Yurts All things yurts

This summer I plan to build a yurt after handshearing sheeps in the spring.Send some links share your knowledge with me if you know anything about building a yurt.I am familiar with traditional hogans. basic rustic structures.i know how to build them.

Mongolian cloud houses a really good book

Mujaan the craftsmen 25 minute movie All handtools handmade yurt
images of titles below.
Suggestions of movies and books welcome.

Kazakhstan style yurt making.It's different from Mongolian version it shows how walls our steambent using steambox.Similiar to Ben laws steambox if you've seen the woodland way.Except ben law uses clay to seal ends.

Love it!

If your looking for traditional rather than modern you might want to use the proper name yurt is modern, the name you want is Ger. Ger is what is used for the traditional felt lined huts, while yurt tends to be the modern canvas coverings.

If your hunting for Ger, knowing the right name to look the up will help.

A brief search for Ger yielded

Thank you for the imput it's good to get the ideas flowing and see what others think.Do you intelligent intellectuals recall ben laws roundhouse timberframing dvd? Where he is steam bending the logs.I'm wondering if this will work for the walls.Also for the circle smokehole piece.Mujaan just soaks them in a stream bend and bends them.spend the 7.99 for mujaan the craftsmen it's worth it.Maybe we can get a copy sent to the labs?Well gota finish boiling this rice for lunch then it's off to herd the sheep.

I agree that what passes for a "modern yurt" is heavy on artificial materials. Friends of mine were living in one and it used a lot of bubble wrap (foil sandwiching 2 layers of bubble wrap was the ceiling insulation) and artificial fabrics as the cover. It was't that old, but you could see the wear on it. Traditional gers could be rebuilt/repaired/renewed as they succumbed to nature's assaults.

I found this news article about living in a yurt https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-backyard-yurt-living-rent-housing-1.5484169

Waiting for truck parts.Doing some research thought I'd share this awesome yurt build.Might be helpful for someone out there building a ger/yurt.GerBuildStephenHammond

Jay Angler wrote:I agree that what passes for a "modern yurt" is heavy on artificial materials. Friends of mine were living in one and it used a lot of bubble wrap (foil sandwiching 2 layers of bubble wrap was the ceiling insulation) and artificial fabrics as the cover. It was't that old, but you could see the wear on it. Traditional gers could be rebuilt/repaired/renewed as they succumbed to nature's assaults.

We live in a traditional "Groovy Yurt", but for a while we had a little porch that we covered with a chunk of transport tarp. I believe it was made from material similar to what many modern yurts use. On a sunny day the smell coming off the porch roof was unbearable despite it being very old and having off-gassed for all that time. I couldn't imagine having the whole yurt smell like that.

r ranson wrote:I found this news article about living in a yurt https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-backyard-yurt-living-rent-housing-1.5484169

One of the images in the article includes a few books in a milk crate, one of which is Bill Mollison's "Permaculture: A Designer's Manual".

Keep on keepin on.Figured I'd add this little treasure to the thread.

I have a new love for germany these people our some great craftsmen!Also I've finally found the information I need to build the smoke ring.Well there our several different styles.Big difference between a mongolian and kyzak yurt.

Watch 2:38 Also Watch the post before this one as well.Tono.Smokering.I was really struggling with the concept of a circle until now.I think I gotter all figured out now.Good luck future Yurters/Ger'ers.

I did not build a yurt, I bought one many moons ago, so maybe my comments are irrelevant and inappropriate on this post, please forgive me if it is.

I love yurts so this is not a put down, just some observations.  My experience with a yurt (I had a traditional one for 12 years, as sedentary accommodation) is that, unless you are nomadic, it is not an accommodation suited to our climates (western Europe/ north US).  They come from countries with low precipitations, and with very cold but very dry winters.  The humidity and rain fall tend to rot the coverings and since I am not a hunter gatherer with endless supply of pelts and time to cure them, I kind of gave up on it.  I had some friends who used a waterproof cover but personally, I did not like it much.  Mind you, things might have changed over the years in terms of fabric, but I think it is getting worse in terms of rain and climate.

The cold and dampness is worse coming from the ground so if you are staying put, a well insulated flooring is essential, as well as a good stove that you can bank to stay on all night, otherwise, you'll have to get up a couple of times in the night to put wood in.  At -10 to -15C (14 to 5F) in the winter, it is Jolly good fun when you are young, not so much as you advance in years. Mind you, sleeping with a woolly hat is quite cosy!  Dogs are quite good too!!

There is not much storage in a yurt, so I would make sure to have a very close-by shelter to store sufficient DRY wood for those icy or wet mornings when the stove did not make it through the night and getting warm and having that first cup of coffee is what matters the most at that moment.  Of course, if your winters are not that cold or wet or you travel around with your yurt, these do not matter.

