The yurt in it storage mode. Dogzilla decided to stop by for scale.

The door frame assembled. Two of the corners have fixed pins, the other have loose pin hinges.

The two door pieces placed into the frame, and the 6 loose hinge pins droped into place

Door Standing up (Note: I made the door open inward so I could place a board across the door panels. This gives me a shelf to place stuff on when I am cooking indoors.)

Roof beams, canvas, and ropes all nestled into the rolled up lattice. It all fits into a storage bag.

The lattice unrolled.

I have a drop cloth that I use to keep my floor material clean. It also helps with getting the lattice work roughly circular.

Lattice work stretched out.

Latice work tied to the door frame eyelets.

Rope belly band, and top rope tied inplace. Both are vital parts of the yurt.

The poles are placed evenly around the lattice work.

Climbing inside the yurt, attach three poles equal distance around the outside by slipping the roped edge over one of the end pieces. then put the end into one of the roof ring holes. If it doesn’t look even at this stage don’t worry. It will get better.

Walk around the outside and put the rest of the poles in place. Go back inside and tug down on the roof ring. A pole or two might fall out don’t worry, the roof ring should now look pretty evenly flat. Replace any poles that had fallen out.

I still haven’t sewn all the ties on to the canvas walls. I use bulldog clamps that fit over the canvas and top rope to keep it in place. I also tend to run the wall so that it covers the ends of the roof beams.

I then center the smoke hole over the roof ring and pull the edge over the ends.

After this I just put a couple of spikes into the ground and rope it down (always rope down your pavilions). I use these ropes to attach the smoke hole cover.

I also have so much furniture I place into the yurt, and the door way is a little low, I tend to pack it all in before I tie the lattice to the door frame. Larger yurts don’t really have that problem.

Hope that helps. Took about 15 minutes (includes photo time)

PS. Images of the knots

When making the yurt I used nylon rope. I tied a knot, threaded the unknoted end through the holes and then tied another knot with the two lattice pieces to gether as snug as I could get them. The rope has stretch in it and the gap adjustment will happen naturally. another one of the great thing about the lattice is if a section breaks you can cut the ropes and put a new section in without dissambling the rest of the yurt.

• June 29, 2009 -- Thoughts on a $35 Yurt (10)
• April 28, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff v1.2 (0)
• April 28, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.6 (0)
• March 8, 2009 -- More Yurt Stuff (0)
• March 8, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff (0)
• August 19, 2010 -- Turkish Carpet Project v1.7 The Math (0)

OK, I have had numerous people in the last month or so express a lot of interest in my mini yurt. I have promised I would make a post on just how I managed to build the cute little thing for so little (inflation may have inflated the cost a bit).  So Here it is.

Mini Yurt

Having had many conversations with a guy from work on the world of scouting, I was not surprised when he asked me for ideas on how to make unique tents the scouts could build themselves. They had to be cheap, compact for storage, and build-able by scouts. Nothing like a building challenge to get me moving.

I had previously read an online manual on yurt building over at Woodland Yurts.

Woodlands Yurts Build a yurt online guide

I am not going to re-cover what is on his site. His manual tells how to make yurts for 8′ to 16′. I recommend reading it completely, and then reading the rest of this post.

For size and cost I went with 8′ yurt.

Materials Used.

The walls were made out of Cedar lathing. They come in 4′ lengths and are often found packed together with strapping in packages of 20.  (mark the top lathe and drill through them all at the same time)

The roof beams were made out of Cedar 1″x6″x4′ fence posts (Could cut with any saw, but I figured jigsaw would be fastish, but scouts couldn’t kill them selves with it) I used a band saw.

The rope was braided nylon (melting the frayed ends of nylon to finish them)

The covers are out of brown tarpaulin (for scouters), and Canvas (painters drop cloths) for me.

Roof ring is out of recycled skids, or scrap plywood (scrounged),

Nails (recycled skid)

Door hole (recycled skids)

Tools for Scouts (minimum collateral damage)

Drill & drill bits

Jig Saw

Knife

Lighter

Hammer

wire snips

Difference in construction from the manual.

The main difference I had in mind for the scouters version was the use of nails hammered into the ends of the roof beams. Getting all the holes drilled at the right angles in the roof ring required jigs and stuff (or a drill press with a tilting deck). Hammering the nails into the roof beams only need to have the ends snipped off and then they could be bent to the right angle.

I also to keep cost down went with brown plastic tarps for the outer fabric. Canvas drop cloths add a bit to the cost but can be gotten for nothing (keep reading)

Secret to low price.

Canadian Tire Money! The ropes, and covers can be bought at Canadian tire using nothing but Canadian tire money. Yes its alot of money, but if you ask around you’d be surprised at just how many people are willing to hand over large stacks of the cash. I have collected hundreds of dollars over the years from the generosity of people I hardly now. I figured a scout troop of 20 kids would bring in mountains of cash in no time.

Canadian tires are everywhere in Canada. I have no idea if there is an equivalent store stateside that prints its own money… If it exists then awesome sauce.

Other thoughts

The 8′ round yurt is a nice size for a single person with a whole bunch of stuff. I fit in a 2.5′x6.3′ rope bed, aumbry cupboard, chest, archery equipment, coolers, rubbermaid totes. The low profile and round shape make it excellent in high winds. The hole unit packs up nice and small with everything but the roof ring and door panel fitting inside the rolled up lattice. I even had enough tarp left to sew up a bag that the unit fits into. The only thing that isn’t great about it is the interior height. I am 5’10″ and when I stand up straight I am looking out the smoke hole.

I chose to make my own style door out of recycled plywood, but the scouters version was just going to be the door frame and cloth door.

Yurt door 1

Yurt door 2

• March 8, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff (0)
• August 31, 2009 -- Lelands Norse Play Tent v1.2 (0)
• August 31, 2009 -- How I set up a Bedouin Tent (12)
• July 4, 2009 -- Pole Lathe Class (4)
• July 1, 2009 -- Setting up the Yurt (6)
• April 28, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff v1.2 (0)

Mistress Agnes, and myself braved a 12.5 hour trip into Avacal. An Avacal populated by gigantic windmills. If they had been any closer to were we camped, I may have had to go Don Quiote on their butts.

I found my old banner in the bottom of a tote, so I used my old device for the week end.

The inside was pretty cozy once all my stuff got placed inside it.

 Agnes’s pavillion took a beating in the high winds.

I got to see the elevation of Master John into the order of the Laurel.

Good event over all.

But over all I have just one word for you all…

LANDSKNECHT!

Be Afraid…. Very Afraid

• June 29, 2009 -- Thoughts on a $35 Yurt (10)
• March 8, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff (0)
• January 3, 2011 -- Ouled Nail Bedouin Tent v2.3 Final thoughts. (0)
• June 29, 2010 -- AT War 2010 (4)
• June 29, 2010 -- Drachenwald Silk Banner (0)
• May 2, 2010 -- May Gamers 2010 (1)

Now to make the side walls, and a locking mechanism for the door.

• July 1, 2009 -- Setting up the Yurt (6)
• June 29, 2009 -- Thoughts on a $35 Yurt (10)
• April 28, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.6 (0)
• March 8, 2009 -- More Yurt Stuff (0)
• March 8, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff (0)
• August 19, 2010 -- Turkish Carpet Project v1.7 The Math (0)

More and more I am starting to think I might just leave it natural. Wood is so pretty, its a shame to cover up all the grain.

End tenons chiseled and sanded down to 1″

Chalk lined a straight line on the rails and drilled 1/2″ holes every 4″s

Rails coming together.  I caught my nephew using it as a fire ladder. You just cant get mad at a 2 1/2 year old when they want to play fireman. Even if it means having a big old dent in the wood where he dropped it…. <sigh>

I was a little worried about making the tenons for the rail ends so thin but I think it will not be a problem as the two rails are solid as all heck. I took a rope across the middle of the bed and twisted it to see how much inward flex I was going to have to deal with. My last rope bed had a hell of a lot of flex (1 1/2″ hemlock curtain dowel).  Little to no flex at all.

I have a 8′ yurt, and the bed is 6’4″ long. That doesn’t give a lot of left over room in the yurt. I guess one of my future projects is going to build a round center pole pavilion big enough to fit the bed between the walls and center pole.

• May 6, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.7 Last Call (0)
• April 6, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.4 This is the End (not really) (0)
• April 2, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.3 (0)
• March 23, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.2 (0)
• March 16, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v.1.1 (0)
• April 21, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.5 Too Long 4 Lathe (1)

Each corner of the door frame now have hinges (two removable pins)

Double checking the door fits

The inner strips fit inside the door frame.  end clip accounts for the hinge

Door assembled with all the hinges attached

Door diassembed by removing the eight pins

Staining it all the same color as the yurt lattice and roof beams.

• April 28, 2009 -- Turned Bed Frame v1.6 (0)
• September 28, 2009 -- Practice: Oval Turning… Inro (0)
• July 1, 2009 -- Setting up the Yurt (6)
• June 29, 2009 -- Thoughts on a $35 Yurt (10)
• June 3, 2009 -- Rasp Handles (0)
• June 1, 2009 -- Practice: Barley Twist (0)

Starting with 2×3′s I ripped off the edges to get nice flat sections.  Dog legged the joint.

Recess section on the outer side To wedge the wall in a bit.

Piano hinge is going in on two of the four corners. The other two corners will have removable pin hinges.

• June 29, 2009 -- Thoughts on a $35 Yurt (10)
• August 31, 2009 -- Lelands Norse Play Tent v1.2 (0)
• August 31, 2009 -- How I set up a Bedouin Tent (12)
• July 4, 2009 -- Pole Lathe Class (4)
• July 1, 2009 -- Setting up the Yurt (6)
• April 28, 2009 -- Yurt Stuff v1.2 (0)