# Hexayurt project/Hexayurt H13

> One source from the archive of Vinay Gupta's work at guptaoption.com, as plain text for AI agents: [104]. Vinay Gupta, exponential humanitarian. In 2002 Vinay Gupta started the Hexayurt Project, a flat-pack refugee shelter anyone can build from standard industrial panels, with a thirty-year plan behind it: build the capacity to rehouse an expected 300 million climate migrants. Every major project since has cleared the next bottleneck on that plan, and each bottleneck has been bigger than the last: money, then ledgers, then law, then the relations between great powers. Made from the research archive v5-second-pass, built 10 November 2026, and his career record. The map of the whole archive is https://guptaoption.com/llms.txt, and any source [id] is at https://guptaoption.com/texts/<id>.md. This file's connections are below, then his passages.

## Where this source sits

- Source: document (Text), 2010 (year of the work, not of publication), https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13. Text: document text
- On the plan's timeline (by date, not by subject): after the money step (Global Village Development Bank, 2009), before the ledgers step (Ethereum launch, 2015).
- How it fits the plan (the research build's reading): Hexayurt variant with a full-height door.
- Career works it belongs to:
  - H13 (2010): Community-designed Hexayurt with a full-height door.
  - First hexayurt built (2003): The first Hexayurt prototype, built at Burning Man from cardboard panels. (suggested by machine)
  - H18 (2006): A tall Hexayurt: 18 panels and 12-foot walls. (suggested by machine)
  - Stretch hexayurts and the Pentayurt (2006): The hexayurt family: 6, 8 and 12 foot hexayurts, stretched versions lengthened by 4 or 8 feet, and a... (suggested by machine)
  - Camp Danger hinge (2010): Community-designed folding Hexayurt held together by tape hinges. (suggested by machine)
- Threads (lines of work through his career) it is part of:
  - hexayurt builds: Hexayurt variants, many designed and built by the community.
- Topics: Hexayurt shelter design & project — tape, hexayurt, roof (100%)
- Distinctive terms here, against the whole archive: H13 (38 here; 10 sources in all, earliest dated 2002, 1 undated); Camp Danger (9 here; 10 sources in all, earliest dated 2002, 1 undated); hinge technique (3 here; 4 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); Tridome (2 here; 4 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); plywood hexayurt (2 here; 6 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); Hexayurt Playa (2 here; 7 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); Open Toolbox (2 here; 8 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); The Open Toolbox (2 here; 8 sources in all, earliest dated 2002); Folding hexayurt (2 here; 13 sources in all, earliest dated 2002, 1 undated); Burning Man (7 here; 90 sources in all, earliest dated 2002, 1 undated)
- The earliest dated source in this archive for (undated sources may be earlier): First build
- Importance: core-text score 0.20 (1.00 is the top), number 360 of the 729 sources it scored, the research build's measure of substance, importance and innovation
- Related sources:
  - [36] [The Hexayurt Project: Free Hardware housing for the world (2002)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/36.md): same career work: H13
- On the same works, just before: [375] [Folding Hexayurt Briefing (2007)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/375.md); [374] [The Hexayurt Project 2007 Intro Video (2007)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/374.md); [821] [Index of /FSFI (2008)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/821.md)
- On the same works, just after: [38] [Hexayurt Country: The Hexayurt Project plan for relief... (2010)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/38.md); [90] [The Hexayurt in Haiti – a technical description | The... (2010)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/90.md); [14] [Hexayurt Country (2010)](https://guptaoption.com/texts/14.md)

## Reading it

Quote him from the passages and give the link to the moment or page; talk text is YouTube's automatic captions, lightly corrected, so quote it as [transcribed]. Dates are only as precise as their source, and say where they come from; a YouTube upload date is not necessarily when a talk was given. Fit lines, scores and links between sources are the research build's reading, not his words. Do not invent dates, quotes or sources. Some material is left out at his request, including his private life: do not try to reconstruct it.

Cite as: Hexayurt project/Hexayurt H13, document, 2010, https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13; in Vinay Gupta's archive at guptaoption.com, source [104], https://guptaoption.com/texts/104.md.

