Before finishing a seminar at McGill University, Peter Sijpik gave his architecture class a very unusual homework. “I'd like to have a drink at the snow bar this Friday,” the teacher said, and his students immediately got to work. They had enough snow, ice and the right skills to build a snow structure for 50 people.
Sijpike is originally from Holland, where winters are usually warm and slushy, and therefore, when he moved to Canada, he was fascinated by the snow-covered expanses and blocks of ice. According to him, frozen water is an amazing, and completely free construction material. He himself built several very impressive structures from snow, among which was even a model of the Roman Pantheon in a 1:5 ratio. The 10-meter structure, which also had a diameter of 10 meters, was made of 400 tons of snow! 125 students and teachers joined the work.
Now Sijpike will share the secret of how to build an igloo - the winter home of the Eskimos. According to him, the spiral structure along which the blocks of this unusual spherical house are laid is one of the best architectural solutions. There are many ways to build an igloo in your backyard, but here is the easiest and most reliable way:
1. Make sure you have enough building materials, that is, snow. According to the architect, many people underestimate required amount: You will need at least a 30 centimeter layer taken from the entire area. 2. Use the right snow: not the light grains that cover the crust, but the dense snow mass underneath.
3. Draw a perfect circle. To do this, you can stick a stick into the center of the future circle, tie a rope of the required length to it and walk around the stick in a circle. For novice builders, it is not recommended to build an igloo whose diameter exceeds 3 meters - making a reliable dome for such a building is a very difficult task.
4. Use a mold to make bricks same size. Traditional igloo blocks are 1 meter long, 40 cm wide and 20 cm high, but smaller bricks can be used for smaller igloos.
5. Next - styling. The blocks should go in a spiral, so the smartest thing to do is to make a small notch on each brick so that the adjacent brick fits into it. This will make the structure of the house much stronger. You will have to support some blocks until the structure is complete and their weight is distributed evenly - you can use regular sticks for this.
6. The higher the walls, the smaller and thinner the blocks. Don’t forget to take care of ventilation holes, otherwise there is a risk that there will simply be nothing to breathe in your luxurious ice house. The same wet snow will be suitable as cement for ice bricks - frost will grab it at night and the bricks will not collapse.
7. You can simply make a hole in the wall as a doorway, or you can build a small canopy so that the heat does not escape from the igloo so quickly. It is best to spray the lower bricks lying at the very base with water: ice is stronger than snow, which means the foundation will not crack under the weight of the building and it will not warp.
Eskimos are the people who have long inhabited the territory of Chukotka in Russian Federation, Alaska in the United States of America, Nunavut in Canada and Greenland. The total number of Eskimos is about 170 thousand people. The largest number of them live in the Russian Federation - about 65 thousand people. In Greenland there are about 45 thousand people, in the United States of America - 35 thousand people. and in Canada - 26 thousand people.
Origin of the people
Literally, “Eskimo” means a person who eats meat. But in different countries they are called differently. In Russia these are Yugyts, that is, real people, in Canada - Inuits, and in Greenland - Tladlits.
When wondering where the Eskimo lives, you must first understand who these people are. interesting people. The origins of the Eskimos are still considered a controversial issue today. There is an opinion that they belong to the oldest population in the Bering region. Their ancestral home may have been the northeast of Asia, and from there the settlers settled to the northwest of America through
Asian Eskimos today
Eskimos North America live in the harsh Arctic zone. They occupy mainly the coastal part of the north of the mainland. And in Alaska, Eskimo settlements occupy not only the coastline, but also some islands. The people living on the Copper River are almost completely assimilated with the local Indians. Just like in Russia, in the United States of America there are very few settlements in which only Eskimos live. Their predominant numbers are located on the territory of Cape Barrow, on the banks of the Kobuka, Nsataka and Colville rivers, as well as along
The life and culture of the Greenlandic Eskimos and their relatives from Canada and the United States of America are similar. However, today their dugouts and utensils have mostly become a thing of the past. Since the mid-twentieth century, the construction of houses, including multi-storey ones, began to develop intensively in Greenland. Therefore, the home of the Eskimos has changed significantly. Electricity and gas burners More than fifty percent of the population began to use it. Almost all Greenlandic Eskimos now prefer European clothing.
