Wet yurt in wet Wales-please help!

[coedyseren]

Hi there! I am a complete newbie to yurt living so please excuse my naivety/ignorance, we seem to be making a lot of mistakes! We bought a traditional Mongolian yurt from a local supplier who imports them and who suggested we build a large decking platform for it (as opposed to one permitting for only the circumference of the yurt which I had read was necessary to impede water getting in by allowing the canvas layer to drop off the sides of the platform) given that their yurts come up different sizes when erected... Soon after erecting the yurt, we were getting a lot of flooding (rain here is absolutely relentless). Upon the advice of the seller, we have put a hose pipe around the yurt and inserted silicon gel into the deck grooves. This has helped somewhat but water is still getting in. Furthermore, I'm now finding that even on dry days, water is still seeping in from the outer perimeter of the yurt. We were advised not to put a floor down for ventilation purposes, so only have a coir matted carpet on top of the deck boards (it makes for a freezing floor some mornings). We light a fire almost daily (although we're not living in the yurt anymore due to my getting a bout of bronchitis and needing to take care as I'm pregnant), but this does not seem to resolve the

moisture

problem. What would you experts suggest? Thanks for your feedback!

[Jafo]

Well ideally, you would have built the deck the exact circumference of the yurt and then let the side fabric overlap it, but it is probably too late for that.

One of our members here (Bob) has made a suggestion in the past that you get a large tarp (larger than the base of the yurt) and place it under the yurt. Tuck the sides if the tarp that are on the outside, up inside the lattice under the sidewall. This will keep the water from outside getting in.

[coedyseren]

Thank you Jafo! Yeah, I wish that I had just stuck to my guns and built the deck the way I had researched it rather than go along with the supplier's notion of building a larger deck. We had thought of the tarp idea but weren't sure if it would compromise ventilation too much? What weight tarp do you think would be most suitable given this? (110/250gsm) Thanks so much!

[Jafo]

Originally Posted by coedyseren

Thank you Jafo! Yeah, I wish that I had just stuck to my guns and built the deck the way I had researched it rather than go along with the supplier's notion of building a larger deck. We had thought of the tarp idea but weren't sure if it would compromise ventilation too much? What weight tarp do you think would be most suitable given this? (110/250gsm) Thanks so much!

Yes, the tarp might cause ventilation issues. I imagine any tarp would work, but I also had another idea. Why not build a platform on top of the deck that is the same circumference as the yurt (or just a little bit smaller). Maybe 10" high or so and that would be for your interior. I have seen that before.

Colorado Yurts

has an example here:

[Bob Rowlands]

I'd go with the 'tub floor' tarp first, simply because the cost is minimal. That will also stop all drafts from below. Learn from that how it works, and go from there with another platform if necessary.

Fwiw my yurt has a cotton canvas cover. That's been good since the climate here in Colorado is semi arid. However early this year we had torrential rain and the cover was wet for a month straight. Not good at all. If I was faced with wet conditions year round I'd absolutely invest in a high grade fifteen year cover from a major manufacturer here on this site, and bail on the trad cotton canvas cover.


Good luck.

[Bob Rowlands]

A cheap elevated floor would be 2x redwood or pressure treated lumber laid flat on the existing deck and cut to yurt diameter. I'd paint the existing deck at the yurt footprint and also the bottom of the 2X decking boards before install to increase longevity. A 1.5" 2X is high enough to keep out all rain with the tub floor. Don't use plywood or worse yet osb for flooring because neither are rated to be wet.

If the deck is already caulked sawzall the caulk out and/or drill a series of drain holes around the deck floor just outside the cover. You need to keep water away from the base of the yurt. BTW the bathtub floor tarp idea isn't mine I have seen it on youtube video and it looks to be a good way to keep out wet and draft and bugs etc. Just cover the tarp with throw rugs or whatever.