Frequently Asked Questions about my yurt

Click here to see pictures of my yurt.

What does yurt mean? What is the origin of the word yurt?

The word yurt is originally from the Turkic word meaning "dwelling place" in the sense of "homeland"; the term came to be used in reference to the physical tent-like structures only in other languages. I found this and much more information on answers.com. Follow the link to see tons on interesting facts about yurts past and present, but don't forget to come back here when you're done reading.

How big is your yurt? (diameter and square footage)

My last home was a log home with 512 sq ft of living space. When I built the yurt I wanted to live in even less space, so I built the yurt 24' across. The area of a circle is calculated using the formula r², so I have 3.14*12² 453 square feet of living space. The walls of my yurt are 7 feet tall at the lowest point and the center of the dome is approximately 13 feet from the floor.

Did you build your yurt from a kit?

Kits are expensive because of the labor involved in finishing the raw materials and transportation costs are out of site. The reality is that anyone that is handy with basic building tools can build a comfortable yurt in a short time and for much less money. When I realized this, I decided to build a yurt largely from scratch.

I like to think of my yurt as a hybrid. I started off with a basic yurt plan from the book Tipis and Yurts by Blue Evening Star then I looked over brochures from five commercial yurt companies and incorporated their best features into my design. 

The only part of my yurt that is not made from my own design is the roof system. I bought the ceiling joists, center ring, dome and cover from a commercial yurt manufacturer.

The structural walls are made from cabinet grade furring strips (about 3 bucks each).  Each junction is secured with a 2.75" carriage bolt, a 5/8" washer and vinyl safety nut. The walls were wrapped with two layers of 4' wide bubble wrap. The inside layer has an R value of 7.3 and white vinyl coating to make it more attractive from the inside. The outside layer has an R value of 14.1 is purely for maximum insulation. The finished appearance was achieved by wrapping the entire house with a tarpaulin from a local hardware store that I cut to fit.

How much did it cost to build your yurt?

I have about $13,000 in the yurt, furniture and fixtures; not counting the land it sits on or my personal belongings and tools. Here are a few items I can itemize quickly:

$ 2,000 solar panels and batteries $ 600 breaker box, breakers, electrical wiring $ 200 inverters and adapters $ 300 gravel for walkways, etc $ 1,000 water and waste water plumbing $ 250 concrete for piers under yurt $ 1,000 joists and flooring $ 1,000 kitchen cabinets and sink $ 300 propane stove $ 600 refrigerator $ 500 wood stove and stove pipe

$ 200 wardrobe $ 300 bathroom sink, commode, etc $ 150 storage shelf $ 150 backup propane wall heater $ 750 wood for lattice frame $ 125 bolts, washers, nuts for lattice frame $ 800 bubble wrap foam insulation $ 2,400 roof system including insulation and top cover $ 100 underpinning $ 1,000 outbuilding $ 150 internet range extender

Do you use solar energy because your area lacks regular power?

I have solar because I am concerned about greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and toxic waste from nuclear power. In fact, I am less than 100 ft from an electric company line, but I have absolutely no connection to it.

Can you talk more about your solar panels and how they work?

I make 100% of the electricity I use from two 15 watt panels and two 60 watt Evergreen Solar photovoltaic panels. On sunny days, light from the sun is converted by my solar panels to approximately 16 volts DC. This energy is conditioned by an RV20 charge controller and then stored in 4 deep cycle marine batteries. The batteries allow me to have power at night and on cloudy or rainy days. 

This block diagram shows how the system is wired:

Do you reposition your panels periodically throughout the year?

No. I know many websites advocate doing this but my needs are small and I have found pointing the panels directly south with a tilt equal to my latitude (about 40^o) works well for me.

In case you want to know what tilt others use, here is the info. To maximize winter performance set panel tilt angle equal to your latitude + 15 degrees on the fall equinox. To maximize summer performance set panel tilt angle equal to your latitude - 15 degrees on the spring equinox. 

	Latitude (DEC)	Longitude (DEC)	Latitude (DMS)	Longitude (DMS)	Map Name
	38.9348129	-80.8334364	385605N	0805000W	Glenville, WV

Do your solar panels track the sun?

No. Some areas of the country are better suited to take advantage of panels that track the sun as it crosses the horizon. Because I am in somewhat of a valley the solar tracking option would not be beneficial for me.

Also, tracking is most often accomplished by placing the panels on a special mounting bracket. These brackets are incredibly expensive and it would be cheaper for me to simply add more panels that incur the cost of the specialized mounting hardware. 

Do you have some type of generator as a backup?

I have lived in the yurt since August of 2005 and have never run out of free solar electricity. I did use a borrowed gasoline powered generator to run power tools when I was assembling the yurt, but have never used or needed one since that time.

Do you have Air Conditioning and can you have AC?

I have no air conditioning. It would be terribly impractical to have air conditioning on a such a small solar system as mine.

I cool the house using convection. Opening the screen window in the backdoor (the shady side of the yurt) and the dome creates a convection current that pulls cool air in from the outside and exhausts excess heat through the dome. It is very efficient and uses no electricity.

Do you have a septic system?

I have a tub and flush toilet connected to the local water and sewer system. 

I wanted to put in a cistern and composting toilet but the county I live in requires residents to connect to a municipal water/sewer system if it is available. Since the small town I live in has both water and sewer, I connect to both.

What did you do about an internet connection?

I have a neighbor about 100 yards from my yurt (I live in a small rural community) who has wireless DSL. The signal barely reaches my yurt so I purchased a Belkin Wireless G Universal Range Extender. Placed in the window of the front door it grabs the signal and boosts it so I can use my laptop anywhere in the yurt and back yard.

What did you do about telephone?

I have a Sprint cell phone that gets excellent coverage, so I use it exclusively. Sprint plans are pretty good but their customer service is really bad - long holds, etc.

How do you heat your yurt?

My only source of heat is an airtight wood stove. This means the side walls of the stove are welded to form an airtight firebox and a heat chamber. As a result, fresh air can only be drawn into the stove through a single opening. Adjusting this opening allows the user to control the amount of heat generated and the length of time the fire will burn.

For example, when I get up in the morning or arrive home from work, I add wood then open the air intake; the fire quickly picks up and generates maximum heat. When I am about to go to bed, I add wood and largely close off the air intake; the fire burns throughout the night, but is less intense and puts out less heat.

Since the wood stove is my only source of heat, my house is like a cold water flat. After a prolonged absence the inside temperature is only slightly warmer than the outside. This is OK since my yurt is well insulated and the woodstove is adequately sized to heat the volume of air inside the yurt. If the yurt is 35F when I arrive home, I can build a fire and have the temp at 65F within 90 minutes.

Some have suggested I should add a gas furnace to moderate temperatures inside my yurt, but I am opposed to burning any more fossil fuels than I absolutely have to. I have a small two burner propane wall stove that I intended to use to keep the pipes from freezing but I have never hooked it up to propane.

What happens when it rains/snows?

The roof of the yurt is made of an extremely strong waterproof vinyl. Looking at the pictures you will see the roof has a pitch of almost 30 degrees. With even a moderate amount of heat inside any snow that falls on the roof quickly sheds off.

Where can I get yurt related merchandise?

Recently I received a shirt from Anna Oakley of www.theyurtopia.com It's really cool. Check out her site if you have time. She sells all kinds of cool yurt related apparel.

Thanks to everyone who has asked questions If you have questions about my yurt or yurt living, send me an email: sendjohnmail@yahoo.com