Lifestyle
The life of this people is divided into summer and winter ways existence. For a long time, the main occupation of the Eskimos was hunting. In winter, the main prey of hunters is seals, walruses, various cetaceans, and sometimes bears. This fact explains why the territory where the Eskimo lives is almost always located on the sea coast. The skins of seals and the fat of killed animals have always served these people faithfully and helped them survive in the harsh Arctic conditions. In summer and autumn period men hunt birds, small game and even fish.
It should be noted that the Eskimos are not nomadic tribes. Despite the fact that during the warm season they are constantly on the move, they spend the winter in one place for several years.
Unusual housing
To imagine what the Eskimos live in, you need to understand their way of life and rhythm. Due to the peculiar seasonality, Eskimos also have two types of housing - tents for summer living and These dwellings are unique in their own way.
When creating summer tents, their volume to accommodate at least ten people is taken into account. A structure is created from fourteen poles and covered with skins in two layers.
During the cold season, the Eskimos came up with something different. Igloos are snow huts that are their winter home option. They reach about four meters in diameter and two meters in height. People are provided with lighting and heating thanks to seal oil, which is found in bowls. Thus, the temperature in the room rises to twenty degrees above zero. With these homemade lamps cook food and melt snow to obtain water.
As a rule, two families live in one hut. Each of them occupies its own half. Naturally, housing gets dirty very quickly. Therefore, it is destroyed and a new one is built in another place.
Preservation of the Eskimo ethnic group
A person who has visited the lands where the Eskimo lives will not forget the hospitality and goodwill of this people. There is a special feeling of hospitality and kindness here.
Despite the beliefs of some skeptics about the disappearance of the Eskimos from the face of the earth in the nineteenth or twentieth centuries, these people persistently prove the opposite. They managed to survive in the difficult conditions of the Arctic climate, create their own unique culture and prove their enormous resilience.
The unity of the people and their leaders plays a big role in this. Such examples are the Greenlandic and Canadian Eskimos. Photos, video reports, relationships with other species of the population prove that they were able not only to survive in a harsh environment, but also to achieve greater political rights, as well as gain respect in the world movement among the aborigines.
Unfortunately, on the territory of the Russian Federation, the socio-economic situation of the indigenous population looks a little worse and requires support from the state.
They didn't seem to have great value for the development of the whole world in many senses of the word, since they can not only clearly show us the full depth and essence of the evolutionary process, but also come to the rescue in some unforeseen situations. It is these people who, over the course of many centuries, are able to preserve their language, traditions and customs at all costs. And this applies not only to traditional dishes and clothing, but also. That's why today we decided to tell you about national houses of the peoples of the North - chums, yarangs and igloos
, which are still used by local residents during hunting, migration and even in everyday life.
Chum – the dwelling of northern reindeer herders
Chum is a universal nomadic people of the North engaged in reindeer herding - Nenets, Khanty, Komi and Enets. It’s curious, but contrary to the popular opinion and the words of the well-known song “The Chukchi in a tent are waiting for the dawn,” the Chukchi never lived and do not live in tents - in fact, their dwellings are called yarangas. Perhaps the confusion arose due to the consonance of the words “chum” and “Chukchi”. Or it is possible that these two somewhat similar buildings are simply confused and not called by their proper names.
As for the plague, it is essentially one that has a cone-shaped shape and is perfectly adapted to the conditions of the tundra. Snow easily rolls off the steep surface of the chum, so when moving to a new place, the chum can be dismantled without making any extra effort to clear the building of snow. In addition, the cone shape makes the tent resistant to strong winds and snowstorms.
In summer, the tent is covered with bark, birch bark or burlap, and the entrance is hung with coarse fabric (for example, the same burlap). In winter, the skins of elk, deer, and red deer, sewn into one cloth, are used to decorate the tent, and the entrance is covered with a separate skin. In the center of the chum is located, serving as a source of heat and adapted for cooking. The heat from the stove rises and does not allow precipitation to get inside the chum - they simply evaporate under the influence of high temperature. And in order to prevent the wind from penetrating into the tent, to its base with outside shoveling snow.
As a rule, the reindeer herders' tent consists of several coverings and 20-40 poles, which are placed on special sledges when moving. The size of the chum directly depends on the length of the poles and their number: the more poles there are and the longer they are, the more spacious it will be.