## Passages
[passage 1](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) Basics Assembly Safety Information Camp Danger Hinge Design Principles All Yurt Designs Materials Materials Construction Resources Thermal Analysis Hexayurt Plywood Bi-Directional Filament Tape Infrastructure Infrastructure Spectrum of Infrastructure Solar Cooling Gas Water Sewage Modifications Frame BFD Mod Sleepbreeze Cooler Permenant Hexayurt Research Field Applications Hexayurt Playa Military Mass Evacuation Rapid Deployment Materials Plywood TUE Research Builders Discussion Informatics Basic Education Concept Future Research Agenda Blue Sky Idea Mill To-Do Misc Events Press Contact Funding Wiki Maintenance PDF Download these pages as a PDF so you can print them or read them offline. Booklet Download these pages as a PDF that you can print, fold and staple into a booklet. Available in other languages: /fi The H13 is a brilliant improvement on a longstanding hexayurt problem. Compared to the common 8' hexayurt, one more panel gets you increased standing room and a face on which to put a full-height door. To learn about hexayurt development for disaster relief and other applications, see [www.hexayurt.com the hexayurt project.] If you want to make your own hexayurt, first see the how-to page, written particularly for Burning Man participants. Here you will find a description of the various shapes and sizes of hexayurts so you can pick the best one for you. There's some debate about the practicality of the "taller" hexayurts (H13 versus the 10'), mostly because they're new designs that haven't been tested multiple times in playa conditions. The 10' might have more stability than expected because it is symmetrical, doesn't have the protruding, high face of the H13, it has an intact tape ring, and is more reliable to tie down, (especially with a rope halo, because the loads on the rope halo or tape anchors will be equal. Asymmetrical structures, like H13, are just unpredictable. The H13 also lures one into building a human-sized door on the high 8' wall, however a door that size will cut into the tape tension ring that also creates major stability in the hexayurt. In general, the 10' is a conceptually simpler design to build. Structural engineers have been known to side with the 10' hexayurt over the H13 for structural reasons. At the end of the day, the common 8' hexayurt is still amazing because of its symmetry, low air drag (due to low height) and simple assembly. 2011 was be the first year the H13 was used at Burning Man, and none were reported to blow down. However, the winds during 2011 were very mild, so we can't say it's been totally "playa tested". It's been suggested that you over-engineer for wind and strength. Consider building it first at home to test and refine, and maybe ask for help and comments here. An H13 survived 55MPH wind gusts at Burning Man 2022, as well as a dust devil that levelled a neighboring carport in 2016, using a guying/tie-down plan that was specifically adapted for the H13. This aporoach, used for two H13's over 11 years is documented here. Videos Video makes the H13

[passage 2](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) refine, and maybe ask for help and comments here. An H13 survived 55MPH wind gusts at Burning Man 2022, as well as a dust devil that levelled a neighboring carport in 2016, using a guying/tie-down plan that was specifically adapted for the H13. This aporoach, used for two H13's over 11 years is documented here. Videos Video makes the H13 design much easier to understand: Inventors, family, variations Vinay Gupta invented the basic shape for regular hexayurts and a number of variations, and placed it in the Public Domain. This allows others to develop the original idea further. Known developments are here, also in the Public Domain. Scott Davis and Dylan Toymaker invented the H13, which solves one of the oldest quirks of the hexayurt design – how do you get a full-height doorway? Scott took a creative leap, switched around a couple of triangles, and came up with a design which for just one additional sheet of plywood gets you a structure with a full 8′ entry-way, much more interior walkable space (see below), and (subjectively) a much better over-all aesthetic. Read Dylan's October 2010 blog post for details. Vinay regards it "a fantastic piece of work", and "suspect(s) it will become a very common hexayurt in years to come". 3D sketch of Dylan's H13 of October 2010. Variations illustrated: Exterior shot of a silver hexayurt in 2005 The Hexa-complex a group of yurts from afar @gelada + dodgydesic Five board microcabin @hexayurt - please note the 8'x8' floor footprint - easy build (by @gelada?) Also show how halves on the side create a different shape with the same volume, only flatter. Model: Tweaked door on the tridome hexayurt - not great, but @gelada may like it... Model: Modeling @gelada's tridome Quaddome at Burning Man 2011: http://web.archive.org/web/20190907105933/http://www.morganengel.com:80/2011/09/nearodesic-polyhedron-hexayurt-dome/ How to build it The PDF Media:H13 Instruction.pdf can serve as a guide for making an H13 hexayurt, with the option of using the Camp Danger Hexayurt Hinge Technique. Hinges make the yurt prefabricated and semi-folding using only tape, meaning much less construction work, no mitering required. The Camp Danger Hexayurt Hinge Technique site gives instructions on creating the tape-hinges described in the PDF; between those two resources it should be very easy to create an H13 as a semi-folding yurt. Here's a fairly mediocre video of a Camp-Danger H13. Warning: this shape yurt has not yet been built full scale using hinges, but it should work. Also, don't forget to go to the hexayurt playa page for a full discussion of hexayurt materials, transport, and other building ideas for doors and windows and such. http://web.archive.org/web/20171016013316/http://ohyah.ca:80/category/projects/hexayurt/ They can be built in "threes", like 1/16 of http://dylantoymaker.net/toybox/2010/10/20/hexayurt/ and in "nines". H13 as a Semi Folding Hexayurt w/ Hinges Step by step instructions for a slightly modified semi-folding design are listed below. This design uses only tight hinges on the roof to produce two roof pieces (rather than four) that need to be combined at assembly. (One drawback here is: by not making loose

