Preparing Yurt Site in Forest

[John G]

I'm looking for some advice folks ... I started clearing a forest location for my yurt last Fall however the snow came in late October and I didn't get it finished. The forest is very dense and tangled and all work is done by hand ... my chainsaw and shovel are my helpers. The 18 foot yurt is ready and waiting and the frost is out (3+ feet deep this year). Yurt is an outbuilding for various uses including in winter time and will have a wood stove.

Yesterday I removed 6 stumps that were in my way. The ground is somewhat level with a few inches of organic matter covering it plus a few stumps that are not in my way. I plan to use precast cement piers with adjustable steel supports to hold the main 3x6 rough sawn aspen (poplar) beams.

My question is "What kind of soil-moisture prep should I do to avoid excessive

moisture

under the yurt?"
I've considered scraping away organic matter, filling depressions, using aggregate or other screened material to help with frost heaving, laying vapor barrier (easily punctured when I have to walk on it during platform construction). Or just setting footings on a bit of crushed rock and see what happens.
I really appreciate any wisdom you folks would like to share ..
..... John

[Bob Rowlands]

Cheap and easy. Level the site. Buy landscape edging and make an 18' diameter circle. Fill with whatever you got. Buy a 20' x 20' plastic tarp and roll that out on your 'platform'. Set the yurt on that. Fold the tarp up under the wall cover on the outside of the lattice and snug with the low band. Roll out carpet remnants, lino, old billboard covers, plywood, or whatever, and theirs your floor. Just a quick easy idea. Piers on ground that heaves really should go below frost level. But this is a yurt not a house. I don't know if this will work for you or not but there you go. Good luck

[Jafo]

If your platform is high enough,

moisture

is not much of an issue. I did no kind of prep for that and have zero moisture problems. Mine is on uneven ground so one side is about 4' high, the other side about 2'. Having the platform raised a bit, allows for air flow.

I pass through Thunder Bay every year on my way up to Dryden to hunt. Pretty area, perfect for a yurt!

[Surely Yurts - Steve]

You would obviously want to have your piers sunk below the frost line.

In remote locations that is not always possible.

So, if you end up doing what you propose (to use pre-poured pier blocks).

I would recommend that you use a design that has lots of contact points.

This way if a few of the posts heave it won't dramatically effect the platform.

Here is an illustration of our best design for this situation.

First image is a 24'

yurt platform

plan, you can just scale it down.

-Cheers

[Bob Rowlands]

That pier plan is nearly identical to the pads I have under my platform. Same number and nearly the same locations. However my floor frame is 2x4s on edge, and there are no posts. The top of the platform is about seven inches off the ground. No issue with rot or ground water around here this is semi arid land.

[Bob Rowlands]

To be clear I'm referring to the pads on the drawn plan, not the piers in the attached photo above. BTW whoever built that platform did a very nice job.

[John G]

Thanks for the replies folks. They have been very helpful and taken my plans in new directions. I've done a lot of back on forth on this and have decided to put the yurt on an 18 foot diameter platform sitting on the ground.

Specifically I've finished clearing the site of stumps, I've now got a leveled 19 foot diameter circle of 7/8 " gravel compacted about 5" deep with landscape edging holding it together. More fill will go outside the edging with landscape fabric under it.

The platform is under construction and the layers starting from the ground up will be:


20' diameter tarp,

20' diameter 6 mil vapor barrier,

pressure treated 2X4s on the flat forming a grid (2 boards thick), trimmed to 18' diameter,

18' diameter disc made of 2'x 8' blue rigid sheets of styrofoam 1.5" thick,


18' diameter disc of 23/32" T&G plywood (thickest available) screwed through

insulation

into 2x4 crib,


~6" tall edging of 3/8" exterior plywood around the platform,
vapor barrier wraps up sides

yurt sits on top of it all with yurt walls covering the tarp/vapor barrier on outside.
Additionally I will likely trench around the side where the earth rises slightly so as to provide direct drainage during heavier rains.

I'll post some photos as I start the platform install and yurt raising.

Best to you all .... John

[Bob Rowlands]

Thanks for the details. Sounds plenty good to me. BTW 18' yurt is a GREAT size. Good choice on building low to the ground. I'm built pretty low to the ground myself. lol Good luck with your build.

[Drunken hobbit]

Originally Posted by John G

20' diameter tarp,

20' diameter 6 mil vapor barrier,

pressure treated 2X4s on the flat forming a grid (2 boards thick), trimmed to 18' diameter,

18' diameter disc made of 2'x 8' blue rigid sheets of styrofoam 1.5" thick,


18' diameter disc of 23/32" T&G plywood (thickest available) screwed through

insulation

into 2x4 crib,


~6" tall edging of 3/8" exterior plywood around the platform,
vapor barrier wraps up sides

Holy heck, that's impressive. It will do the job, certainly.
My floor is made of, from the ground up...

old conveyor-belt rubber,
then a vapour barrier,
then old pallets
and then carpet.

Hahaha!