Insulation questions

[Khara]

Hi,
My partner and I are buying a yurt. We're going to buy it in the UK, and drive it in our van over to Slovenia where we are going to live in it while we renovate our old farmhouse. We will probably live in it for 3 seasons each year, but will take it down and store it when it's really snowy & we'll come back to the UK for a couple of months.

My questions are about

insulation

. We've had quotes from a number of different companies, most included

insulation

, but one company says he doesn't sell insulation because in his experience 'it can create problems with

moisture

getting trapped between insulation and canvas.'

Everything else about his quote is perfect so we're tempted to go ahead with the purchase, but I'm wary that we will regret this. It seems crazy to me not to at the very least have a felt layer?

Could we insulate the yurt ourselves with something we have bought separately? We are also keen to use natural products where possible, but everyone seems to do their insulation differently, from microfibre, lambswool, felt, or reflective NASA stuff. Whats the most effective natural insulation product for 3 season yurt living?

If we put in the insulation ourselves is it best to put it between the lattice & canvas? We don't really want to cover the lattice work if we can help it because we like the aesthetics.

We will obviously have a wood burner as a heat source, and we intend to insulate between the decking & the floor as best as we can.

Any other advice for conserving heat? We have a lovely view from the property so I'm insisting on a window, but I imagine they can be an area that is difficult to insulate?

Thanks in advance for any advice,
Khara

[Jafo]

In my opinion he is right and wrong. Yes, if you insulate for air tight type results, you will definitely have

moisture

issues. This forum is full of such stories. However, if you use no insulation, then you will be cold, all the time. I would recommend the bubble-wrap NASA insulation as it is a happy medium. It works really well with radiant heat sources such as wood stoves because it reflects heat around the room while allowing the yurt to breath. Mind you, when the heat source goes out, the room cools quickly.

Also, the insulation helps a bit in the summer by reflecting solar heat away.

Our insulation went between the outer fabric and a liner (inner fabric), all above the rafters and outside the lattice so you don't see it, nor does it conceal any of the wood.

[Bob Rowlands]

From what I have read on this site over the last three years, insulation in a yurt can be a HUGE issue in a wet, damp, or humid climate. Unfortunately I know absolutely nothing about what insulation will work in a yurt in those conditions. Others will have to comment.

Mongolia is a very dry climate and I believe felt works fine in that environment. Wish I could give some useful advice other than that. Good luck.

[Khara]

Thanks guys.
We've found a different yurt maker we're happy with. He seems confident that with natural felt insulation, good ventilation in warm weather, lighting the woodburner every day in cold weather, plus not leaving it unoccupied for periods of time, we should be ok.
Guess we just have to go for it and find out.