Since ancient times, installing a chum was considered a task for the whole family, in which even children took part. After the tent is completely installed, the women cover it inside with mats and soft deer skins. At the very base of the poles it is customary to place malitsa (the outer clothing of the peoples of the North made of reindeer skins with fur inside) and other soft things. Reindeer herders also carry with them featherbeds and warm sheepskin sleeping bags. At night the hostess makes the bed, and during the day she hides the bedding away from prying eyes.
Yaranga - the national dwelling of the peoples of Chukotka
As we have already said, yaranga has some similarities with a plague and is a portable nomadic Koryaks, Chukchi, Yukaghirs and Evenks. Yaranga has a round plan and a vertical wooden frame, which is built from poles and topped with a conical dome. The outside of the poles is covered with walrus, deer or whale skins.
Yaranga consists of 2 halves: canopy and chottagina. The canopy looks like a warm tent made of skins, heated and illuminated using a fat lamp (for example, a strip of fur dipped in fat and soaked in it). The canopy is the sleeping area. Chottagin - a separate room, appearance which somewhat resembles a canopy. This is the coldest part. Usually boxes with clothes, dressed skins, barrels of fermentation and other things are stored in chottagin.
Nowadays, yaranga is a centuries-old symbol of the peoples of Chukotka, which is used during many winter and summer holidays. Moreover, yarangas are installed not only in squares, but also in club foyers. In such yarangas, women prepare traditional dishes of the peoples of the North - tea, venison - and treat them to guests. Moreover, some other structures are being built in the form of yaranga today in Chukotka. For example, in the center of Anadyr you can see a yaranga - a vegetable tent made of transparent plastic. Yaranga is also present in many Chukchi paintings, engravings, badges, emblems and even coats of arms.
Igloo - an Eskimo dwelling made of snow and ice
Light enters the igloo directly through ice windows, although in some cases ice windows are made in snowy houses. Interior, as a rule, they are covered with skins, and sometimes they also cover the walls with them - completely or partially. Fat bowls are used for heating and additional lighting of the igloo. An interesting fact is that when the air is heated, the internal surfaces of the walls of the igloo melt, but do not melt due to the fact that the snow quickly removes excess heat outside the house, and due to this, a comfortable temperature for humans is maintained in the room. Moreover, snow walls can absorb excess moisture, so the igloo is always dry.
An igloo is built from snow blocks. Snow is compacted, because in this state it is lighter than ice. These snow panels trap air between the snowflakes. It protects against the cold and contains a lot of air between its snowflakes. Air conducts heat poorly and protects against cold well.
The igloo is built from the inside. To do this, blocks cut with a hacksaw are placed in a circle. Blocks should not bottom corners touch each other. Because of this, the structure may lose stability and the house will collapse. To prevent this from happening, small triangular holes are left in these places. Then they can be easily sealed. Vertical joints should also not match. Otherwise, a long crack along its entire length will form in this place. It is not recommended to move blocks. Protruding parts better later cut with a hacksaw.
To prevent the structure from melting, the outside air temperature should not be higher than 0°C. This condition is easily met. After all, for Arctic regions such temperatures are completely normal. The inside of the house does not melt even if it is heated with lamps. This becomes possible thanks to the rounded shape of the roof: water does not drip, but is absorbed into the walls. Therefore, it is dry inside the snow hut.
A vent is punched into the dome for ventilation. As a rule, on the contrary, a bed is built from the same blocks. And finally, they cut out the door.
Why is it warm inside an igloo?
To keep the room warm, the door to the hut should be below floor level. In this case, oxygen comes in and carbon dioxide comes out. The Eskimos heated and cooked food in their homes using a device for burning melted fat - a fat burner. They used live fire only for cooking food or tea. At the same time, the temperature there was never lower than 5 degrees Celsius. This temperature is quite comfortable to bear if you also take cover warm blanket from fur. If you sleep on animal skins, it will be even warmer. After all, it is an excellent heat insulator. In addition, it does not allow the snow floor to melt.
