Ad

White yurt cover, why so popular?

C

ChrisL

New member
I been mulling something over for a while now.

I see a lot of Yurts with White covers. i no expert in thermo-dynamics, but i guessing white colour holds heat better?

(i was trying to remember science behind shuttle re-entry heat shields, i forget).


All heat stuff aside, white stands out quite a lot. on a sunny day, a white yurt can be seen from very far in Rural areas.
In UK, i have heard countless stories of people trying to set up self-sustainable-esque projects, only to have difficult neibours complain to the council.

(ever since the post-WW2 welfare state began, British government bodies have been allowed to get right up in people's private business regarding land use. I am not a fan.)

I suspect that for perhaps the Reserved/conservative Rural country dweller, the sight of a bright white yurt appearing in their Arc of view, may be perceived as a 'intrusive-statement' of some kind.

kinda got me thinking a pastel green or brown might blend in nicer and attract less council-based shenanigans.
 
Last edited:
The classic intuitive test: go outside on a nice sunny summer day wearing a dark green shirt. Then put a lightweight white shirt over it, see how it feels. Now go play hid and seek in the woods--the dark green shirt isn't so hot out of the direct sun & is now great camouflage, like you suggested.

I have a plan canvas yurt in a nice green color (see profile pic). I haven't had it setup for a while due to lack of money for even a cheap platform (have since almost completed my summer platform), but I did have it setup for two or so months last summer on bare ground (no liner or insulation). In full sun it got pretty stuffy in there!

I'm going to put white lumber wrap (mildly holey but free!) on the southern facing portion. Depending on weather this winter, I may take the lumber wrap off or substitute the black side (higher heat gain, more slippery than canvas for snow sloughing).

The thermal emissivity (the reflectivity of a surface) is the word you're probably looking for. White things generally reflect (or don't absorb) as much thermal radiative energy as dark things. There's tables of emissivity easily findable; lots depends on the material but also surface smoothness, btw.

There might be some historical and cultural reasons for the white cover. It's also nice to have a cheap outermost cover that is easily replaceable to protect your more expensive (or time consuming if you sew it) canvas.

The topography where I'm at is nice rolling hills with giant wheat fields (50-2000 acre fields...). Because it's so rural you can easily hide away from the main roads (even most of the paved roads) by just finding a field and walking away from the (gravel) road until the curve of the hills hides you. Problem is finding the farmer/landowner. Think you could hide your yurt that way?
 
I have the light tan roof, and i did it because it seemed logical. With good insulation in the ceiling I don't think it will make much difference. If there are any trees near your location, a light colored roof will take on tree sap/goo/crap and become streaked with stains. It adds character. If you get a darker roof, the stains will still be there but you won't be able to see them. And remember, it is much better to beg someones pardon than to get permission.:) Good luck!
 
White undyed canvas is IMO the best tent color, but that IS jmo. I have been in dyed canvas tent before, olive drab military surplus, and in really nasty -20F conditions, building a Super8 motel in Jackson Wyoming. I could have cared less what color the canvas was. Or if they had stoked the wood stove with baby pandas. Warmth is good.
 
I don't know about baby pandas, but we could go back to our previous discussion of DTU's. I'm not sure it was ever totally evaluated to any exhausted detail....

DTU's are probably easier to find than finding the dinero to pay the import tax on BP's.

On a more serious note, I have spent a good deal of time, (about a month a year for three years), in an olive drab artic tent, courtesy of my uncle (Sam), in Alaska, Montana, Idaho and Oregon and also in white canvas wall tents in hunting camps in Montana.

With both being made of canvas of about the same weight, the white tent is much brighter inside, and doesn't get as hot in the day. Still pretty warm, but not as hot.

The OD canvas also doesn't transmit the light from inside the tent in the evening. A white canvas wall tent can look like a UFO glowing in the distance with a well pumped Coleman lantern inside. I don't know if that makes any difference in your evaluation.

Rod
rod::email::yurtlocker.com
Home Page.

PS: Bob, sent you a PM a bit ago.
 
Thanks, but I still can't figure this stuff out. I type in the message and 'submit' and it displays my message as 'user not found'. beats me. I can build an entire house by myself yet not decipher the simplest electronic gizmo. :/
 
I don't know why western manufacturers make white yurts, but I can tell you why from historical perspective of nomads of central Asia.

Yurt was a primary dwelling of nomadic tribes and also represented the wealth of the owner. Richer families used higher quality white wool to make felt. It required more labor and more sheep, since they were sheered in spring. Brown or black felt was mainly used by poor people since most of the white wool they prepared they sold to their wealthier neighbors.
White yurt was a symbol of wealth and used as a dowry for newly weds. However after a few years, when the felt got old, the new family usually replaced it with brown felt. If you are interested, I will write a blog post on this subject on my site.

Kochevnik
 
ah ok so white is likely to stay cooler in hot sun. i noticed that i keep wanting to reach for a white shirt on a hot/sunny day.
Though in UK, getting too hot is not much of a problem except for 1 or 2 months of the year.

interesting about white being a status symbol in central Asia. could be a global thing?
white is deemed quite 'fancy' in SE England.

cool website. love the uni-yurt model kit.
suddenly realized i havnt even drawn-out any designs for yurt build yet, though i figure/ planned out each step, nothing visual yet.
(i having difficulties with motivation to work on yurt, building a small model might be a nice motivator... having visual / touchable version of the final thing)
 
Dirt and filth, wear and tear on white cloth reveals the details about the individuals that use it. Nobody wears a fine white suit to work, unless they are televangelicals like Benny Hinn. lol Dirty white clothes are sure sign of a worker/laborer and lower caste etc. That might explain one of the reasons white is considered pure, holy, royal, upper class (white collar). As far from the common man as you can get. I think that is part of the connection. That and clean buffed nails on a man. lol
 
No offense to the clean manicured buffed nail man reading the Yurt Forum this evening. You know, thinking bout getting him onea them yurts. lol
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top