that you will not be able to candy cane rebar with pvc pipe. It can be done without heat but takes a steel pipe and a way to hold it securely while bending - such as along the base of a building foundation.

The 2.5 pound hammer should be fine.

For my exposed rebar I simple place an inexpensive solar stake light atop it which provides both some foot protection / safety and lights the guy line attached. These can usually be found for a couple dollars at wally mart.

solarstake.jpg

[Drawingablank]

AK - went to edit and accidentally double posted - sorry.

[s_ting]

I second that you will not be able to candy cane rebar with pvc pipe. It can be done without heat but takes a steel pipe and a way to hold it securely while bending - such as along the base of a building foundation.

The 2.5 pound hammer should be fine.

For my exposed rebar I simple place an inexpensive solar stake light atop it which provides both some foot protection / safety and lights the guy line attached. These can usually be found for a couple dollars at wally mart.
solarstake.jpg

Thanks! We ended up going with lag screws instead of rebar (latest post includes pictures of our test run), though we ran into some issues detailed above as well.

Current concerns are A) the inability to drive our 18" lag screws flush with our 18v impact driver. We're currently using a 2.0Ah battery. Perhaps we should go higher? and B) structural integrity of the PVC pipes...

[kevinwells]

Don't sweat the PVC, if it fails, I got your back. I'll throw a few 2x4s into the truck for you. my camp is "firmament camp" somewhere between 7:30 and 8:00 on A, facing the man. My yurt will be on the "B" side of the street, it looks like this...

yurt with cover sm.jpeg

Come find me if ya need the 2x4's


also, re lags, put some big washers on the bolt, then use a truckers hitch (look it up, learn this knot!) to tie down with...

[s_ting]

Don't sweat the PVC, if it fails, I got your back. I'll throw a few 2x4s into the truck for you. my camp is "firmament camp" somewhere between 7:30 and 8:00 on A, facing the man. My yurt will be on the "B" side of the street, it looks like this...
yurt with cover sm.jpeg


Come find me if ya need the 2x4's


also, re lags, put some big washers on the bolt, then use a truckers hitch (look it up, learn this knot!) to tie down with...

Thanks (: We will definitely (though hopefully not need to!) take you up on that. We're using a link of three chains for the lag screws and tying truckers hitch to it. Glad we're doing something right there! We are just having a hard time screwing the lag screws all the way into the ground with our 18v cordless impact driver. Going to up our battery from 2.0Ah to 3.0Ah and see if it helps at all...

[Canoe]

... We went the lag screw method and went with 18" lag screws. We had a really tough time getting the screws in flush with our Makita 18v impact driver. We could barely get it past 16" in defaultia, which worries me for when we step onto the playa. We also managed to go through an entire battery!!! This doesn't feel normal to me. Any suggestions here? The ropes lose a lot of tension if the lag screws aren't screwed in all the way and it was a huge issue today...

You do need the lag screws all the way into the ground.
What's the diameter of the lag screws? Large takes more force and uses more battery.
But don't sweat the battery use. Defaultia isn't the same soil as the playa.
Do bring a socket and ratchet for the lag screws as backup. The longer the ratchet, the less force it takes. A wrench will work too (lighter), but more work to use.

I assume your ropes are tied with a method that allows you to adjust their tension once the lag screws are in the ground.

... I'm pretty worried about how the PVC pipes will hold up in the wind. We didn't end up putting rebar in the pipe, as it was really hard to adjust the angles of the pipes with the rebar staked down...

If it comes down is one thing. If it isn't staked to the ground and can be blown into a camp or someone and injure them is another.

The PVC.
Shame to abandon it at this point, but I'm not liking that PVC either, then there's sections a sleeve and bolting...
At the very least, I'd say you need larger diameter PVC, or ABS, and in a single length, so it's not going in luggage.

I'd say it's time to go with 2x4s you get in Reno or Fernley. You need to Know it won't snap.

• Drill through the wood and bolt, not screw, so the wood can't split so close to the ends.
• One bolt through the 2x4 at the top, fender washer next to the wood on each side.
• On each end of the bolt, it can hold double chain-links as done with the lag screws, to give you multiple links to secure your ropes to.
  Looks like you need two double chain-links on each side. (cut and have all chain-links with you ready to install rather do them in Reno)
• Use two nuts.
• Check if you think you should have a small washer next to the bolt head and between the nuts and the chain-links.
• At the bottom, same single bolt, washers, double chain-links for your bottom attachment points,
• Include a double link to allow you to lag screw it to the ground.
  Only, are those ropes along the ground needed if the base of the 2x4 is secured to the ground adequately?
  I'd be going with the bolt and a single double link to allow you to lag screw it into the ground.

