Sustainable Yurt Design

Sustainability and Shelter Designs

Hays and Vince first became interested in yurt building after being carpenters/contractors building traditional western buildings.  They saw the massive amount of materials that go into building a modern day structure, and knew that it was an unsustainable path.  Hence, the passion for designing and building lower impact structures like Eco-yurts. Environmentally friendly yurts are a great compromise – safe, efficient structures that use minimal materials to construct. Beyond building low impact structures, the day to day operations at Shelter Designs have sustainability woven into them.

 

Our wood scraps are utilized and reused whenever possible. Whether scraps are used for employees side projects or donated to our favorite local wood fired baker, we strive to utilize each piece of wood no matter how small.  We are committed to not dumping any wood scraps in the local landfill.  

We donate an assortment of building materials to Home Resource – a community sustainability organization local that aims to reduce waste and build a more sustainable city through their building material reuse store.

We recycle our saw dust through Missoula County’s Garden City Compost

Cardboard, aluminum and scrap metal are all recycled at Shelter Designs.

Our Eco-Yurt utilizes local, sustainably-harvested lumber is incorporated into every Eco-Yurtframe.  By keeping the lumber production as close to home as we can, we ensure that the ecological footprint of our frames stays within our watershed. This also bolsters the local economy and keeps us connected to the forest we call home. We use a non-toxic, no-VOC, food grade Tung oil as the wood finish for the Eco-Yurt. This makes it a great option for a sustainable tiny home or an affordable sustainable home residence.