Yurts are designed to be erected with minimal tools. 

The number of tools required depends on how involved you plan on being during the construction phase. You can either get away with just a few basic hand tools or you may require access to larger, more professional equipment.

Before getting into what tools are needed, here’s a brief description of a Yurt.

Traditional yurts are based on the Mongolian herders’ hut (ger) and are portable, round structures that are covered with skins or felt. 

Yurts are suitable as permanent homes or temporary dwellings. 

A yurt uses centuries-old techniques for stability and comfort. They can resist any weather conditions. 

The structure consists of an angled assembly or lattice wall of wood or bamboo for walls, a door frame, ribs, and a ring beam, possibly steam-bent. 

They are a great option for anyone wanting to live off the grid, at a low cost. 

Tools Needed to Set Up a Yurt

The process of building a yurt is slightly different from building a traditional home. 

Typically, those who choose to build a yurt, opt for a kit that takes the guesswork out of both designing and building one from scratch.

There are no specific tools specified when building a yurt. Depending on the size of your yurt, some tools may need to be rented. But generally, simple hand tools are used, such as a sander, hand drill, jigsaw, chisels, files, hammer, and spades.  

A battery-powered drill for drilling holes in the wooden components, a tape measure, two ladders of about 8 feet, a sharp utility knife, a staple gun, and something to hold the compression ring off the ground, are the essential tools for building a yurt. 

Other items you may need include a sledgehammer, concrete for footings, framing lumber, rope, and a wheelbarrow.

Additional Equipment Required

If you want to make the compression ring yourself, either by steam bending a single piece of wood or laminating it, you’ll require specialized equipment such as:

• A steam box for steaming the lengths of timber to make the roof ring wood (you can construct this yourself).
• A water container and propane burner to supply the steam box with steam.
• A mold around which you will bend your steamed wood.
• An industrial sewing machine to sew canvas or other heavy-duty material. 

The yurt is made up of 5 basic parts: roof ring, roof poles, wall, door frame, and canvas. 

For most of the woodwork, you will find that it is simple to put together. 

However, when building the roof ring or sewing the canvas together, it can be time-consuming and rather more difficult. 

Ordering a Basic Kit

A Basic Yurt Kit has been created which includes the hard-to-make parts, but still leaves plenty of work for you to do. 

By investing in the Basic Yurt Kit, you eliminate the need to build a steam box, a roof ring mold, and an industrial sewing machine. Not to mention, learning how to make and use these items. 

Kits generally contain a roof ring, roof canvas, wall canvas or vinyl, tension band, buckle loop, wall connecting straps, detailed instructions, and a materials list. 

The recommended tools include access to a table saw, a chop saw, router or router table, drill press and/or hand drill, palm sander, and a few hand tools. 

Canvas is not usually recommended as a cover material for your yurt. If it is untreated, it does not stand up to the sun’s UV rays. Even if you consider treated canvas, it requires treatment with fire retardants and UV inhibitors to have a chance of long-term survival outside. 

Yurt Construction

There are three main components that you need to construct. These are the roof poles, the wall lattice, and the door frame, which may require a local sawmill, or you can order them from an online supplier. 

Constructing a platform for your yurt can be contracted out or you can make it yourself.

The most common platforms consist of concrete footings, piers, or sonotubes. These support the beams rest under the deck. 

To insulate the yurt, you need to complete the deck with plywood or OSB (oriented strand board). This may, however, require additional tools depending on the type of deck you choose to construct. 

A cement mixer, generator, water pump or regular water supply, shovels, angle grinder, and other miscellaneous tools required to erect formwork or level the plot may be required.

To take the guesswork out of construction, Yurts of America provide high-quality kits that provide safe, secure accommodation for many years. Our kits can handle all types of weather and offer a wind and snow kit to help your yurt endure extreme weather in rough territory.

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