If your tarp drapes over the top of the PVC or 2x4, it's going to get shredded by the ends. If you haven't got a better solution, consider how to get some tennis balls from the dollar store and cut them in a way to secure over the top of the 2x4s with their corners rounded. Consider the rounding when you drill your holes for the bolts.

Your tent needs to be secured too.

p.s.
Ideally you're not drilling on the playa (MOOP).

[Canoe]

OR, go with the PVC as you have it, but:

• double chain-links at the bottom to lag screw them to the ground,
• take the rope that runs along the ground that is not needed and use it to wrap a 2x4 to each PVC pole to re-enforce it.

Less work at this close date.

Do check that the holes through the PVC won't fray through the rope as the shade structure blows in the wind.
Do check if you think the force of a strong wind won't break the PVC where the rope loops through it.
Watch for the shade cloth wearing on the tent.

Pretty much guaranteed that you'll experience 35 mph winds. More likely than not that sometime during the Burn you'll get 50 mph. 75 mph, even 100 mph, are possible. If there's a microburst over or beside your camp, all bets are off.

[Drawingablank]

I agree that you need to bring a ratchet or breaker bar as a backup in case of battery failure.

[s_ting]

You do need the lag screws all the way into the ground.
What's the diameter of the lag screws? Large takes more force and uses more battery.
But don't sweat the battery use. Defaultia isn't the same soil as the playa.
Do bring a socket and ratchet for the lag screws as backup. The longer the ratchet, the less force it takes. A wrench will work too (lighter), but more work to use.

1/2" diameter. We have some extra batteries, but will look into the socket and ratchet as backup. Would putting tennis balls on the top of the lag screws work if they aren't flush to the ground? Don't want to cause any injuries, though lag screws seem less deadly than rebar.

I assume your ropes are tied with a method that allows you to adjust their tension once the lag screws are in the ground.

Yup, trucker's hitch.

If it comes down is one thing. If it isn't staked to the ground and can be blown into a camp or someone and injure them is another.

Definitely don't want to cause any injuries. The pipes themselves are tied to two separate lag screws from both the top and the bottom so the ends are "fixed"--I guess absolute worst case scenario there's a break in the very middle of the PVC that could whip the pipes around in the wind, but they wouldn't go anywhere really because of all the rope and lag screws. Not that that what I described wouldn't be a hazard or anything... But with the bottom staked down the top section could potentially still be a problem if a break were to happen?

The PVC.
Shame to abandon it at this point, but I'm not liking that PVC either, then there's sections a sleeve and bolting...
At the very least, I'd say you need larger diameter PVC, or ABS, and in a single length, so it's not going in luggage.

I'd say it's time to go with 2x4s you get in Reno or Fernley. You need to Know it won't snap.

• Drill through the wood and bolt, not screw, so the wood can't split so close to the ends.
• One bolt through the 2x4 at the top, fender washer next to the wood on each side.
• On each end of the bolt, it can hold double chain-links as done with the lag screws, to give you multiple links to secure your ropes to.
  Looks like you need two double chain-links on each side. (cut and have all chain-links with you ready to install rather do them in Reno)
• Use two nuts.
• Check if you think you should have a small washer next to the bolt head and between the nuts and the chain-links.
• At the bottom, same single bolt, washers, double chain-links for your bottom attachment points,
• Include a double link to allow you to lag screw it to the ground.
  Only, are those ropes along the ground needed if the base of the 2x4 is secured to the ground adequately?
  I'd be going with the bolt and a single double link to allow you to lag screw it into the ground.

If your tarp drapes over the top of the PVC or 2x4, it's going to get shredded by the ends. If you haven't got a better solution, consider how to get some tennis balls from the dollar store and cut them in a way to secure over the top of the 2x4s with their corners rounded. Consider the rounding when you drill your holes for the bolts.

Your tent needs to be secured too.

p.s.
Ideally you're not drilling on the playa (MOOP).

OR, go with the PVC as you have it, but:
double chain-links at the bottom to lag screw them to the ground,
take the rope that runs along the ground that is not needed and use it to wrap a 2x4 to each PVC pole to re-enforce it.
Less work at this close date.

Do check that the holes through the PVC won't fray through the rope as the shade structure blows in the wind.
Do check if you think the force of a strong wind won't break the PVC where the rope loops through it.
Watch for the shade cloth wearing on the tent.

Pretty much guaranteed that you'll experience 35 mph winds. More likely than not that sometime during the Burn you'll get 50 mph. 75 mph, even 100 mph, are possible. If there's a microburst over or beside your camp, all bets are off.

