Mini splits?

[Sbliss]

We live in New England and are investigating building a yurt for my full time work space. I'm a filmmaker working with sensitive electronic equipment, so need to have climate control.

We're exploring

heating

and cooling with a Fujitsu mini split. Has anyone had experience with this? If we go with the standard

insulation

offered by Colorado Yurt Co for walls and roof, will the minisplit be adequate in winters that can get into the teens or below? And could the minisplit handle cooling/dehumidification in the summer?

We'd like to build a 27 or 30' yurt.

Colorado Yurt didn't know of anyone heating/cooling this way, but thought it would be doable, especially if we added additional

insulation

.

Thanks for sharing any experience, info, or leads you may have!

Sarah

[Bob Rowlands]

I'll assume the equipment is very expensive. I wouldn't put expensive sensitive electronics in my yurt. It is a tent. JMO

[Sbliss]

Thanks Bob,

I realize I may be trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, but am aware that some folks have built yurts which look like they're pretty far from tents!

Anyone else have any experience with this?

[hierony]

There's a few posts about it. It might work to directly message the one or two people that have tried it.

On climate control for electronics, it might be easier to cool/heat just the electronics--build a small enclosure for them and climate control just that little bit, at least if you need precise temps.

[YurterRT]

Hierony, that's a great open minded suggestion. You are correct, all of our networking computer equipment is housed and cooled/ heated seperately from the building vs ac/heating units.
My homemade yurt is so much more than any tent so I'm certain the ones built by professionals certainly are!!
Solutions abound if ya need em badly enough !!

[Bob Rowlands]

Spend time in a yurt and you will truly know it is a tent, not a shed or other framed building. Yurts are fantastic, as good as tents get imo, BUT, they are most definitely tents, not buildings. I'd know because I have been building houses since 1973. I also have had my yurt erected now for over three years. Just sayin. Whichever way you go, best to you.

[Corinarose]

I would suggest you check out smilingwoodsyurts.com they have wooden

yurt kits

that are pretty reasonable.
I live in a yurt from a company in NH and live in Vermont.
The first two years I used the "winter package" from the company but

heating

it with wood was a full time job for our cold winters.
I have insulated it (walls and roof)with 6" of roxul and it works wonder now and would consider a mini-split now, however there remains the fact that the outer layers are not breathable and create condensation. I have come up with a solution but ultimately wooden construction with current insulating practices is really the answer for anything intended to be permanent.

[Jafo]

The

moisture

is probably going to be an issue if you over insulate. I am able to use computers, inverters and other such stuff in my yurt, but I have the stock insulation package which still allows the yurt to breath. I am also not living in my yurt full time. That creates a LOT of

moisture

. Depending on the equipment, you may want to go with the suggestion to create a separate room inside the yurt where the temp/humidity can be controlled.

It can be done, but it probably won't be cheap.

[Wintergreen282]

I've lived in my yurt (in New England) for over three years now. I don't know what a mini- split is, but doubt anything with the word "mini" in it's name would adequately climate control a yurt - esp. a 24' or 30' yurt. Yurts ARE beautiful spaces to live and work with the light, open space, and visual beauty of the structure. But Bob, Jafo, and others are right about temperature and humidity. I think the only way it would work is to hook to the electrical grid, buy heaters and dehumidifiers you can "set", and accept the high monthly electrical bills. That said... You may discover things that DO make it all work and those of us in the yurtiverse will learn and benefit. Good Luck, Sarah! I've yet to meet anyone who owns a yurt - or wants to - be anything but warm and goodhearted.

[Surely Yurts - Steve]

I think that if you built a well insulated equipment closet within the yurt for your storage that it would be more efficient to monitor/control the climate in there.

Do you have grid connection? If so, perhaps a 'mini' dehumidifier within that space.

If off-grid a 12V computer fan inside may help.