How to Build a Yurt: Jason’s Journey Crafting Homes in the Heart of the Woodland

"I’ve spent too long in the countryside now, there’s no going back.”

Jason has called a yurt home for the past 15 years and has been building them for over 10. Nestled in a woodland a couple of hours outside London, he runs Frontier Yurts, a small family business he shares with his 21-year-old son.

Although they make wonderful homes, their yurts have been used for a variety of purposes. From schoolhouses to dance studios, the possibilities are only as limited as your imagination.

The Ancient Roots of Yurts

The modern yurts that Jason makes today haven’t changed much from the traditional Mongolian structures that have been used for thousands of years. Nomadic herding families relied on the yurt’s ability to move with their flocks of sheep or horses multiple times a year. The design allowed the structure to be packed down, transported across plains on carts, and quickly set up again in a new pasture.

Traditionally, yurts were well insulated with felted sheep’s wool and covered with cotton canvases to keep families warm and cozy through harsh weather conditions.

Jason's First Yurt

Jason’s journey began when he first saw the small yurt that his friend had made. As he looked around at the beautiful space, he thought, “I think I might be able to make one of these.”

Inspired, he built his own using the traditional methods: a cotton canvas with sheep’s wool and hemp as insulation. Tucked away in the woods behind a friend’s farm, it made a beautiful home for himself and his young son.

After living in his yurt for some time, he did notice a few issues. First was that the cotton canvas greened and started rotting very quickly in the damp English environment, and the country mice loved the insulation a little too much.

Even with the challenges, Jason looks back fondly on the time he called that yurt home.

“Over 15 years, you learn how to make a yurt that lasts in all climates - rainy, damp, even very cold,” says Jason.

Modifications: Modern Materials and Local Expertise

Jason has taken the knowledge that he acquired from living in his own yurt and used it to redesign them for the temperate climate found in England.

Instead of cotton canvas, he now uses PVC, a polyester fabric with a plasticized coating on either side. This material is much more durable than canvas, especially for the damp woodland, and has a lifespan of about 20 years.

Jason works closely with a local family-run business that provides him with the large pieces of canvas required for his builds.

The switch to PVC canvas came with one small issue. Without proper insulation, the heat inside the yurt will cause condensation to form. So, Jason introduced a 19-layer foil insulation to the design - replacing the wool and hemp - keeping the inside of the yurt warm and dry.

The last change Jason made was not a necessity one but a convenience. Traditional yurts have two posts that stand in the center of the room to hold up the roof. This works very well but does make arranging your furniture slightly more difficult. By fastening a heavy steel wire around the yurt, Jason was able to do away with the posts, leaving a completely open space inside.

Precision Matter: Jason Takes Charge of the Lumber

When Jason started out building yurts, he did not have his own sawmill. Back then he was ordering wood from local sawyers. He wanted his own mill but couldn’t justify it - until Frontier Yurts took on a job that needed a lot of lumber and having his own mill finally became a necessity.

After some research, he came across some product overview videos on the Woodland Mills YouTube page.

“He’s just guiding you through. It instilled me with a lot of confidence and then the price was good, as well.”

He chose the HM126 trailer mounted sawmill with the 14hp Kohler engine. Having his own mill meant he no longer needed to wait for the local sawmill - he could cut what he wanted, when he wanted. The biggest difference it made for his projects was the accuracy in which he could cut his lumber. With a large sawmill, they guarantee the size within 1/8”, but for Jason even a small discrepancy makes a difference to the overall project. Milling everything himself means that it can be as accurate as he needs.

An arborist by trade, Jason manages the woodlands where he lives. This results in some timber for him to use. Anything else that he needs comes from sustainably managed plantations, such as douglas fir, larch, and sweet chestnut - also known as “poor man’s oak” for its durability and beautiful grain.

Step-by-Step Yurt Building

1. Planning and Design

Jason collaborates with customers to get an idea of what they are looking for. After collecting information like the size, number of windows and entrances, etc. he uses CAD software to mock up a design. Using computer software makes it much simpler to determine exactly how much canvas and materials they will require for the project.

2. Foundation

Footings are dug one to two feet deep and filled with gravel to support the round decking. The base is insulated and prepared for laminate, linoleum, or hardwood flooring.

3. Frame Assembly

Door frames, window frames, and trellis walls for the circular base. Roof poles and the centre hoop complete the frame. A steel cable is secured around the base in place of center posts.

4. Insulation and Liners

A flexible, painted hardboard is installed on the outside of the trellis and a nylon liner is added to the roof. A 19-layer foil insulation is added as a barrier to keep all cold air out and warm air in, avoiding any moisture buildup in the yurt.

5. Canvas Installation

Over top of everything, a large piece of PVC canvas is fit around the walls, overhanging the wooden base. This way the canvas is in the elements while the base is protected. The roof canvas is then heat-welded to the wall canvas using a heat press or heat gun, creating a perfect fit and watertight seal.

6. Wall Cladding (Optional Upgrade)

The last three yurts that Jason and his son have built have included tongue-and-groove walls added to the outside of the canvas walls. Although this is not necessary for the integrity of the yurt, it transforms the look of it completely. To see a whole stack of large tongue-and-groove that we’ve produced ourselves and then see it go up on the side of the yurt. It’s really, really satisfying.”

7. Numbering and Disassembling

The yurt is first assembled near Jason’s home. Once they have it mostly together, they number and label everything, disassemble it completely, pack it into a trailer, and move it to the customer’s property.

8. On-Site Assembly

Some of the locations that these yurts are being built are very off-grid and require Jason and his son to sleep in tents during construction. It takes about 12 weeks to complete a yurt, so by doing so much of the work ahead of time off-site, they limit the amount of time they need to sleep in tents to approximately 5 days. As Jason put it, “...my weary old
bones can only take so many days in a tent.”

Jason’s Upgraded Digs

Jason lived in his first yurt for over 9 years, but eventually it was time for an upgrade. He reused as many materials from his existing yurt as he could and rebuilt in a wooded area on the other side of the farm where he now lives with his partner, Bev.

He wanted to make things more spacious so he didn’t just build one yurt - he built two, connected by a boot room in between. The first yurt is the living area and kitchen where they have a wood-fire range cooker to keep things toasty.

Walking through the boot room, there is a bathroom to one side that has a shower and a compost toilet.

Entering the second yurt, you will see two cozy bedrooms. The home has a water bowser, solar electricity, and a generator that powers his workshop.

With proper insulation and PVC canvas, it is a very comfortable home for the two of them.

Why live in a Yurt?

As a child, Jason would spend hours playing and running through the forest. Now he spends his days climbing trees as an arborist and building with timber. His connection to the woods runs deep.

When people ask how he can live in the dark woods, his answer is simple: it’s where he feels at home. The sweet, earthy smell of the forest, the sound of rain on canvas, and animals frolicking in their natural habitat.

Living in a yurt has allowed Jason to remain connected to the environment that he loves.

Jason’s creations blend thousands of years of Mongolian design with modern innovation for those who crave a similar lifestyle.

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