Shelters

Bug-out bicycle camper

April 12, 2019

  The 2006 Burningman Theme was ‘Hopes and Fears of the Future’. I chose fear. Back then the bird flu virus was a big scare. I came up with this Mad Max style post apocalyptic bug-out rig for wandering around the playa. I also brought it along the following year. Left to right, Solar window…

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Bug screen tent canopy

April 12, 2019

I took a canopy made for beds and make an outdoor nook for my wife and I to sit in and enjoy the summer, bug free. For the stakes I cut 10 ft rebar lengths in two, then I cut an X in tennis balls and slipped them over the stake ends. I draped the…

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Homeless stealth bivy tent

April 12, 2019

This Bivvy bag tent was made by sewing a cheap 8 by 10 foot camouflaged tarp together. Shoes are used to maintain the opening. Rocks on a windy day. The bottom of the wood pole was carved sharp to stick in the ground, and the top was carved to fit through the top grommet hole…

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Stealth camper

April 12, 2019

Back in 2002 after 9-11  I and many others were laid off from Boeing. I’d been working straight for 14 years and decided a break in routine was in order. Traveling across America sounded good. Money was tight for lodging, but I had a good Toyota truck. The 6 foot bed was just long enough…

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Burningman box shelter

April 12, 2019

This was my first use of Coroplast, or better known as fluted plastic or plastic cardboard. This 2-1/2 sheet 4 ft square box used 2×2’s for corner framing. Button head screws fastened the panels to the frame. For transport the shelter was made modular. All I had to do was attach the corner frame to…

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Recycled Campaign sign shelter

April 11, 2019

    This 4 ft high by 8 ft long shelter was built almost exclusively from recycled election campaign signs including the lumber and hardware. Attached to the exterior green house is a pole that holds the gravity fed solar shower bag positioned toward the sun. Rain water is harvested for taking showers. To keep…

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Burningman micro shelter

April 11, 2019

This 3 sheet 1″ thick Gorilla duct taped shelter hasn’t made it to Burningman, but was designed for playa use.  Having a plywood top creates anchoring points for tie down lines, and makes it strong enough to sit on top, at least for me. If you’re heavier than 175 pounds I’d go with 1-1/2″ thick…

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Burningman foam board shelter

April 11, 2019

  The 1″ thick Pyramid from the year before proved a little time consuming to erect, so I came up with this quick deployment 9 sided shelter using 1-1/2″ thick foam board. It’s a bit smaller than the pyramid but we were still able to have a table for cooking and cozy seating for five…

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Burningman pyramid shelter

April 11, 2019

This was my first try making foam board shelters. I have to credit Vina Gupta for developing the foam board Hexayurts. But I wanted something original, so I chose a 12′ square pyramid to hang out in and an octagonal teepee for the bedroom. old buddy GI Joe was instrumental in modeling my idea. The middle…

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Homeless sleeping pod #2

April 11, 2019

  On the first pod base I used three recycled pallets. Here I’m experimenting with 2×2’s for the base frame, later adding 1/2″ OSB for the floor. This proved too weak. On the final version I used  four treated 2×4’s and 1/2″ OSB sheeting. This proved very robust. Although costing a bit more, going this route saved…

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