Solid-wall Yurts Easier to Move

The original premise of the Mongolian yurt was that it was to be somewhat portable.  While the Mongols lived in their yurts for a substantial part of the year, when the dead of winter hit in the high Himalayas, these semi-nomadic people moved lower down the mountains, packing their felt, skin and pole –framed homes with them on carts.  They were hardly light enough to transport by hand or skid.  Today, we build abridged and hybridized versions of these very early homes, but we have lost much of the portability of the original ger.

One of the reasons is that we have a great deal of lattice framing to handle.  While the lattice is lightweight, the assembly and disassembly of the frame is time consuming.  Along with that impediment to mobility, the roof ring also requires more than one person to erect and install, and the layering of the outer skins requires a delicate balance of adjustment and readjustment. If the bubble insulation is used, this provides an additional round of stretching and securing into place, most often requiring an extra set of hands.

The semi-solid wall yurt provides much of the benefit of the solid wall yurt, while actually decreasing the weight of conventional flexible walled designs.  At the same time, the insulative value of the rigid insulation that forms the core of each solid panel provides a protection against temperature fluctuations from hot to cool. This design has been found to provide a comfortable environment when the outside temperature varies from plus 35C to minus 25C – a full 60C (108F) variation.  The wall design can support a roof load considerably greater than that of flexible lattice designs, too.

However, one of the primary advantages of this semi-solid wall system is that it can be erected in less than 2 hours and broken down into components in less than one, with only one person required for the tasks.  That makes it ideal for medium-term camping, for setup in summer months and storage in winter (making it an optimal lakeside guest house), and for portability.  Although the unit requires more storage space than a flexible wall yurt, a sixteen-foot diameter yurt can easily be transported in the back of a half-ton truck, or on a small utility trailer, as its weight does not exceed 200 pounds (excluding floor and joist system).

A portable yurt may seem unnecessary for most applications, since they often are set up and remain in place.  However, given that almost no flexible wall yurts meet engineering standards that will allow them to be substituted as permanent, permitted structures in zoned or code-controlled areas, the only way to bypass permanent home rules is to be able to erect and disassemble the units rapidly.  This gives them an exemption as temporary structures, similar to portable garages.  With a 90-day window common for these buildings, the semi-solid wall yurt provides the capacity to build and de-construct the unit rapidly, allowing them to qualify for use in zoned areas.

Yurt Portability

Yurt

One of the so-called advantages touted by suppliers of the lattice-and-canvas flexible wall yurt design is that the system is portable.  On the surface, that claim seems credible.  Fabric or poly weave skins, ultra-light pvc or wood lattice a light rafter ring and bubble/foil insulation all contribute to the perception of portability. 

It is true that each, or all, of these items are portable, if one considers only the weight and space.  But true portability also requires ease of assembly and disassembly.  Here, the flexible wall yurt fails.

First, consider that erection of a simple 16-foot diameter flexible wall yurt requires the expertise and strength of two to four people.  To hold the rafter ring in place, for example, requires two people, while another one or two install the rafters.  The assembly of the lattice walls requires two to three people to place the curved segments in place, while hoisting the skins into position also requires more than one person.  Typically, assembly of a lattice-design ger takes at least eight hours, not including the deck or floor.

On the disassembly side, things are almost as complex, requiring care and precision in taking each piece apart in sequence.  On a windy day, the task is monumental, with the risk of damage to the fabric or window plastics a major cause of concern.

The concept of a yurt being portable, to be consistent with the Mongol original yurt design, simply is unrealistic.  In fact, the Himalayan tents generally were only moved twice a year, at most, so even they were not intended to be purely portable. But today’s outdoorsman may be seeking that ability to move from place to place.  The answer is the lightweight rigid (not solid) wall system. 

The yurts constructed by EasYurt provide that ability, with their EPS rigid insulation walls and roof system, routed rafters that allow foam insulation to rest in channels, and floor deck joists that have channels cut in 2 by 6 dimensional lumber to reduce weight by fifty percent while maintaining strength. 

It is true that EasYurts offer a budget concept, with a solid (rather than clear acrylic) dome vent, lighter (14 oz) poly tarp skins as opposed to heavy (22 oz) or canvas skins and less attention to aesthetic design.  However, their prices are at least 45% lower than the nearest competitor (and as much as 78% lower than other suppliers), and their designs all include deck floors (which no other supplier offers).

I have assembled an EasYurt in under 2.5 hours, and disassembled that same unit in under two hours, by myself.  Truthfully, these yurts are simple in design and appearance, but I also can find replacement parts, if needed, at any local lumber yard.  As a seasonal camping unit, or as a summer guest house, the system is perfect.  However, I am reluctant to spend a Manitoba winter in one, as it has only R7.5 insulation value and winters here are bitter!  But, I although I have used conventional yurts such as Colorado Yurts, I would be similarly reluctant to winter in any other commercial unit. 

Yurt suppliers have found a wide client base.  Fortunately, there is such a diversity of products that you can pick and choose the right one for your preferences.  Just be sure that you research their attributes, rather than rely on manufacturer claims of portability, ease of assembly and comfort in all weather.