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Burning Man Hexayurt Construction: Finding the Best Materials for the Job

Across the northern Nevada desert landscape of Black Rock City, the temporary, pop-up free commerce, free-thinking, home of the famous Burning Man global community gathering, hexayurts pop up along the horizon. The hexayurt is a temporary structure made from hexagonal panels formed together into a dome. These funky, tent alternatives have come as much a part of the festival in a few short years as the iconic ‘Burning Man’.

Since its invention by Vinay Gupta in 2002, the hexayurt has become a popular handmade shelter for the ecoconscious and sustainably-minded. Developed for a Treehugger and Current TV sponsored contest, the design has had a global impact since it was released, free of charge, to the public.

The innovative, inexpensive design is now used in disaster areas and refugee camps around the globe. These shelters can be built for less than $500 and within a day, all while offering many of the boons of a permanent structure.

Across the desert sands of the “not a festival, but a global community”, you’ll see hexayurts of various designs. In fact, there are several different hexayurt plans available on the Appropedia site. These innovative shelters are easy to pack, put together, and break down at the end of the festival, making them an ideal choice for the festival were creating no environmental impact, and leaving no trace is paramount to their mission.

They also meet many of the requirements for excellent shelter in the desert. Hexayurts are:

• Tough, withstanding winds up to 75 MPH
• Cool and dark during the day
• Retain heat from the day through cool desert nights
• Sealed from dust

The convenient structures are also popular for Burning Man because they’re simple enough that almost anyone could make one with a little direction, some specific materials, and a can-do attitude. You can purchase pre-constructed hexayurts, but I promise, it’s simple enough to do it yourself. They are the embodiment of the principle of self-reliance, another one of the main directives of the festival.

To build a hexayurt, you will need:

• Bi-Directional Filament Strapping Tape- This tape is not widely available at physical stores, but you can find this rough and tumble adhesive tape at Distributor Tape. The bi-directional tag refers to the tough filaments in the tape that run both vertically and horizontally, creating a remarkable 155 lb. tensile strength both directions. It’s also resistant to high temperatures. You’ll need tape that is 6 inches wide to build a hexayurt. Find out how much tape you’ll need by using the hexayurt creator’s tape calculator.
• Aluminum Foil Tape- Aluminum foil tape is a ridiculously versatile adhesive tape, and it’s role in making the hexayurt a pleasant place to be in the desert heat of the day and chill of the night is invaluable. Use the calculator at “” to determine how much of each type of tape you’ll need for the design of hexayurt you’re planning to build.
• DOW foam board insulation or Hexacomb cardboard- Used to form lightweight panels. You’ll need a material that is 1 inch or thicker. The insulation is easier to get your hands on and cheaper, but the hexacomb is much more eco-friendly and safer to handle.
• Tent pegs- Use these to stake down your hexayurt. You might consider a material like bubble wrap or foam pipe insulation to cover the pegs and keep everyone around you safe from a wicked toe-stub.
• Blades- You’ll need a craft blade or maneuverable box knife to cut panels, and either a knife or large scissors for cutting tape.
• Tarp- The tarp forms the floor to the hexayurt and helps to keep the structures free of dust.
• Rope
• PVC pipe- This will form the anchor points for your tape.
• Safety gear- Use gloves, safety glasses, and masks as necessary during building to stay safe.
• Optional features- Check out the Appropedia hexayurt checklist for materials needed for additional hexayurt features.

The most popular design is the 8 foot H12 hexayurt. It’s big enough for a small gathering, but small enough to pack, haul, and construct easily on the playa, plus the configuration of this structure makes it tougher than other designs.

Here’s what you’ll need to do to create a hexayurt of your very own.

At Home Prep

1. Lay out the six panels of insulation for the room and draw a diagonal line left to right on three of the panels, right to left on the other three.

2. Put on safety gear and cut the panels along the line with a super-sharp craft knife. You’ll need to change the blades often to ensure a clean cut. Now you’ll have twelve triangles.

3. Tape the edges of each triangle with the bi-directional strapping tape, then tape the edges of each of the six wall panels, too.

4. Cut a two-foot wide door one foot from the end of one of the wall panels. Tape the exposed edges of the door. Fit it back into place in the hole from whence it came and add tape hinges at the top, creating a sort of doggie door. You’ll want to add a couple of pieces of tape at the sides of the door to hold it in place for transport, as well. For more door and window options, check out the Appropedia site.

Putting it All Together on the Playa- 2D style

1. Start with roof construction. Place two of the roof panels flat on the ground with their long sides facing each other, logo sides up per Burning Man tradition.

2. Tape the panels together, leaving a gap between the two panels that is half the thickness of the panels you used. These gaps are crucial for forming the proper angles for constructing your roof but don’t worry too much. Repeat five more times with the other roof panels, leaving you with six larger triangles. Cover the sticky side of the tape in the gap with the material of your choice (supple tape, fabric, or even just dirt).

Tape Anchors: Critical to Hexayurt Success

At this point, you’ll need to add tape anchors. It’s pretty much impossible to explain how to do this in words and have it make sense, so instead, check out this video on making and attaching tape anchors from the folks at the Hexyurt project.

3. Line up the bases of the triangles you have now and tape them all together one by one. The last seam will be tough to get because you’ll have formed the hexagonal shape of the hexayurt when you put together the last roof seam. Use a small tape patch to get the last triangles stuck together so you can get the entire roof in a position where you can tape the whole seam.

4. Smooth the tape on the roof seams using a broom. This will help make sure your hexayurt’s roof is well-waterproofed.

5. Lay two of your wall panels out flat on the ground next to one another, logo side down. Tape down the seam, leaving the same “half the width of the panel” gap you used on the roof. Continue adding on the rest of your wall panels until you have a strip of all six continuous wall panels.

6. Stand your wall strip up and tape the remaining open sides together to form your hexayurt structure.

7. Gather some helpers. It’s time to put the roof on. Place six people around the roof cone and lift it up high in the air. Have a few more helpers then shuffle the wall structure under the roof cone. Get each wall lined up with one of the roof’s large triangles, the angles matching up pretty close.

8. Now it’s time to tape! Beginning in the middle of one of the wall panels, run the tape along the seam between walls and roof with tape, the seam between roof and walls positioned at the center of the tape. This will also mean taping over your tape anchors.

9. Place your hexayurt structure on top of the tarp. From the inside, tape the structure to the tarp “floor” to keep dust out. You can cut away the tarp left outside of your structure or you can leave it, it’s up to you.

10. Pound the tent pegs into the ground around the yurt, fairly close to the structure.

11. Run ropes through the tape anchors and use them to secure the structure to the tent pegs. You can use whatever knot you like, but the trucker’s hitch is recommended.

12. Pad the tent pegs to make them less dangerous, and add flags to the ropes so people are less likely to trip over them.

14. Run aluminum foil tape over the exposed strapping tape on the outside of your hexayurt for fire safety purposes.

There are plenty of extra special touches you can add to your hexayurt. Have fun designing a structure that will suit your style and needs while hanging at Burning Man.