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Rainwater Harvesting for Yurts

S

someshds

New member
I am in the process of designing 2 yurts for myself, wife and 5 year old son to live in. One of my concerns is water. So I'm looking into ways of harvesting rainwater using the yurt. I've done a bit of research and watched a lot of video's but nobody is really doing it.

I'm thinking of making my center ring not circular but octagon shape, that way it will be easier to add a overhang over the walls then guttering on the overhang.

Any thoughts and advice would be appreciated.

Thanks
 
The big manufacturers have rain catchment systems, but with one caveat: They don't advise installing them in snowy environments. What part of the world are you looking to build in?
 
A yurt is radially symmetrical. Round engineering. The roof ring is round, the wall is round. Try to retrofit an octagonal hub and rafter system into a yurt is like trying to fit the proverbial square peg into a round hole. You might pull it off but it sure ain't gonna be elegant design. I'd consider engineering a system to collect drainage off the deck platform or slab for grey water. Good luck.
 
Hi Jafo

We live in Portugal. Being a Mediterranean climate it rains 'cats and dogs' during the winter months of october to february, nothing during july and august and sporadically the rest of the year.

Lot of wooden structures get rotten and break down from being so wet for months over the winter period. So not sure if using the decking to catch the rainwater is a good idea. Plus I was planning to have some gaps in the decking planking to allow air flow.

Which companies would service europe?

Thanks
 
Hey someshds, nice to see another member from our side of the Atlantic here.
I'm with Bob on the matter of keeping the yurt and its parts circular. As for the rainwater, I'm not sure what to advice, other than building the yurt on a raised deck, with the wall cover draping over the deck edge. That would allow to catch the rainwater as it runs down the wall. If you had some sort of gutter around the deck, right under the edge, it might work...then what...maybe let the water collect somewhere under the middle of the deck (such as a large water tank) and pump it from there?
I'm not sure if it's really worth the work, unless your area has poor water source.
If you needed to make some sort of special gutter hooks or other non-standard supplies, my forge is ready....
 
We are aiming for a completely off the grid system. We dont want to be connected to any goverment system. With TEOTWAWKI just around the corner I feel that the more independent we are the better i'll sleep at night. I also practise permaculture and one of the principles is having many small independent systems rather than one big one.

I guess having guttering in the round will be a pain, but the guttering on the decking is more doable. Still a pain, just a little less. If I could find a picture of one that works, that would really help.
 
Oh, a yurter AND a survivalist! Good.
I guess the guttering system around/under the deck is quite doable, if you think it's worth it. You should think of some filters though, to get the water as clean as possible into the tank. Otherwise it won't remain good for too long.
Also a hand pump to get the water out would be a good idea, if you're after off-grid life.
 
If you can get round gutters, you could easily attach it to the skirt of the platform. Getting the round gutters will be the hard part. They do make them here in the US, but they are special order and expensive.
 
The bent and halved PVC pipe idea immediately crossed my mind as well Knecht. However I've read stressed PVC rapidly degrades with UV exposure. I read where guys have built geodesic and hooped greenhouses out of the stuff and it sagged and failed in only a year. But that's only what I've read, not from experience. Lots or folks around here take small dia. 10' PVC and make hooped frames for their tomato beds.

I sat in my yurt last night contemplating guttering it. Every solution I came up with was all Rube Goldberg goofy. I didn't come up with anything I'd do myself.

However, that said, I've been on job site and seen pro gutter guys install curved gutter on turret eave. There must be a type of gutter tool that can form curves that smooth. I'm thinking the tool can be adjusted for various radii. Might be worth a call to those guys?
 
Some grades of PVC are UV stabilized--supposedly. I don't know how well this would hold up in Portugal though.

Since you're designing your yurts, you probably aren't afraid of basic carpentry tools or a sewing machine. I have a sketch of a design for fabric gutters--don't know how well they'd actually work. But they sit just below where the roof poles stick out over the lattice/khana. See the sketch.

A yurt is round, yes. But it is only an approximation of circular--a polygon with something like 40-90 sides. Using an octagonal crown ring is doable. You either have to let some roof poles stick out over the lattice more, cut the roof poles to different length (a pain for setup/takedown), or drill your holes into the crown ring to different depths. It depends on your design skills and craftsmanship. Make a good crown ring in any case.

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Perhaps, or even notch traditional gutters with tin snips, so they can be bent into a round shape.
 
We offer two rain catching features for our yurts and ship worldwide. One of the options is a fabric gutter system that is integrated into the top cover itself. The other is a rigid PVC gutter that can be installed onto the yurt after erection.

The biggest problem with continuous rigid PVC gutters made from piping may be the amount of expansion and contraction that occurs lengthwise. It can cause the piping to travel around the circumference of the yurt and bind up at doors or on your hanger brackets.

We would love to work with you if you choose to purchase a yurt rather than trying to design your own. [email protected]
 
Thanks for the great info.

Love the Pacific yurts guttering pvc system. Seems like the perfect solution.
Would love to know how much it costs and the cost of shipping. Here in portugal shipping seems to be a big challenge. I got a price on a bottle of stuff from a website and the shipping was twice the cost of the item. I also wanted to order a gasifier and the company seemed really put off by trying to get the thing to portugal.

If its not possible to import, I'll keep on working on other solutions. Something must be possible.
 
The cost of the perimeter gutter will depend on the size of the yurt being purchased (pricing can be found at Pacific Yurts – Pricing and Details – Yurts for Sale). The cost of shipping will depend on the size of yurt and combination of features chosen, so it might be worth contacting our sales reps to get a yurt quote. Once we have that information our shipping clerk can obtain freight costs to the nearest port.
 
Hi Pacific Yurts,
I dont think I can afford to purchase a yurt. Plus I like the challenge of self made, we have already purchased the canvas and have a friend with a industrial sowing machine that has made his own yurt too, so he will be able to give us all the tips we need. We will be sourcing the structure from locally grown eucalyptus poles or freely sourced local cane. Excluding the platform the yurt will come in less than $1000.
Can you send the guttering seperatley. We are making a 4 meter 12' (bedroom) and a 6 meter 18' (living area) yurts.
 
Unfortunately we are not able to provide parts or accessories for yurts that we did not make. They are specifically designed for our product. The eucalypus should make for a beautiful yurt framework. Hopefully you will post photos once the project is complete.
 
If you opt for hollow cane, be aware that if you were thinking about tying the lath with cheap Chinese nylon para cordage that has the thin sheath, there will be almost immediate chaffing and core blowouts. The sheath will blow before you even get the wall stood the first time I guarantee. Crap cordage is a total waste of time. There will be a massive time investment in tying up the khana.

I've found in the last few years the market is totally flooded with junk cordage. I highly suggest if you use nylon or polyester cordage you buy the product that is a SOLID BRAID like that used in draperies. No sheath and core junk. Trust me on this. Or, do as I did and use 1/4-20 bolts and nylock nuts. Not trad but it is totally bomproof. Good luck.
 
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