Oof. Okay. We don't have any time in Reno really so I think changing what we have right now will be a slight challenge. My boyfriend's feeling confident in the PVC pipes, but I'm clearly the pessimist between the two of us, hah. The issue is that in our current set up there are already holes drilled at the bottom of the pipes, so I don't think it's viable to bolt and screw the pipes down.

We're going to do a second test run this upcoming weekend since we don't fly out until the following Tuesday, with the upgraded batteries and properly securing the shade cloth down. We'll run some more stress tests, but I did tug at the ropes and the pipes today pretty aggressively. We may end up needing to take up the 2x4s Kevin offered.

Thank you so very much for the detailed response! Gave me many more things to think about for this home stretch...

[BBadger]

So the 3/8" diameter lag screws (that's the shaft, not the head) are generally the lag screws most people are using. They're pretty easy to drill into the playa with ordinary 1/4" impact drivers, and hold tight as well. The 1/2" lag screws may not be that easy to drill in, even in the softer playa, and may need a better impact driver or drill. You should verify that you're using 3/8" or 1/2" and, funds and time permitting, switch to 3/8" if you can (1/2" ones are great, but overkill in your case).

[Canoe]

...Would putting tennis balls on the top of the lag screws work if they aren't flush to the ground? Don't want to cause any injuries, though lag screws seem less deadly than rebar.

Would help for protecting people, but doesn't solve the problem of needing them flush to the ground so they have strength to stay in the playa.
(at 1/2", the lag screw is plenty strong, but if sticking up out of the ground as in your photos, and the rope slips up the shaft, then the height of the shaft out of the ground becomes leverage for the load)

As stated above, 1/2" are harder to put into the ground, but they get there. Do have a ratchet or breaker-bar as backup (much harder to break a breaker-bar).

> could whip the pipes around in the wind, but they wouldn't go anywhere really because of all the rope and lag screws.
Great that they can't get away. The issue if your structure breaks becomes not getting injured trying to secure parts that are whipping around in the wind.

> Oof. Okay. We don't have any time in Reno really so I think changing what we have right now will be a slight challenge. My boyfriend's feeling confident in the PVC pipes, but I'm clearly the pessimist between the two of us, hah.
Your structure is a tension structure, not a free-standing structure that needs securing against wind. The photos are showing bending in your PVC poles. This is without the heat of the playa and without the wind load of the playa. Even if they don't break, bending allows movement or even slackens your tension structure, which introduces a dynamic load as it cycles tight/untight/tight, such that a wind can end up ripping it apart.

> We may end up needing to take up the 2x4s Kevin offered.
Do so. Use them to reinforce your poles - before there are issues in the wind or heat.
We may have a 'walk in the park' year, but you can't count on that. Compare the hassle of exploring BRC to find his camp and meet some new people (sarcastic) vs. the hassle of not having an upright shade structure and securing it (in wind?) or cleaning a broken mess up, which may include your now broken tent.
Do it reliably from the start, so you can spend your time enjoying your Burn.

> The issue is that in our current set up there are already holes drilled at the bottom of the pipes, so I don't think it's viable to bolt and screw the pipes down.
Correct. Bolt and screw 2x4s down, not PVC. Else you need a wood plug inside the PVC at the bolt to prevent it collapsing the PVC when tightened (this is different from where you're securing your sleeves where you join your PVC sections).
You could add a double chain-link through the rope at the bottom of the PVC, giving you a place to screw into the playa (I'd be going with 3/8, not 1/2, and shorter too; you're just going for a shear load to hold the bottom of the pole from moving across the ground, like the ropes running across the ground to your guyline anchors do). Depending on sizes, rope and lag screw may be able to share a single link.
Or skip having those ropes running across the ground and simply tie chain-link to those holes. Or tie it twice with two loops of rope (as you've got four holes already?).
DO check that the PVC is not going to fray/wear through the rope; file/sand any sharp parts?

And, again, securing your tent to the ground and guylines to upper structure so the wind doesn't break it by blowing the top of it over.

[s_ting]

So the 3/8" diameter lag screws (that's the shaft, not the head) are generally the lag screws most people are using. They're pretty easy to drill into the playa with ordinary 1/4" impact drivers, and hold tight as well. The 1/2" lag screws may not be that easy to drill in, even in the softer playa, and may need a better impact driver or drill. You should verify that you're using 3/8" or 1/2" and, funds and time permitting, switch to 3/8" if you can (1/2" ones are great, but overkill in your case).

Gotcha. We'll see what we can do about switching our 1/2"s down to 3/8".

