Preparing for Winter in UK

[YogaWithRo]

Hello! I recently bought a second hand 16ft yurt, which is up in my garden in North London, UK. I plan to teach yoga in it, and want to get it ready for the colder seasons. It is on a raised deck and has a good groundsheet under it. Here are my questions:

- Currently the canvas leaks a bit; I am going to reproof it this week but aside from painting the reproofer on, are there any other recommendations for making it water tight?

-

Insulation

: I have read about felt and foil options. What do people recommend? I am working on a tight budget as it is a little business, so whatever option I go for needs to be on the cheaper side of perfect. Are there other options? I have read about wicking - is this a problem considering I live in a damp / wet country?!

- Winter cover - do I need to get something to go over my canvas for winter? if so, what sort of material? I understand that ensuring air flow is very important to avoid damp, so am cncerned about too many layers.

If anyone has any advice for getting through UK winter (wet and cold mainly!) I would hugely appreciate it. It will be used daily so will stay ventilated. Thank you so much in advance!

[Jafo]

Moisture

will be your number 1 concern because it can lead to mold. Make sure the yurt can breathe. What source of heat source does it have? Is there electricity to it?

IMO, people often over-insulate which nearly always leads to mold. What are the lowest temperatures you can expect in your region?

[YogaWithRo]

Originally Posted by Jafo

Moisture will be your number 1 concern because it can lead to mold. Make sure the yurt can breathe. What source of heat source does it have? Is there electricity to it?

IMO, people often over-insulate which nearly always leads to mold. What are the lowest temperatures you can expect in your region?

Thank you!
It is a wood stove (but haven’t installed it yet so need to check it actually works!). Yes it has electricity so I could use a heater perhaps? The lowest temp is not too low - probably -3 degrees centigrade? The main issue is damp / rain.
What would you suggest?

[Bob Rowlands]

If you are on a ~tight budget I suggest covering the entire yurt with poly tarps to solve your concerns. Cover the wall with several tarps that are 6x12 or so and lap the edges secure with tension bands.

Cover the top with a tarp big enough to lap down the wall a couple feet. Double the rafter length, add the smokehole/dome diameter and add 4' to that. Get a squre tarp that size.

Make a slit in the tarp from the edge to a 2' diameter hole you rough cut in the center. Lay the tarp on the roof centering the rough sized hole over the center hole. Then Lap the cut edge of the tarp over eachother until it snugly fits the cone shape of your roof. 'Gorilla Tape' the outside and inside seams. Fine cut the upper hole as necessary once you get the tarp in position. This is how I fit my own tarp to the roof of my 16' yurt. 'On the money' fit.

The poly tarp will also act as an

insulation

layer in addition to solving any leakage problems, plus cut down on drafts. Keep the dry wood heat on and the smokehole or

dome

vent cracked as necessary to help expel

moisture

.

This is the cheapest solution I can think of to solve your problems. Try it and if it works, great. If other issues come up, well...it's a learning experience and you aren't out a ton of money. If I lived in my yurt year around my choice for insulation would absolutely be felt. But that ain't cheap by any stretch. Good luck.

[Jafo]

Originally Posted by YogaWithRo

Thank you!
It is a wood stove (but haven’t installed it yet so need to check it actually works!). Yes it has electricity so I could use a heater perhaps? The lowest temp is not too low - probably -3 degrees centigrade? The main issue is damp / rain.
What would you suggest?

Wood is fine (better maybe). If you have electricity, I would consider looking into a dehumidifier. I am sure they are common over there in the UK. An electric back up heater wouldn't be a bad idea either if you are going to have any water plumbed to the yurt.

[YogaWithRo]

Originally Posted by Bob Rowlands

If you are on a ~tight budget I suggest covering the entire yurt with poly tarps to solve your concerns. Cover the wall with several tarps that are 6x12 or so and lap the edges secure with tension bands.

Cover the top with a tarp big enough to lap down the wall a couple feet. Double the rafter length, add the smokehole/dome diameter and add 4' to that. Get a squre tarp that size.

Make a slit in the tarp from the edge to a 2' diameter hole you rough cut in the center. Lay the tarp on the roof centering the rough sized hole over the center hole. Then Lap the cut edge of the tarp over eachother until it snugly fits the cone shape of your roof. 'Gorilla Tape' the outside and inside seams. Fine cut the upper hole as necessary once you get the tarp in position. This is how I fit my own tarp to the roof of my 16' yurt. 'On the money' fit.


The poly tarp will also act as an insulation layer in addition to solving any leakage problems, plus cut down on drafts. Keep the dry wood heat on and the smokehole or

dome

vent cracked as necessary to help expel moisture.

This is the cheapest solution I can think of to solve your problems. Try it and if it works, great. If other issues come up, well...it's a learning experience and you aren't out a ton of money. If I lived in my yurt year around my choice for insulation would absolutely be felt. But that ain't cheap by any stretch. Good luck.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this out. I will definitely look into tarp. Is there any specific type you would recommend?

[Bob Rowlands]

Go to MyTarp online. Or other online source. Just look it up. My choice would be HD white poly tarp.

Get long lengths at your yurts wall height for the wall. Hang that tarp using cheap metal shower curtain biners. Clip to the cable encircling the top of the wall.

For square roof tarp size, rafter length x2 +smokehole/dome width+ 4'.

Once my roof tarp was fitted conic, seam made, hole fitted etc., and cinched under the top tension band, I walked around the perimeter of the yurt and trimmed it so it was a consistent height down from the top of the wall. Being canvas and knowing it would shrink alot, I left it two feet below the top of the wall. Sure enough it shrank a good foot within a few months. Poly tarp shouldnt do that, but I'd leave it long anyway just in case. Whatever you do leave it long. The wind might start whipping it up and down and loosen it.

I'd stay away from blue tarp unless that is your only affordable option. Blue cast in the yurt during inclement weather isn't for me. IMO white is the way to go.

[Bob Rowlands]

It just dawned on me, if your yurt cover is one piece, meaning no way to hang the wall cover from the interior cable, just snug it under the tension bands. If you don't have tension bands, all you do is add screw eye to either side of the door frame. Look at photos of Mongolian yurts they all got that. Make sure the roof cover overlaps it substantially. For a look at my yurt, go:

Bob Rowlands homemade yurt

Or you could avoid all that two piece fiddly farting by getting one massive tarp big enough to cover the wall and roof. Cut that with a single seam just like you're doing for the roof.

Or no cut. Make one massive fold in the poly tarp and fit it to the conic shape, and the wall and snug that dude with three tension bands around the outside. Then cut the hole for the stove pipe, dome, or smokehole. Orient the fold/seam so it allows entry at the door. That would be the easiest and pretty much leave the tarp intact while you try it out and see if its gonna work OK. For sure you'll have to get creative with a one piece cover at the entry. OK I'm out on this. lol

Hi . You are based in north London!!!! So am I. I am based in whetstone. Would you be interested in making contact. ? I am interested in creating a space in my back garden to hold mini retreats and people to sit and gather.

Shakti.

[Jarrod]

I have recently been checking out infrared heater panels. They seem to be popular on that side of the pond. Not so much here in the US- I would recommend you check into them. Good luck!