High winds that are becoming more prevalent these days can soon become a big problem, think strong anchoring system, that also includes the stove flue.

if your yurt stays on a permanent site, I would say that it is also essential to be close to a water outlet, be it stream, source or tap. Carting gallons of cold water on those icy mornings soon becomes a chore.  Rodents are a big problem, they will definitely chew the fabric cover especially if it is natural.  Felt is a favorite.  Ants will also be a problem if they discover a new source of food.  Airtight containers make sense.

However big the diameter, it still remains one room with very little escape if you do not live alone in it.  Long winter evenings can stir anyone crazy.

In the summer, they tend to be extremely hot, but then it does not matter so much as most of your time is spent outside.  My best investment was mosquito netting on all openings.  Don't build it too close to a tree, dead leaves will stick to the fabric once they get wet (helping it to rot quicker), and a large branch or the whole tree falling on your head is rather inconvenient I would say!

Be aware of your country's laws about this kind of dwelling.  You don't want to wake up one morning and realise that all your effort was in vain and you need to pack it up or demolish it!  They usually wait for winter to come and serve you with a notice.  Neighbours can be a problem too.  Anything different is seen as a threat by many.  It is not necessarily immediate neighbours either.

On the plus side it is a thing of beauty and for a while satisfied my hunger for independence and the need to be different.  I hope you enjoy your yurt as much as I have enjoyed mine, problems and all.  Happy building.

I don’t know much about building yurts but I am thinking that traditional wood and wire snow fence would be an excellent material choice for the walls.  I just priced a roll of 4’x50’ wood snow fence for $97. On Amazon.  Might be cheaper elsewhere.  Secured with steel fence posts, this could be a very solid and quick build.  Menards sells it for $60.

Olga Booker wrote:I did not build a yurt, I bought one many moons ago, so maybe my comments are irrelevant and inappropriate on this post, please forgive me if it is.

I love yurts so this is not a put down, just some observations.  My experience with a yurt (I had a traditional one for 12 years, as sedentary accommodation) is that, unless you are nomadic, it is not an accommodation suited to our climates (western Europe/ north US).  They come from countries with low precipitations, and with very cold but very dry winters.  The humidity and rain fall tend to rot the coverings and since I am not a hunter gatherer with endless supply of pelts and time to cure them, I kind of gave up on it.  I had some friends who used a waterproof cover but personally, I did not like it much.  Mind you, things might have changed over the years in terms of fabric, but I think it is getting worse in terms of rain and climate.

The cold and dampness is worse coming from the ground so if you are staying put, a well insulated flooring is essential, as well as a good stove that you can bank to stay on all night, otherwise, you'll have to get up a couple of times in the night to put wood in.  At -10 to -15C (14 to 5F) in the winter, it is Jolly good fun when you are young, not so much as you advance in years. Mind you, sleeping with a woolly hat is quite cosy!  Dogs are quite good too!!

There is not much storage in a yurt, so I would make sure to have a very close-by shelter to store sufficient DRY wood for those icy or wet mornings when the stove did not make it through the night and getting warm and having that first cup of coffee is what matters the most at that moment.  Of course, if your winters are not that cold or wet or you travel around with your yurt, these do not matter.

High winds that are becoming more prevalent these days can soon become a big problem, think strong anchoring system, that also includes the stove flue.

if your yurt stays on a permanent site, I would say that it is also essential to be close to a water outlet, be it stream, source or tap. Carting gallons of cold water on those icy mornings soon becomes a chore.  Rodents are a big problem, they will definitely chew the fabric cover especially if it is natural.  Felt is a favorite.  Ants will also be a problem if they discover a new source of food.  Airtight containers make sense.

However big the diameter, it still remains one room with very little escape if you do not live alone in it.  Long winter evenings can stir anyone crazy.

In the summer, they tend to be extremely hot, but then it does not matter so much as most of your time is spent outside.  My best investment was mosquito netting on all openings.  Don't build it too close to a tree, dead leaves will stick to the fabric once they get wet (helping it to rot quicker), and a large branch or the whole tree falling on your head is rather inconvenient I would say!

Be aware of your country's laws about this kind of dwelling.  You don't want to wake up one morning and realise that all your effort was in vain and you need to pack it up or demolish it!  They usually wait for winter to come and serve you with a notice.  Neighbours can be a problem too.  Anything different is seen as a threat by many.  It is not necessarily immediate neighbours either.

On the plus side it is a thing of beauty and for a while satisfied my hunger for independence and the need to be different.  I hope you enjoy your yurt as much as I have enjoyed mine, problems and all.  Happy building.

