Any Yurters in Minnesota

[TORV]

I'm new to the forum as well and currently in the middle of my second build. I live in Duluth now but I've lived/worked in yurts in Montana for the past couple years. Hopefully living in the new yurt full time by next spring! Excited to get in the forum, I have lots of questions and hopefully a few answers!

[Marshall Eppley]

WELCOME TO THE FORUM Lots of good info here and good folks as well

[Yooper Jim]

Hello,

Welcome. We're looking into yurts for residential and commercial uses in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, so we're sort of neighbors, eh?

You write that you worked in yurts? What sort of work situation? As I mentioned above we are looking into commercial uses so we'd be interested in any information you'd like to share about working in yurts.

Thanks.

Jim Curtis
Houghton, MI

[TORV]

hey neighbor,

I worked for a company that had two yurt restaurants, and one backcountry setup for guided (or not) skiing. We had a couple different "brands" of yurts going so I don't want to play favorites but you can see a pic of one on the

shelter designs

page. Have you seen the ones at mount bohemia? I haven't been in them but I think they rent them out, they would probably be a good source for regulations etc. in your area.

[Yooper Jim]

Hey,
Thanks for the reply.
Would you let know what worked well and what did not with the commercial yurt buildings, please? Suggestions for improvements?
Been in the Mt. Bohemia yurts. All sorts of uses: ski rental hut, eating warming area, bar and grill, Safety Patrol, and lodging. Was impressed with the concept. (Why I'm on this list and researching). They used Pacifics - seemed okay. Was not overly impressed with some quality issues. Don't know if that was because of product or how it was implemented.
BTW, Bohemia is just down the road from where we're thinking about using yurts. You must have been up there?
Peace,
Jim

[porter.dean1]

Curious if you are building your yurt near Duluth, and if so if you are familiar with the building code requirements for St. Louis County or other parts of Northern MN?

[r_alan22]

I know that this thread is older and wonder how your yurt project has come. I’m in Montana, so I know about the cold winters. What I like about yurts is how versatile they are. Whether living in the desert, mountains, or in the city there’s a yurt that will work for any and every location.

I’ve had my setup for almost two years now and it’s been great for living off the grid. The one thing that I highly recommend getting is an

insulation

and snow kit. It’ll keep you nice and toasty in the cold winters. I added a wood burning stove (make sure you vent it properly, the last thing you want is your yurt catching on fire.) The added benefit is that if you don’t run electricity you can cook on it. I used that for the first year until I ran power.

The cool thing about yurt living is there really isn’t anything that you can’t add to it that you’d have in a traditional home. I added some solar panels (they have to go on the ground. If you built your own yurt you could make it strong enough to put them on top) and a generator for backup so I have lights.

I went with a 1213 sq ft yurt from simpleterra.com/yurt-kits/, which is more than enough space for my wife and daughter and myself. I added walls for two bedrooms and a bathroom for privacy. I’ve added cabinets for the kitchen, and a sink.

I dug a well for water and ran plumbing to the yurt. The plumbing and electrical both come up through the wooden platform that I built for the yurt to be on. I also put in a septic tank last year. Before that I was using a composting toilet.

Really, whatever you can dream up you can add to a yurt. Or you can keep it simple.