Insulation worries

[baldy]

After many hours reading about Yurts and how to insulate them. I have come to the thoughts that using insulated foam board from hardware stores is the overall best option. I don't want to cover up the beauty of the lattice work, so after careful planning and talking to the people at

Pacific Yurts

, here appears to be the issue.
I will use 1" rigid foam board on the walls and 3/4 on the roof because of the tighter fitting fabric. Here is how it should work.
Install inner liner, then install the Astro Shield Bubble Reflective Barrier, then install the rigid foam board reflective side out, then the outer shell. Same for the roof. This should offer some comfort level in the colder/hotter months.
My main questions now are of

moisture

build up.Is there

moisture

buildup with using rigid foam boards? There have been many discussions on here about that and the most given answer is to open the

dome

and turn up the heat! Not a problem, however I will be installing four real windows in the 30' yurt as well, so that will help with venting out the moisture.
I don't know what kind of wood burning stove I am going to get, however after reading on here it appears that I should get a big one around 48k BTU or higher to help heat things up. Any suggestions on that would be greatly helpful.

[Bob Rowlands]

You have to get the moisture out. The simple solution is to open windows and the roof vent. In your home bathroom and kitchen in the winter, crack the window and the moisture exits fast. Same holds true for yurt.

As for trapped moisture between various materials, sure it is a possibility. Install foam that is water inert. Bubble wrap is also water inert. Both can hold water though, between themselves, and against the liner material and the yurt cover. I haven't a clue how that will work, or what issues it may cause. The only way to really find out if your

insulation

detail is going to work, is to try it, IMO.

Wish I could offer better advise on this matter, but my yurt is very simple and uninsulated. And C-O-L-D at 0 degrees.

Good luck.

[Ethan]

Sounds like a good idea to me, I plan on using the 1-2in Polyshield foam

insulation

for the walls, it flexes a lot better then rigid and is cheap. Might use rigid on the roof though.

[Bob Rowlands]

As for wood stoves, I have a small 'fireplace insert' sized wood stove in my 16' uninsulated yurt. It has about 1.5 cu ft fire box.

If you live in cold temps, my suggestion is to get a 2.5 cu ft firebox, or even way larger if you have a big yurt. You can always have a small fire in a big stove. Trying to keep heat in my uninsulated canvas covered yurt below freezing and down to zero means frequently stoking the fire every half hour. It never really gets warm in there. When the stove fades the heat is gone pronto.

Good luck.

[Bob Rowlands]

I think that drapeing flexible foam atop the yurt frame is the way to go. I always look at what the Mongolians do, because they've been living in yurts for hundreds of years, and they are generally poor and can't throw money at every problem.

Their yurts are all about fast easy set up, breakdown, transport. Erect the yurt frame. Lay on the liner. Work the insulation into place. Install the cover. Flip ropes over the cove and cinch down. Install the stove. Make lunch and get on with the day.

[baldy]

Thanks for the relies and advice. Any information is good information. However I have not heard of flexible foam insulation? Any more info on that would be great! Thanks.

[Bob Rowlands]

Google: roll ethafoam

[Ethan]

They have the stuff at Home Depot and Lowes around here just called polyshield. Might even find the good stuff that has a thin radiant barrier (like aluminum foil)

[ljamies1]

I have seen people stitch their own insulated poly-blankets to drape as the next layer behind the outer fabric. Since you will have four windows and a door section your wall insulation blankets would be relatively manageable in length. I am building a 30ft and my rough plan is to sew some kind o poly fill between two pieces of tyvel cut to the exact dimensions of my cover. I'm predict this will make the insulation more portable, easier to clean and will not cover up the inner lattice walls

[Bob Rowlands]

Another idea for 'portable' yurt insulation would be to have flexible 4' wide insulfoam wall panels trapped between two seperate inner and outer covers. Insulfoam panels could hang off the wall lattice crosses, just outside the inner wall liner. Since they are not permanently attached to eachother, they would maybe be four feet wide. Stitch loops along all four sides, and secure with paracord or whatever.

Dealing with a conic shaped roof is a trip. My first thought is pie shaped panels maybe two or three rafter bays wide. Stitch loops on the edges and join with paracord. Or perhaps velcro strips. Fastening/unfastening would have to be done from inside, off a ladder.

Just an idea. Making all that would be a lot of work. But as I found out this past winter, yurt insulation is a BIG deal.