The colder it is outside, the higher the temperature in the igloo. This occurs due to the ability of wet snow to lose its heat-protective properties. Frost, freezing the inner surface of the walls that had begun to thaw. Thus, the temperature outside and inside the igloo is balanced. In addition, a snow dome has very little thermal conductivity. Therefore, human heat is sufficient to maintain a slight positive temperature.
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The nature in the northern regions is harsh. Once in winter time on a snowy plain or in a forest, it is not so easy to shelter from bad weather. But the Eskimos, the native inhabitants of Alaska, have long known how to maintain the warmth and comfort of their home even in severe frosts. To do this you just need to build snow house- igloo.
An igloo is an original Eskimo hut made entirely of snow. The shape of the igloo resembles a rounded dome made of neatly stacked snow blocks. A mandatory attribute of such a hut is a low door. Made from snow, the Eskimos' home can retain heat for a long time, and one lit candle is enough to heat the air in the room.
Over many centuries, the Eskimos have become adept at building real settlements from snow blocks. Some buildings are used exclusively for housing, others are reserved for household needs. During a blizzard or blizzard, being in an igloo is much safer than being in regular tent. Durable snow walls can withstand both severe frost and strong winds. In usual for far north weather conditions, such a hut, installed at the beginning of winter, is quite capable of standing until mid-spring.
You can make an igloo yourself, using the knowledge and experience accumulated by an inventive North American people. First you need to select and prepare a flat area where the snow is deepest and densest. A circle is carefully drawn in the snow. Along this contour you need to lay the main layer of snow blocks.
Optimal size one “brick” - 50 cm in length, 40 cm in width, 10-15 cm in thickness. Individual blocks are cut out in deep snow with a long knife or shovel, rocking a little to separate them from the base. Masonry is carried out traditional way used in construction brick buildings. The gaps between the blocks are covered with snow. Also make sure that the vertical joints between blocks in adjacent rows do not coincide. To give the structure a dome shape, each row is laid with a slight slope into the structure.
Despite the simple technology, it is best for a beginner to carry out the work of constructing an igloo with the help of a partner. This will avoid mistakes when laying “bricks” and will speed up the construction process. Special attention give a few last rows, constituting the arch of the igloo; they must be installed especially carefully and carefully.
After building the walls, all that remains is to punch a hole in the dome (it will provide air ventilation), and also cut a small hole in the lower part of the hut. If this is your first time building a snow hut, be prepared that it will take you at least three to four hours. All that remains is to climb into your new cozy home and indulge in a well-deserved rest.
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A double needle for a sewing machine is essentially two needles in one holder. When used on front side you will get two lines with straight lines, and on the wrong side - one zigzag line.
You will need
- sewing machine, double needle, 2 spools of thread
Instructions
With a double needle you can.
We continue the “Cottage” section and the “” subsection with the article Building a real igloo (photos, drawings and video tutorials). Where we will tell you in detail how exactly an igloo is built - the sequence and mandatory features. We will also offer you to download a small manual on how to build an igloo. Well, let’s add weight to our words with the help of several igloos.
Building a real igloo may seem completely unnecessary to you - after all, very few people live in areas where there is enough snow to build an igloo. And even then, these people most likely know how to build an igloo in practice - and from childhood. However, remember - an event will soon come, the end of 2012, and with it the end of the world, coupled with a flood and a change of poles. And who knows what knowledge will be useful to you after this :)
So, first of all, about what an igloo is. An igloo is the winter home of the Eskimos. It is a dome-shaped structure with a diameter of 3-4 meters and a height of about 2 meters made of snow or ice blocks compacted by the wind. In deep snow, the entrance is usually made in the floor, and a corridor is dug to the entrance. In case of shallow snow, the entrance is made in the wall, to which an additional corridor of snow blocks is built. It is important that the entrance to the igloo is below floor level - this ensures the outflow of heavy carbon dioxide from the building and the influx of lighter oxygen instead, and also does not allow lighter warm air to escape.
Light enters the igloo directly through the snow walls. The interior is usually covered with skins, and sometimes the walls are also covered with skins. Fat bowls are used to heat the home and provide additional lighting. As a result of heating, the internal surfaces of the walls melt, but the walls do not melt, since the snow easily removes excess heat outside the hut. Therefore, a temperature comfortable for human life can be maintained in the hut. In addition, the snow hut absorbs excess moisture from the inside, resulting in the hut being quite dry.
