Anybody actually live long term in a Yurt?

How would a yurt hold up in a rainy climate. We had the Utopia experiment in Scotland and there the yurt was a bit of a disaster.
It is obviously developed for a dry desert and cold climate



We live in the pacific northwest where we get the highest rainfall in canada. Yurts are very popular here on the coast and as long as you invest in a good woodstove to keep things dried out your in good shape. we have had solid rain here for the last week and we are snug as can be.
corry

I posted earlier but want to add this:

Pacific Yurts sent us actual material samples in the various colors; insulation sample and a video (probably a DVD now) showing how it is put together. The video showed a couple putting up an small yurt. Trust me the more hands the merrier. Everything is precut and fits together well. We never had any problems with any of the parts or fabric. NJ Rich

__________________
GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE ANYMORE THAN PENCILS MIS-SPELL WORDS

GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE ANYMORE THAN SPOONS MAKE ROSIE O'D FAT.:eek

WHY DON'T THE MEDIA REPORT LIVES SAVED WITH FIREARMS? WH Pressure?

I agree the more hands the merrier! i found the directions we were given from the company we bought it from were lacking a bit. It was difficult at times to navigate and the roof and walls (insulation and covering) were pretty tedious to put on. The walls were tricky as you have to stretch the coving evenly so there are no gaps in the bottom where you attach it to the platform. i had to walk away a few times on that job . Also the wall panels were different sizes and not labeled which one went where so lining up the windows was a task as well. We Had up to 10 mpeople at times coming and going and 4 solid people through the whole process. Also scaffolding is a MUST.
corry

We have talked about putting up a smaller Pacific Yurt on our property down by the river where we can't see it from the cabin and renting it to tourists. I just don't know if they would rent well outside of the state and national park system.

Anyone in the midwest use a yurt? I am also concerned about basement issues.

How much wood do you use to heat it with? It is all very fine to say that they are toasty and dry in a Pacific NW winter (And spring. And fall. And summer... ) But how much of your heat is wasted heating up the great outdoors?

Not much due to insulating properties. That's the main reason why Native Americans used tipis quite alot.

__________________
Ted H

You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas.
-Davy Crockett

My concern would be security. I once done the electrical work on a newly installed yurt. I couldn't figure out what would keep a thief from thrusting a knife through the siding next to the door and reaching in to unlock the door of this one particular style of yurt.

Around where I live that is what would happen if you don't have any close reliable neighbors to look after your place while your gone.

Well, if a thief wanted to get in, they will do anything it takes. Yurt or brick.

So why should we lock the door when we leave the place?

Hmm - I wonder which would be better an investment? I have been thinking of building a small cabin that we can stay in right away once we buy land for about a year or so to until we are finished building our first home! :0)

Getting a yurt is approx. $10,000 plus flooring, and whatever else...

Or build a small cottage/cabin?

My sister built a small cabin, not much smaller, than the place we are living in now. It costs, approx. $6,000 for everything, including fireplace, cupboards, windows, doors and whatnot.

If I knew, for certain, that it'll cost no more than $15,000 to build a cabin - then I"ll go for that. I'm putting (slowly) together my plan from start to finish on building our cabin. How much it'll costs, how big or small, where we'll get our supplies...

But it seems that maybe Yurt would be better?

__________________
~ Yvonne ~

To keep the more honest folks out and the less determined dishonest folks. Thats all it does.

In regards to having a break in, I'm of the mindset that if they want in, they'll get into anywhere be it a house with glass windows or a tent. With the way the lath is set up on ours, it would be pretty tough to reach for the door knob also the door frame is pretty thick. Our dogs are also an excellent deterent.
Wood wise well we have a very efficient stove that is also small, 2 eco-fans pointed in different directions and we go through roughly , an old galvanized wash tub full of wood in a 24hr period...i'ts been under a 1/2 cord for the last 2 months and wood here is roughly 160/cord, so i think we are doing ok. Last year we felled some trees so are heating off that wood so it did'nt cost us anything.
corry

By the way, yurts are not legal to live in (as a permanent dwelling) in this county in WA. Don't know about the rest of the state. Sometimes people get away with it for some time if they are building a permanent house on the property.

Me, I lived in a 20ft shipping container while I built my house, but I don't think the inspectors would have been too thrilled with that, had they known...

That says it well. As a builder in an area that has lots of vacation homes and a very thin police presence, I have learned a few things about break-ins. One noteworth thing is that only fools bother with doors. I have had several customers and my construction sites burglarized. In most cases the entry was through a window. The bottom line is that most homes have a first floor window that is both easily accessible and well hidden from the neighbors and the street. Then all it takes is a flat pry bar, like a Stanley "Wonderbar". If you can't break the latch on a typical window using a flat bar, within a few seconds, you aren't trying hard enough. The other common technique is to kick a rear, or side door in. Usually it only takes one decent kick, close to the knob, to blast the door frame to splinters. That's why deadbolts come with the reinforcing plate and long screws. A door frame is pretty useless unless it's properly reinforced. Just a few ramblings from somebody who wasted many hours with disinterested cops as they filled out the reports.....Door locks are for honest folks, they are just a few seconds of wasted time to a burglar.

The most recent issue of Backwoods Home has an article called The great gale of ought seven By Claire Wolfe. Unfortunately there is no link to it on their website. Get yourself a copy if you can. There is a picture of a collapsed yurt that couldn't withstand a severe wind storm.

Next, look at the batten door articles by Dorothy Ainsworth. This lady can build anything she sets her mind to, and in past articles she has written about building her own cabin from logs from the national forest that she paid the govt something like 3 cents per lineal foot for the logs. The article that first drew my attention is here http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ainsworth86.html, and if you do a search on ainsworth in BHM's search bar you can read all her articles.

Anyway, for very little money, and a chain saw and pickup she built a beautiful solid and enduring home. Very labor intensive though.

__________________
I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

I am not at all familiar with all the yurt Co. out there or even what they offer, but the yurt we have is as solid as can be. I actually feel safer in it then in the last house we were in. And in regards to windstorms, I live on the coast and we get storms that are crazy and for days on end at times. Last storm we had was 100km/hr winds with gusts up to 140 and the yurt never even shook, it was actually kinda neat lying there listening to the wind and rain, it was kinda "soothing"...lol!
corry

The thing with a yurt is if you don't mind doing a little walking they can be set back far enough from where a person would actually look to be virtually fully concealed. The county would have to do a fly over to possibly detect the spot.

The county doesn't need to do a flyover. You can look at satellite footage online for free, and there is a good chance someone in the county is doing just that.

__________________
I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye