Traditional-ish yurt/ger build (not a hexayurt)

[Papa Bear]

OK, I'm a bit overdue on this. I mentioned last year I was working on a comparatively traditional yurt for 2014, complete with a variant of one of FIGJAM's swamp coolers, and said I'd post pictures once it was done.

As it happens, I did complete it just in time and it worked great once I got it out there, I just never got around to posting pictures once I got back.

For anyone interested, here they are: http://bit.do/PapaBearsYurt

[Roundabout]

Awesome documentation of your yurt build. What a fun project. I love the way you get nicely diffused daytime light inside too. Are you bringing it back this year?

[Elderberry]

WOW that was some project!

[Papa Bear]

Thanks! Part of the reason I wanted to put the documentation together is that when I first attempted this, there were few if any good resources online to use as a reference. I doubt many people will attempt this kind of project, but at least now there's one more example for those who do to work from.

The diffuse light was an unexpected bonus - I had expected the billboard vinyl to be a little more opaque when I was planning the build. It lets through more light in the middle of the day than I need, which also means more solar heat gain than necessary, so I'm thinking I'll bring some extra opaque material and experiment with layering it just underneath portions of the roof vinyl until I find just the right balance.

In retrospect, I could have made this quite a bit simpler if I'd made the roof ring 30" in outside diameter using two sheets of plywood, rather than 36" diameter from one sheet (baltic birch like this comes in 5'x5' sheets). That would have let me just cut full circles for the glue-up, rather than assembling each of the 5 layers from 6 individual pieces. That was the part that required quite a bit of precision; everything else was pretty simple and repetitive).

The end result of a smaller ring would have been a fraction smaller overall yurt diameter, but still *plenty* of room. Being able to stand upright no matter where I am in the structure is a really nice feature.

Absent unforeseen transportation issues, I'll definitely be bringing it back this year. If anyone happens by Astral Headwash during the week, just look me up - I'll be happy to give tours. I'll most likely be taking it down on Saturday (haven't decided if I'm staying for the man burn that night yet, or heading out beforehand).

[Bemerritt]

Very cool. I have been wanting to make one for a very long time and this may just push me over the edge. Any rough idea on material costs?

[smiffman]

Good job, I might have to use your formula to build one, thanks for sharing.

[Papa Bear]

Really hard to estimate costs, given I built mine over a long time and some of it was free. It would also depend on what tools you have available; I had access to a pretty well-equipped shop. I'd guess somewhere between $500-$1000 all told.

For the lath and rafters, it's a balancing act. They're relatively thin, so even moderately large knots can render a given piece structurally unusable. You have two choices on that front - either go to a quality lumberyard and pay a higher price for good quality straight-grain lumber (from which you'll get a higher percentage of usable pieces) or make numerous trips over weeks and months to your local big box store, sorting through whatever they have to pick out the best pieces. The latter route is the one I took and can be significantly cheaper in terms of pure materials cost, but if you need to get it all in one shot, the former is probably the better option.

I do definitely recommend Douglas Fir for the rafters, and it would probably be a perfectly good choice for the lath as well (my lath is cedar).

For the ring, I went with 18mm baltic birch. You could do it with Douglas Fir planks as well, which might be cheaper, but I think it would wind up being heavier. I'd say that if there were any part I'd consider buying instead of building, that would be at the top of my list. The lighter and stronger, the better.

My covering was billboard vinyl I got for free 10 years ago. The big expense there was actually the HH-66 adhesive I used to glue it up - I used over a gallon of the stuff. If you have the skill and access to the equipment, sewn canvas could be a good call there as well.

I sourced my bolt/nut hardware from a local farm supply that sells by the pound, but you don't actually need to go that route - you can simply use knotted rope to join the lath pieces together. My design predated any awareness of that option, otherwise I might have done that instead.

The first page of my build notes includes a link to a commercial yurt builder who was *very* helpful, and sells both plans and individual parts as well as complete yurts. If you decide to go the build route, I can also go back through my notes and work out where I sourced the tension strap, cam buckles, wall clips, and the like.

[Papa Bear]

Following up - most of those sources were online. Only the lumber, including the ply, was sourced from local stores (but if anyone is in northern Colorado, I'll be happy to point you to what I know of around here, too.)

[Bemerritt]

Thanks for the tips. I think I am going to buy the 16 foot plans tonight and read through them. The top is definitely the one part I am seriously considering buying. I was going to build a hexayurt, but it seems for about 3 times the cost I can get something much more practical for non-burning man use. Which becomes an easier sell on the wife. Thanks again!

[Elliot]

[Papa Bear]

If she's anything like mine, you might also find it's an easier sell purely in terms of aesthetics. Hexayurts are utilitarian by design, but a traditional yurt can be downright pretty.

I will warn you that one of these almost certainly takes much more time to build than a hexayurt (though once built, they go up and down quickly, and take up less space for transport). You'll probably also want to figure in the cost of one of FIGJAM's box coolers as well - a single layer of fabric or vinyl doesn't insulate as well as a hexayurt.

[Shoeshine]

and... I will say it again... Damn!

Nice build, nice documentation, nice all around. Kudos

[Bemerritt]

Just ordered my tono from the site you provided. I'll be sure to post up a build thread once I get started. Thanks again for the inspiration. The plan as of now is to sew a canvas cover, so wish us luck haha!

[Papa Bear]

Good luck! Very much looking forward to seeing it.