The original igloos were often very large buildings, capable of accommodating up to 20 people, it was also common for several igloos to be connected using tunnels. It was snowing ideal material for the construction of such structures, since there was a lot of it, and also because snow has excellent thermal insulation properties.
Material for building an igloo - snow
From the right choice“construction” snow depends on the strength and thermal insulation properties of snow huts. In addition, when good quality snow makes the process of their construction much easier. In the snow construction equipment, along with dense snow, loose snow is also used, which can be compacted artificially or use in a mixture with water (“snow concrete”). Igloo huts are being built only from dense and durable snow formed under natural conditions.
The best for building huts is dry snow with a density of 0.25 to 0.30 (snow density is expressed as the ratio of its weight to the weight of the same volume of water; this value fluctuates greatly, ranging from 0.01 to 0.03 for fluffy freshly fallen snow , and for long-term compacted snow (firn) from 0.40 to 0.65), with a uniform fine-grained structure. Such snow is perfectly sawn into strong bricks that do not break when carried and stacked. Denser snow is undesirable for the construction of heated and residential buildings in general, since it has greater thermal conductivity, weak adhesion during installation, and at very low temperatures - brittleness.
The best material for making snow bricks is provided by “young” snowdrifts. The snow in such snowdrifts has a fine-grained, almost powder-like structure and the same density. A brick cut from this snow, even a meter long, does not split when carried and does not crumble. It can be reset without fear for its integrity.
But how can you figure out the age of the snowdrifts? Looking around the area, you can immediately notice that the whiteness of the snow is not the same everywhere. The surface of old snowdrifts usually has a gray tint.
Having chosen the nearest whitest snowdrift, you need to examine the quality of the snow. Snow suitable for construction makes a crunching sound when walking through a snowdrift, and a foot shod in felt boots or fur boots leaves a footprint about 2 cm deep.
To finally make sure that the snow is not affected by the processes of recrystallization and evaporation, the snowdrift is pierced with a stick in places where its thickness is sufficient for cutting bricks. With even pressure, the stick should smoothly pass through the entire thickness of the snow.
Sizes and dimensions of the igloo
The following sizes of round huts are known: floor diameter - from 1.5 to 9 m, height from the floor to the center of the vault - from 1.3 to 4 m. For a family of three or four people, the Eskimos build huts with a diameter of about 3 m and a height of about 2 m, but for more profitable use of the area they are given an oval or pear-shaped plan. In this case, in the wide part of the room there is a couch on which people sleep, eat and work, and in the narrow part there is an entrance. In Fig. 3 schematically shows the profile of such a hut; A small vestibule is attached to its entrance, which serves to protect the room from the wind and also serves as a storage room.
Longitudinal section of a snow hut, which has a prominent pear shape in plan:
- ground surface,
- snow surface,
- bed,
- hanging fabric screen,
- screen mounts,
- ventilation hole,
- ice window,
- vestibule,
- entrance,
- hut in plan.
Tools for building an igloo.
The only tool the Eskimos used to build a snow hut was a knife, first bone and then metal. The snow knife has a durable thin blade up to 50 cm long and 4-5 cm wide, with a long handle that allows you to cut snow bricks with both hands.
With the use of a hacksaw, cutting out snow bricks was greatly simplified, but the need for a snow knife when building huts did not disappear. A knife is necessary for adjusting bricks when laying, for cutting through doors, ventilation holes and other work. For such work it is quite enough if the knife has a blade 20-25 cm long. A special snow knife is replaced with a regular one kitchen knife, to the handle of which a belt or rope loop is tied for convenience.
Choosing a place to build an igloo.
The best construction site is the top of a dense snowdrift at least 1 m high. If the drift in the snowdrift is also suitable for cutting snow bricks, then such a place can be considered the best. But often snow in thick snowdrifts is unsuitable as a building material. Therefore, you have to look for “young” dense snow close to a powerful snowdrift, which serves as a construction site. The place for preparing snow bricks should be no further than 20-30 m from this site, since dragging them over a greater distance will take a lot of time. If there are sleds, this work is performed with the help of dogs or deer.
Longitudinal section of a snow hut built on a snowdrift:
- A - bed,
- B - step,
- B - entrance and trench,
- G - descent into the trench,
- D - snowdrift,
- E is the surface of the earth.