Olga your post is very much appreciated.I posted something similar about someones livestock.My post wasn't meant to pick on them but to help them think about things and to tell them my personal experience which might help them solve a problem.I live in southwest Arizona Navajo Nation.The temperature and weather is very similar to Mongolia.I don't have enough Beso/Money to buy one so I have to make one.I Shear sheep in the spring/summer so I have alot of wool to make the insulation.I don't have to worry about the law we don't have a building code.The reason I want to build a yurt for one is because I love living in the round.The second our the laws that apply on the reservation.It is very hard to get a homesite lease which is one acre of property you lease thru the United State Government to live on.There is alot of red tape and alot of reasons they can deny you.Right now there our 8 people in a 3 bedroom double wide.It is very crowded.We our used to living on top of each other. definitely agree with you about the storage.I bought an rv to make some room for me and my little family.My father in-law will not let me build anything permanent so I cannot build a permanent structure for a woodstove to heat rv.A yurt I can move and also heat.I also want to build a sheepwagon and see how that goes.Gotta be mobile and have fire haha.I considered running a solar system to run a space heater but researched and found out it was uneconomical.So Building the yurt is a temporary structure.My family does not want to move off reservation because of tight family connects.If there is a problem with in-laws(knowledgeable sometimes helpful but set in his ways grumpy old man love the guy but it's the truth),Tribal laws,or Government we can move to another location.We also herd sheep from 7000 feet at a base of a mountain to 9000 feet in the summer we move.So we can take our home with us.I can use a woodstove to burn wood and also animal manure to hit our house.thank you for sharing Olga It is helpful.Do you think if there was a structure around the yurt in your climate would it better?maybe an open barn?Or even a wall of sumkind to break the weather like Mongolians do in winter.In my case i'll be moving around but just curious your thought.

Brad Lemaster wrote:I don’t know much about building yurts but I am thinking that traditional wood and wire snow fence would be an excellent material choice for the walls.  I just priced a roll of 4’x50’ wood snow fence for $97. On Amazon.  Might be cheaper elsewhere.  Secured with steel fence posts, this could be a very solid and quick build.  Menards sells it for $60.

I think it's worth the experimentation to pave the way for others.You never know it might be awesome and can help someone else by trying.That's why I made a pallet yurt.If I have some extra time I wouldn't mind trying it gotta lota irons in the fire right now.Appreciate the input if you have time to experiment try it and let me know how it works out.I'm curious.This is great to have a living breathing Idea and people helping thank you.

Hi Ben,

Glad to hear that you are in Arizona and that all this damp, wet stuff won't be an issue for you.

I don't think having the yurt in a barn would be so nice.  Personally, I think they are so beautiful that they have to stand alone (or with a couple of sisters!).  Mine was near a stream, in a little spot protected from the winds and I never got tired of seeing it nestled in its little corner of green - dare I say it - heaven.  Some years the rain was worse than others,

Building your yurt is fabulous, you will have such a tremendous sense of achievement.  One of our friends built his own and we all got together to help put it up.  They had 3 kids  and they lived happily until the children became teenagers.  The need for private space became quite an issue.  Even in a small flat, there is always a time when you can close a bedroom or bathroom door for a while.  He got around the problem by making an opening in the lattice work and built an adjoining smaller room with benders.
http://ystradfflyr.org/bender-tent/

It's a good thing for you that the by-laws of Arizona are what they are.  In France, yurt dwelling in certain areas has become very popular and of course the government is trying hard to refuse their permanent or semi permanent installation.  Being considered temporary accommodations, they had to be moved every so often, so most of us moved them by about a metre and waited for the next 3 months to see what happened.  In some villages, they got fed up and gave up hassling.  I don't know if they changed the laws to stop this loophole.

I had a solar panel, connected to an old truck battery and that was sufficient for lights and charging phone and tablet.

I forgot to mention that snakes also quite often found shelter in the yurt.  In France, not a big problem, we have only 2 main snakes: a short but very fast viper (venomous) and a long, slow, lazy couleuvre (non venomous grass snake), only impressive by its size sometimes.

The mosquito netting is not just for mosquitoes, but also for flies, wasps, hornets, horse flies and any type of flying critters that can make life a nuisance.

So, here goes, keep us posted with the building, I'd love to see the finished product.

I guess for me it was never about staying away from manmade materials, the off-gassing of vinyl has me concerned though, but I tarped a lot of loads so I think that would be negated.
.
I have dreamed of creating a yurt, ger, round house, call it what you want.
For the sides, I have wanted to find a manufacturer of cow bale feeders to make an extra large one. But I also like how steel scaffolding goes together and have dreamed of putting a curve to this type of a design. But I like portability, so I was thinking curved pvc pipe.
Lots of ideas, but time and motivation.
Mike

I also was thinking of reciprocal roundhouse roofs.