Would help for protecting people, but doesn't solve the problem of needing them flush to the ground so they have strength to stay in the playa.
(at 1/2", the lag screw is plenty strong, but if sticking up out of the ground as in your photos, and the rope slips up the shaft, then the height of the shaft out of the ground becomes leverage for the load)

As stated above, 1/2" are harder to put into the ground, but they get there. Do have a ratchet or breaker-bar as backup (much harder to break a breaker-bar).

Oops, sorry, I definitely misread your first post and thought you said did not need to be flush for whatever reason. Which would make no sense but... Long night... Yeah, we're working on making them flush for sure.

Great that they can't get away. The issue if your structure breaks becomes not getting injured trying to secure parts that are whipping around in the wind.

Yes, definitely understand that.

Your structure is a tension structure, not a free-standing structure that needs securing against wind. The photos are showing bending in your PVC poles. This is without the heat of the playa and without the wind load of the playa. Even if they don't break, bending allows movement or even slackens your tension structure, which introduces a dynamic load as it cycles tight/untight/tight, such that a wind can end up ripping it apart.

Do so. Use them to reinforce your poles - before there are issues in the wind or heat.
We may have a 'walk in the park' year, but you can't count on that. Compare the hassle of exploring BRC to find his camp and meet some new people (sarcastic) vs. the hassle of not having an upright shade structure and securing it (in wind?) or cleaning a broken mess up, which may include your now broken tent.
Do it reliably from the start, so you can spend your time enjoying your Burn.

You just nailed my concerns with the wind and the heat. We didn't stake the tent all the way in the picture as we just wanted to make sure the tent would fit under the structure, but it will be staked down with 12" military stakes. From what I've gathered that should be enough to hold the tent down in high winds so I'm pretty confident in that. Getting this right from the start is definitely the goal.

Correct. Bolt and screw 2x4s down, not PVC. Else you need a wood plug inside the PVC at the bolt to prevent it collapsing the PVC when tightened (this is different from where you're securing your sleeves where you join your PVC sections).
You could add a double chain-link through the rope at the bottom of the PVC, giving you a place to screw into the playa (I'd be going with 3/8, not 1/2, and shorter too; you're just going for a shear load to hold the bottom of the pole from moving across the ground, like the ropes running across the ground to your guyline anchors do). Depending on sizes, rope and lag screw may be able to share a single link.
Or skip having those ropes running across the ground and simply tie chain-link to those holes. Or tie it twice with two loops of rope (as you've got four holes already?).
DO check that the PVC is not going to fray/wear through the rope; file/sand any sharp parts?

And, again, securing your tent to the ground and guylines to upper structure so the wind doesn't break it by blowing the top of it over.

Yup, all the holes in the PVC pipes are sanded. Ropes held up okay without much wear and tear through the holes. We're using 1/2" rope. We can do the double chain links to the rope at the poles to anchor them down. We're using triple chain links right now for our six lag screws--lag screw through one, two ropes on the two others.

---

Okay, thank you all SO much for all your responses. I've been having heated discussions with my boyfriend since last night over this. We're very problem-solution oriented, so here it goes...

PROBLEM: 1/2" 18" lag screws are overkill and not driving flush.
SOLUTION: Downgrade to 3/8" 14" lag screws. Luckily just found a local store with same day pick up so we can do that pretty easily. Get a socket ratchet for a backup method, and to attempt to screw the 18" lag screws in. Maybe just use a socket ratchet if it works okay with the 18" so we don't have a billion different lag screws lying around.

PROBLEM: PVC pipes by themselves don't seem to be a stellar idea, especially if they aren't staked to the ground.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS: A) Switch to wood, but there would be no way for us to carry these on the plane. Boyfriend is suggesting we get 2x4s and cut them in half and screw them together. I feel like this would weaken the beams a lot... Thoughts? B) Get wood from Kevin, though this means we won't have camp set up until we find him and I'm not sure we'll have all the tools we need to erect them. Anddd dragging stuff around sounds potentially painful. Feels like we'll be winging it on the playa. C) Boyfriend wants to try telescoping steel poles or something but god knows where we'll find that right now... D) Give up on this shade structure and just crawl under some communal shade structure elsewhere to try and get some extra shut eye.

To be completely honest, I'm kind of leaning towards D I guess I was the one that just wanted to throw the shade cloth over the tent with some clamps and call it a day though, hah. Sorry my thoughts are everywhere, I'm responding while researching so everything is a jumbled mess in my head right now.

Thanks all again for all the critiques and suggestions!

