I built a stretch hexayurt and beveled all the edges where the panels met. I think beveling is critical to the strength of the walls and also improves the R value of the walls. Beveling is really not as difficult as some imagine. I just placed a few 2x4s on a level surface, snapped a chalk line where I wanted to cut, set the angle of my Skil saw to 30º and followed the chalk line. Wear goggles and a dust mask because this stuff is nasty. After cutting I wiped down all the panels with a rag moistened with paint thinner to remove the dust so it wouldn't weaken the taped seams. I taped the bottom edge of the walls and added a strip of peel&stick foam insulation (sold for sealing door) to reduce drafts under the wall/floor joints.
For tie downs I made sheet metal gussets with 60º bends to fit on the ridge and where the tie down straps would cross at the wall/roof joint. I used two ratcheting cargo straps to hold the yurt down and attached them to rebar stakes placed adjacent to the base of the walls. This provides a sturdy tie down without guy lines to trip over. I cut out a door opening in one of the end panels to increase the usable space inside the yurt. I framed the door way with sheet metal bent in a "U" shape to protect and reinforce the door opening. This provides a reinforced surface I could drill through and mount hinges. The door was a piece of 1/4" plywood with the scrap piece of door cutout glued to it's back. I mounted a gate latch to the door and sheet metal frame and added a bungee cord on the inside to pull the door shut and maintain tension to keep it closed. I made a threshold for the doorway with a scrap piece of 2x2" held in place with 1" flat steel front and back that extends beyond the sides of the doorway to sandwich the threshold in place. On Thursday, January 10, 2013 7:12:45 PM UTC-8, PoiToy wrote: > > Hi all, hoping you guys have some suggestions... > > I've been browsing, reading and hunting for a week or so now, trying to > solidify a potential plan. The goal is this: Hexayurt living for the > months of February and possibly March in southwest VA weather (average lows > of 30F and highs of 50F, possible extremes down to 15F; some snow and rain > but not serious amounts of either at one time). Hexayurt would be put on > an insulated wood platform with appropriate tie-downs for wind. The site > has electric and can be heavily tarped as needed. I'd like to use solar > heaters for sunny daytime heating and am considering use of DC current > electric blankets and maybe a cool-to-touch space heater placed in the > center of the space. The goal is to be in better than a basic tent and > cheaper than a cold weather canvas tent/wood stove setup. Does this sound > at all doable and safe as far as fire potential, not freezing to death, and > maintaining stability in possible wet weather? > > I've been making calls on materials and have been told Thermax is almost > unobtainable. I could only find one source and was offered Thermax > sheathing at $46 with 2" being the only option. The sales rep suggested > using Rmax TSX-8500, indicating that this is the replacement for Thermax > and has a similar fire rating, not like the off-the-shelf Rmax at Home > Depot/Lowes. Price per sheet was $37 for 1.6", other sizes requiring at > least a 60-sheet order. So the question is this: Are there safe > alternatives to these? I've considered using foil tape to attach a > fire-safe thermal barrier to the off-the-shelf Rmax 1", which put the cost > at about $26/sheet and could theoretically be added when sealing the > edges...anyone try that before? > > Any and all ideas are welcome! > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "hexayurt" group. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/hexayurt/-/_JSqeGHC7G4J. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/hexayurt?hl=en.