Mike Feddersen wrote:I also was thinking of reciprocal roundhouse roofs.

The yurt set up on a friend's property has the reciprocal roof. I would say the reciprocal roof is not as convenient for a structure that is going to be moved. It was moved once and they weren't as careful as they needed to be about labeling parts and taking pictures, and it took two tries to get it up. That said, frequent practice would help.

Mike Feddersen wrote:I guess for me it was never about staying away from manmade materials, the off-gassing of vinyl has me concerned though, but I tarped a lot of loads so I think that would be negated.
.
I have dreamed of creating a yurt, ger, round house, call it what you want.
For the sides, I have wanted to find a manufacturer of cow bale feeders to make an extra large one. But I also like how steel scaffolding goes together and have dreamed of putting a curve to this type of a design. But I like portability, so I was thinking curved pvc pipe.
Lots of ideas, but time and motivation.
Mike

This guy has a electric conduit version that's pretty cool.Similar  to scaffolding.

Yurtbuilds

Olga Booker wrote:Hi Ben,

Glad to hear that you are in Arizona and that all this damp, wet stuff won't be an issue for you.

I don't think having the yurt in a barn would be so nice.  Personally, I think they are so beautiful that they have to stand alone (or with a couple of sisters!).  Mine was near a stream, in a little spot protected from the winds and I never got tired of seeing it nestled in its little corner of green - dare I say it - heaven.  Some years the rain was worse than others,

Building your yurt is fabulous, you will have such a tremendous sense of achievement.  One of our friends built his own and we all got together to help put it up.  They had 3 kids  and they lived happily until the children became teenagers.  The need for private space became quite an issue.  Even in a small flat, there is always a time when you can close a bedroom or bathroom door for a while.  He got around the problem by making an opening in the lattice work and built an adjoining smaller room with benders.
http://ystradfflyr.org/bender-tent/

It's a good thing for you that the by-laws of Arizona are what they are.  In France, yurt dwelling in certain areas has become very popular and of course the government is trying hard to refuse their permanent or semi permanent installation.  Being considered temporary accommodations, they had to be moved every so often, so most of us moved them by about a metre and waited for the next 3 months to see what happened.  In some villages, they got fed up and gave up hassling.  I don't know if they changed the laws to stop this loophole.

I had a solar panel, connected to an old truck battery and that was sufficient for lights and charging phone and tablet.

I forgot to mention that snakes also quite often found shelter in the yurt.  In France, not a big problem, we have only 2 main snakes: a short but very fast viper (venomous) and a long, slow, lazy couleuvre (non venomous grass snake), only impressive by its size sometimes.

The mosquito netting is not just for mosquitoes, but also for flies, wasps, hornets, horse flies and any type of flying critters that can make life a nuisance.

So, here goes, keep us posted with the building, I'd love to see the finished product.

Those Bender Tents our awesome Olga I've only ever seen it another time on Ben Law's videos.If you don't know about Ben law (The wooden way) you should check him out he's awesome.Need a whole benders thread.All these people helping me i'm getting closer and closer to my goal.I'll keep workin at it.

Jay Angler wrote:

Mike Feddersen wrote:I also was thinking of reciprocal roundhouse roofs.

The yurt set up on a friend's property has the reciprocal roof. I would say the reciprocal roof is not as convenient for a structure that is going to be moved. It was moved once and they weren't as careful as they needed to be about labeling parts and taking pictures, and it took two tries to get it up. That said, frequent practice would help.

Nice roof.Reminds me of some SunRay Kelley roofs.This guy makes a moveable yurt with reciprocating.I've never seen this design till now.

Those Bender Tents our awesome Olga I've only ever seen it another time on Ben Law's videos.If you don't know about Ben law (The wooden way) you should check him out he's awesome.Need a whole benders thread.All these people helping me i'm getting closer and closer to my goal.I'll keep workin at it.

Hi Ben,

Everyone in the UK (well almost everyone) knows Ben Law.  He became famous on a TV program called Grand Designs in 2002 or 2003, where he built his first house in the woods.  Benders are very common in the UK also. Homeless people and hippies have used them for a long time.  They were quite basic to start with.

Keep on going with your dream

I've found the missing puzzle piece in detail.Straight from Mongolia channel.Smokering in detail.I hope this information helps someone someday.I'll post pictures when I get the build down pat.As my friend Olga above says.Keep chasing your dreams.Keep gettin up and tying your shoes permies.

Rocketmass stove inside of a yurt.