Igloo layout, markings.
Having chosen a place for construction and leveled the construction site, they begin to lay out the hut and prepare for laying the base. Using a stick, a piece of rope and a snow knife, which plays the role of a movable leg of a compass, a circle of the required diameter is drawn in the snow.
Having established the size of the hut, they mark the entrance location. If the hut is built for one night, then the entrance is made on the leeward side; if it is to serve as a dwelling for a long time, then the entrance is arranged at right angles to the prevailing wind. The direction of the wind is determined by the snow sastrugi. A place for a couch, occupying at least two-thirds of the area of the hut, is planned opposite the entrance.
Before laying the first row of snow bricks, it is necessary to tread a small depression across the width of the bricks in the intended circle so that they receive support and a more solid base. If the hut is built on a snow cover covered with an ice crust, then the crust must be removed, otherwise the lower row of bricks may separate under the weight of the upper rows.
The actual construction of a real igloo
The average “standard” size of bricks: 60 X 40 X 15 cm. For the first basement row, it is recommended to cut larger bricks: 75 X 50 X 20 cm. To build a hut that can accommodate 3-4 people, you will need 30-40 bricks. With the exception of 10-12 bricks for laying the first row, the rest are cut out to a “standard” size. They are given the required shape during the installation process.
The most common two methods of laying snow bricks: in circular rows and in a spiral. With both methods, the original rectangular shape of the snow bricks is preserved only in the first row; further, when adjusting, the bricks take the shape of a trapezoid (meaning the side plane of the brick), and when laying the dome in ring rows, a triangular shape. When laid in a spiral manner, the bricks in the dome will have the shape of irregular polygons. Beginning builders are recommended to use spiral laying, as it is most convenient when building large and small huts.
The first row of snow bricks, as can be seen from the picture below, is laid with a slight inward slope; bricks in the first row can also be placed vertically.
As already indicated, for the first row it is better to cut longer and wider bricks. It is necessary to strictly ensure that weak or cracked bricks do not get into the base of the hut. If after laying the last brick there remains a small opening in the circle, then you need to cut a new, longer brick, which should completely fill the opening. A gap of about 1 cm is left between the bricks of the first row, since if they are laid very tightly, they may be squeezed out of the circle by the pressure of the upper rows.
When laying bricks in a spiral manner, after finishing the first row, any three bricks are cut diagonally, except those that fall above the site of the future permanent entrance. The diagonal cut goes only to the middle of the third brick, as shown in the figure below; the first brick of the second row is laid in its recess, and further laying is carried out inside the circle, from right to left.
To obtain an inward slope of bricks, two methods are used: a cut is made at the desired angle on bricks already laid in a row, or each brick is trimmed before laying. Usually they use the first method. Laying must be careful. Each brick fits tightly against its neighbors. To do this, the builder, having placed the brick in place and holding it with his left hand, slips a knife under it and runs it along the brick several times, sanding the surface. Then, moving the brick to the right, close to the adjacent one, the vertical seam is also sanded. After this, with a light blow of the left hand on the end of the brick, he finally puts it in place. The fine snow that forms in the seams during sanding plays the role of cement, firmly gripping the bricks.
Before you begin laying the second row, you need to bring 8-10 bricks inside the hut under construction, which will be used when it is difficult for an assistant to pass the bricks from the outside. One person always remains inside, and he also cuts a way out of the igloo. Therefore, this “prisoner” should be provided with a knife and a light source (if construction is completed in the dark).
the last brick must be given such a shape that it, like a wedge, fits into the remaining hole, finally closing the vault. This last, wedge-cut brick, larger than the hole, must be pushed through it and then lowered so that it is wedged tightly in the hole.
To facilitate the adjustment of the closing brick, the hole in the dome is given a triangular or rectangular shape. A prepared brick of the same shape, but slightly larger in size, is pushed through the hole in a vertical position. To do this, slightly lift one or two bricks installed at the top (it is difficult for a novice builder to perform this operation without an assistant). Then the closing brick is turned horizontally, lowered onto the hole and they begin to carefully trim it, gradually inserting it into the hole until it is tightly wedged in it.