[BBadger]

Others may need to chime in on whether this is a ridiculous idea: maybe you could buy some 1" conduit at the local (Reno) Home Depot ($8 each?) and wrap rope at the top of those. Though the rope would still be wrapped at the top, to prevent it from sliding down, some hook, large eyebolt, or T-shaped piece shoved into the top could be used to attach to the rope. Then you'd have some lag bolts sticking slightly up out of the playa (1-2") on which you'd put the conduit ends to keep it from sliding around. The conduit would be forced downwards by the ropes, so it shouldn't pop off of the lag bolt head. Mostly all of this is to avoid you having to drill holes into the metal without the benefit of a vice or drill press.

This also assumes that you can transport 10' pipes on whatever vehicle you're using to drive in. You can get Home Depot to cut the lengths to what you need, but even those would be relatively long.

I don't know how you would dispose of the conduit after the event. Perhaps you could find someone who wants to have them, or maybe even Home Depot will take them back (for free?) if they're clean and undamaged.

[s_ting]

Others may need to chime in on whether this is a ridiculous idea: maybe you could buy some 1" conduit at the local (Reno) Home Depot ($8 each?) and wrap rope at the top of those. Though the rope would still be wrapped at the top, to prevent it from sliding down, some hook, large eyebolt, or T-shaped piece shoved into the top could be used to attach to the rope. Then you'd have some lag bolts sticking slightly up out of the playa (1-2") on which you'd put the conduit ends to keep it from sliding around. The conduit would be forced downwards by the ropes, so it shouldn't pop off of the lag bolt head. Mostly all of this is to avoid you having to drill holes into the metal without the benefit of a vice or drill press.

This also assumes that you can transport 10' pipes on whatever vehicle you're using to drive in. You can get Home Depot to cut the lengths to what you need, but even those would be relatively long.

I don't know how you would dispose of the conduit after the event. Perhaps you could find someone who wants to have them, or maybe even Home Depot will take them back (for free?) if they're clean and undamaged.

BxB probably won't let me take on 10' pipes... something involving conduit definitely crossed my mind today though. The issue is we're traveling in a way that really should be minimizing the amount of stuff we bring, which is why I just wanted to throw a shade cloth over our tent and call it quits in the beginning, but now we went the complicated route that requires way more supplies than we have room for...

[Canoe]

Lag screws are not going flush in defaultia. People are putting 1/2" lag screws flush on the playa.
You do not NEED to go down to 3/8".
Do do not need 1/2" for the size and wind load of your structure.
Going to 3/8" makes them easier to drive into the playa. = less chance of having to resort to a ratchet.

So if you've nailed (staked) the base of the tent, do you have guylines to prevent the top of the tent from blowing over in the wind?
(Why stakes for the tent if you've got lag screws.)

At this late stage, you've pretty much got everything fitting, so no major changes unless you need (or really want) to.

• By adding chain-links to the bottom of the poles, they can be lag screwed into the playa.
  These lag screws don't need to be as long as the guyline anchors.
  As the base of the pole is secured in place, there is no need for the ropes running across the ground.
• The holes for those ground ropes can be used to tie chain-links to the bottom of the poles. No PVC pole modification.
• Rather than find a new pole solution, the idea is to place a 2x4 beside your existing PVC pole and lash them together - after the structure is built!
  • The PVC still takes the compression load to the playa, but the 2x4 limits now far the pvc can bend. Lash it correctly, and the PVC bending will be minimal, allowing it to retain its compression strength down the length of the pole.
  • All your connections remain on the PVC as you've tested them.
• To protect the tarp, whatever you decide will be highest (PVC vs. 2x4) will contact the tarp and has to have something on it to protect the tarp. I'm thinking tennis ball: in the end of the pipe, over the pipe, or over the end of the 2x4.
• Assuming the wind isn't crazy when you setup (you'll be waiting if it is),
  • build your structure on the playa with the PVC - tight but not overnight,
  • don't install the tarp yet,
  • raise and place your tent,
  • and then go get the 2x4s.
  Do keep in touch with him to be sure he doesn't have a last minute camp address change. His shiny yurt should be pretty easy to spot once you're in the general area (take a photo for us).
• Once back with the 2x4s it's time to lash them to the poles.
  • If the 2x4s are too long, so you don't have to saw them shorter, use a hammer to dent the playa (not dig) where the base of the 2x4 will go. (Check the final height of your PVC poles; perhaps you can ask that the 2x4s be stud length not eight foot.)
  • Place the 2x4 along the PVC pole.
  • Lash it so they're held together at a number of heights along the pole. I'd go for a secure lash every foot, just because.
    Use the rope that previously ran across the ground.
• Check your tensions.
• Install the shade cloth.

I don't know if you're camping independently or with a camp, but either way you can go get your 2x4s from Kevin before setting up your camp, or do the order listed above.