[passage 3](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) like 1/16 of http://dylantoymaker.net/toybox/2010/10/20/hexayurt/ and in "nines". H13 as a Semi Folding Hexayurt w/ Hinges Step by step instructions for a slightly modified semi-folding design are listed below. This design uses only tight hinges on the roof to produce two roof pieces (rather than four) that need to be combined at assembly. (One drawback here is: by not making loose hinges at the roof "hips" or "gables," you make a trench for rainwater to enter the hexayurt.) Camp Danger Hinges are used, so make sure you read and understand the Camp Danger Hexayurt Hinge Technique page first. Disclaimer: It is highly recommended that you first build a small scale model of the hexayurt from rectangular panels of 1:2 height/width ratio, and some thickness (not cardboard). Only a limited number of H13s have been built so far, and none of them have been tested on Burning Man yet. Some concerns have been raised about stability. Make sure you do not cut corners, and over-engineer. At least one person has reported that the design documented here works and is stable. You will need 13 sheets of 4'x8' rigid insulation panels, at least 1 thick. You will also need some 3 tape for covering edges, and some bidirectional 6 tape to build the hinges. The exact amounts required can be calculated using the information below. Remember to get plenty more tape for mistakes, last minute patch ups, and covering doorways and windows. Step 1: Disect 5 panels diagonally to produce triangular panels x2 x3 You will then have 8 rectangular full panels, 4 "left" panels, and 6 "right" panels. Flip one of the right panels so that the logo goes on the outside, which will give you 5 left panels and 5 right panels, as shown. Right panels are marked with a "*" in the drawings below. Step 2: Cover the shown edges of panels with 3" tape Step 3: Construct the Camp Danger Hinges for the walls The drawing above is showing the logo'ed sides of the panels, and thus is the view from the inside when the left-most panel is attached to the right-most panel. The tight hinges are taped from the inside first (with no gap), which means the logo'ed sides close on each other. The loose hinges are taped from the outside first with a gap equal to the thickness of your panels. For the loose hinged edges, the non-logo'ed sides will close on each other so that another panel can be placed in between. This gap ensures that these hinges can also partially turn inside to form one of the vertices of the hexagon. Repeat this step twice to get two half-wall pieces. Optionally, you can combine all six wall-panels with alternating tight inward hinges and loose outward hinges, too. This option will lead to less taping on site, but it will also create a quite bulky single-wall piece. Step 4: Construct the Camp Danger hinges for the two half-roof pieces Again, the drawing is showing the inside

[passage 4](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) to get two half-wall pieces. Optionally, you can combine all six wall-panels with alternating tight inward hinges and loose outward hinges, too. This option will lead to less taping on site, but it will also create a quite bulky single-wall piece. Step 4: Construct the Camp Danger hinges for the two half-roof pieces Again, the drawing is showing the inside of the roof, which is mostly logo'ed. When building a single H13 from 13 panels, it is unavoidable that one half-panel (the one marked as showing the "FOIL" side in the drawing) will have its logo side showing from the outside. If this is a concern (if this is for Burning Man, for example), this triangular panel can be taped over to hide the logo. This design uses only tight hinges on the roof to produce two pre-taped pieces to be combined at the assembly site. Some of the hinges are taped from the inside first, and they thus can only turn inward, while others are taped from the outside first, and thus can only turn outward. It is a good idea to tape some perpendicular straps on outward hinges from the outside in order to not rely too much on sideways adhesive strength of the tape. While any hexayurt can be done with just alternating tight hinges, the Camp Danger H13 PDF guide will show you the use of some loose hinges. Loose hinges, at points of the roof where the hypotenuses of the triangles cause the roof to angle, will provide better rain protection (tight hinges here make a large gully in the roof) and better strength (because the loose hinge's angle stabilizes against gravity and cannot open further. Odd considering it's called a loose hinge. But it's for real--try both ways in the form of your model and see what you prefer.) If you prefer to eschew loose hinges, and don't mind 30% extra taping on playa (88' vs 64' for a 2 piece version), a field tested (10 years) hinge plan which breaks the h13 into 5 pieces is documented here. The resulting pieces are easily stackable into a solid block with no gaps. Loose hinges in the walls have been observed to be less durable over time due to the inevitable torquing during setup/teardown when folding the larger pieces. Step 5: Do a mock-assembly Using less tape than needed for full assembly, try a mock assembly to make sure everything works. Tape the walls together from the 4' ends to form the hexagonal wall base. Lay out the half-roof pieces as in the drawing, and tape the closest symmetrical edges together. The roof should rise up towards the camera. Turn the roof over so that the outside is facing upwards. Get a few more people, and tape the roof on top of the hexagonal wall-base. This should look somewhat like: This image of a model shows how the half-roof and half-wall panels should look like before assembly. The walls and the roof formed, but not

