Seems like a great "temporary" shelter. Something more permanent will lend better to longer term use. Insulation, room, longevity in the elements would be a few of my worries for using such a shelter long term. We looked into buying a Yurt pre-existing on a property. It was a fabric topped Yurt. It would work ok in AZ with mild winters. I don't think I would want to live in it for any length of time. What exactly is so interesting about a plywood Yurt? What is it that you guys would use it for?
I agree, it would be a good "TEMP" shelter. This is the first I've heard of these types of buildings. The plywood yurt to me would be a good storage place. At 6' tall, I think it would be a bit short for me to stay in for any length of time.
"This shelter will last for years in most climates and costs less than $100." The writer has NOT bought OSB/Plywood down HERE in recent years....... Still, it IS a cool idea - say for a storage shed or 'guest room' for the inlaws....... It'd need a frame, and a good raised floor, in order to be 'liveable'. Needs to be able to withstand near-hurricane winds, and be 'bug-proof', if one wants to live in it. I have seen pics of a motorcycle campground a feller has on his private property in Tennessee - he has a bunch of yurts rather than cabins. EDIT - okay, who's the joker? My "O S B" turned into a little raghead getting blown up....?
Google "yurt." They are in year round use in some areas of the world among herding cultures. Quite a few commercially available models.
Sweet Solution These yurts are a happy marriage of simplicity with utility that is also way affordable. While they are providing a temporary solution for some, those yurts buy time until a more durable solution can take their place.
With a bit more framing and other improvements, they could easily be 'permanent'. And multiples could be put side-to-side, with doorways cut to make a multi-room building. Add on as you go! Bane, that raised entry and high peeked roof makes it usable by us tall guys!
Yeah, a little too short for me...but when ya got nowhere else to go...well then I guess it'd be a palace. And by the way the nomadic people of Mongolia live in yurts year round and they don't have the nicest weather on earth there.
With 3 more 4X8 sheets ripped to 2X8 sheets and a bit of imaginative framing, they could easily be 6' walls...
Exactly what I was thinking. You could also build this same shape with framing lumber only, then cover it with greenhouse plastic - instant greenhouse! Attach it to your "house" structure for passive solar heat. For strength, frame it up a bit, then wrap it with chicken wire or perhaps some kind of fencing, then gun an inch of concrete onto it. Great link, Bane....
Much faster, easier, and cheaper than using the old "starplate" system. But then again the starplate units are able to be made in several heights and widths....A "good" starplate "cabin" will probably cost over $600! A really nice sized building, ( 13 ft) would cost at least double that amount.
Use the plywood walls on-end, and twice as many....... Then our buddy Bane won't be banging his noggin......
I priced both the osb and plywood in 4 x 8 sheets here in Phoenix! You can't get it done here for $100! The 3/8 inch ( junk) osb is over $7 a sheet and the decent osb in 7/16 inch is well over $9 a sheet, Plywood,..... well,...... bring a co-signer! 3/4 inch A/D plywood is now $29.97 a 4 x 8 sheet here!
I wonder if you could build a "Temp" shelter using the insulated foam boards with the reflective side on them to build this ... you would have insulation missing in the plywood... the tape would seal it as well... and while it's not as strong it would be cheaper , require fewer tools (a good razor knife, tape), and easier to set up using fewer people... Just a thought...
I like the idea of using foam panels, as they shed water and are lighter than wood, but there's the drawback as well....no weight to them and just one gust of wind and it's all over...literally! Now, if you could sandwich foam panels in a light skin, either inside or out, or both, then you'd have a winner for sure. I saw a building made of FRP (hexagonal fiberglas panels) with foam sandwiched inside, that bolt together in just a few mintes, but they were terribly expensive. Maybe something of that nature? Pre-fab panels that can be quickly assembled that are light weight and are weather/rain/cold proof ( to a degree) anyway.... Maybe those thin veneer sheets of plastic, eg: "melamine" used in shower and tub assemblies ? Siliconed to foam panels inside?