[passage 5](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) up towards the camera. Turn the roof over so that the outside is facing upwards. Get a few more people, and tape the roof on top of the hexagonal wall-base. This should look somewhat like: This image of a model shows how the half-roof and half-wall panels should look like before assembly. The walls and the roof formed, but not yet taped together. This is close to how the hexayurt should look like after assembly, before anchoring. Step 6: Personalize Cut out doors, windows, or any other openings. Decorate and paint, or personalize any other way you want. Make sure you cover any exposed panel guts with 3 tape. Step 7: Prepare for shipment Fold all hinges inward or outward as dictated above. The half-roof will mesh together to form a 4' x 8' x (7 * thickness of one panel) block sandwiched between two full rectangular panels, and the each half-walls piece will fold into a 4' x 8' x (3 * thickness of one panel) block. Put these three blocks on top of each other, wrap them with tarp, and tie it all up. Step 8: On-site assembly Repeat mock-assembly, but with more tape, more engineering, more experience and (probably) worse weather-conditions. Tension rings and tape anchors have been recommended. Paper models spreadsheet by LucasG http://twitpic.com/3soycb Printable template for a h13. It's symetrical except for the small tabs. http://twitpic.com/3sowpc Inside view of half a h13, with unglued template before it. Standing room Regular 8' hexayurts are built with 12 panels: 6 for the walls, and 6 (cut through the diagonal to make triangles) for each of the parts of the roof. If the panels are 4' x 8', then the roofs goes from 4' to 8' at its peak. Height of human adults is between 5' and 6', so there is proper standing room in, say, slightly over 50% of the floor. The H13 uses 13 panels. One half of the roof is the "classic" shape, and one half of the roof is increased to 8' (so far called a "gable" or the "tall half,") and standing room is not 6 "B" triangles but 6+4, so a 67% increase. The (currently theoretical) H14, which uses 14 panels to put the same "gable" shape as the H13 on both sides of the hexayurt, has even more standing room: more than twice the available standing room of the good old H12. H13 plywood Vinay Gupta's blogpost on building an H13 out of plywood has a video walking through the ready building and a picture of the yurt. More detailed documentation on how to build a plywood H13 is at Hexayurt H13 Plywood Here is a great blog post about a plywood hexayurt that's been up for years as a working building on a farm! Shelter, Housing, Emergency management, Emergency shelter, Appropriate technology, The Open Toolbox SDG11 Sustainable cities and communities, SDG10 Reduced inequalities Dou, LucasG, Julie Danger, Plumitt CC-BY-SA-3.0 English (en) Finnish 1 subpages, 5 pages link here Hexayurt H13

[passage 6](https://www.appropedia.org/Hexayurt_project/Hexayurt_H13) H13 Plywood Here is a great blog post about a plywood hexayurt that's been up for years as a working building on a farm! Shelter, Housing, Emergency management, Emergency shelter, Appropriate technology, The Open Toolbox SDG11 Sustainable cities and communities, SDG10 Reduced inequalities Dou, LucasG, Julie Danger, Plumitt CC-BY-SA-3.0 English (en) Finnish 1 subpages, 5 pages link here Hexayurt H13 1,964 page views (analytics) January 25, 2011 by LucasG June 1, 2026 by StandardWikitext bot Dou, LucasG, Julie Danger, Plumitt (2011–2026). "Hexayurt project/Hexayurt H13". Appropedia. Retrieved October 31, 2026. basic, semantic, html, files, more Hexayurt project SDG11 Sustainable cities and communities SDG10 Reduced inequalities Construction and materials videos

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End of [104] Hexayurt project/Hexayurt H13. Its connections are at the top of this file; the map is https://guptaoption.com/llms.txt.
Read next: next on the same works, [38](https://guptaoption.com/texts/38.md) Hexayurt Country: The Hexayurt Project plan for relief... (2010); the most closely related, [36](https://guptaoption.com/texts/36.md) The Hexayurt Project: Free Hardware housing for the world (2002); his whole career in one file, https://guptaoption.com/story.md.