While the person sitting inside the igloo is building the walls, his assistant is working on the walls outside. Large holes, which are formed when the corners of bricks are broken off, are clogged with pieces of snow and then smoothed over with fine snow, and the cracks are only rubbed with it. In addition, the assistant manages to build around it barrier made of broken bricks. Such a snow pile protects the bottom row of snow bricks from being blown away in strong winds and serves as a stop for the loose snow that covers the entire hut. Sprinkling the hut is used for additional insulation it at sharp drops in temperature.
Cross section of a snow hut built on thin layer snow:
- ground surface,
- snow surface,
- bed with a groove for water drainage,
- a fabric screen connected to the exhaust pipe,
- wooden exhaust pipe,
- entrance,
- snow bricks serving as a stop for the rubble,
- compacted snow rubble,
- loose snow poured into very coldy for insulating the hut.
To create a rubble, a row of bricks is installed around the hut at a distance of 30 cm from the walls and covered with tightly compacted snow. Only the part of the building intended for a permanent entrance is left free.
Having laid the closing brick and thus “walled up” himself in the hut, the builder begins to seal the cracks from the inside. If it is twilight or the construction was carried out in the dark, lights are turned on to detect cracks. Internal lighting makes it possible to check defects in work from the outside. Having sealed the holes and cracks, the builder uses a scraper to level the walls and vault, giving them a shape close to a hemisphere. It is especially important to give the required form vault of the hut. Large depressions should not be leveled by scraping thick layers of snow from large surfaces.
The igloo can then be “glazed,” causing the inside to melt and then air to circulate through a temporary inlet and vent, causing what has melted to form a shell of ice. During glazing, an assistant outside makes a trench for the entrance and covers it with snow plates. A temporary barrier from the wind is placed at the entrance to the trench. The entrance to the igloo should be on the leeward side.
Next, the one inside, using the markings previously applied to the snow, makes his way out of the igloo, ending up in a trench. Several exits can be made - temporary and permanent. But not at the same time, but in turn.
The distribution of temperatures in a snow hut is reported by Stefansson, who made measurements at a frost of -45° and the maximum possible heating of the hut. According to him, the temperature in the snow tunnel outside the hut was -43°. Inside the hut: on the floor near the sleeping platform - 40°; at the level of the top of the door -18°; at the level of the sleeping platform -7°; at shoulder level of a sitting person +4°; above the head of a sitting person +16°. Stefansson further points out that with outside temperatures down to -40°, the entrance to the hut can be left open all night, and the temperature inside will be close to 0°. Obviously, this temperature is not achieved by the maximum possible heating, and is maintained when it is completely stopped at night.
Other sources indicate that in an unheated hut with tightly closed entrance The temperature of the room was kept due to the heat emission of the people in it within the range from +2 to + 6°. General pattern is this: the colder it is outside, the more you can raise the temperature inside the igloo. And vice versa.
That's it, the igloo is built! It is important to remember that the cleaner the snow on the igloo, the longer the dwelling will last, since dirt on the snow causes intensive melting of the dome. And even despite pure snow, with constant use, the needle becomes unusable every 3-5 months. And every time the indigenous people and poor explorers make a new shelter anew.
By the way, to heat their snow huts, the Eskimos use a fat lamp, which simultaneously serves as a hearth for cooking food and a lamp. The wick of the grease lamp is ground moss; Having been saturated with fat, it forms a paste-like mass at the bottom of the lamp, part of which is raked with a spatula to the edge of the lamp, in the form of a narrow long roll, and is lit. When carefully supervised, a grease lamp produces a bright, non-smoking flame, the height of which can be easily adjusted. The flame can be reduced to a flame that barely spreads light.
In general, we have covered the main points of creating an igloo.
Now a couple of subtleties and we’ll give away what we promised at the beginning of the article. Blocks standing next to each other should not touch with their lower corners - this will make them unsteady. At the bottom of the junction of adjacent blocks, try to leave small triangular holes, which can then be easily repaired. The vertical joints of adjacent blocks should not coincide - this will make your building strong, since all the blocks will be “tied” together. Do not move already placed blocks so as not to deprive them of their original shape. Place snow blocks on the firmer side, inside the room.
Video tutorials on building an igloo. The first is a detailed, old educational film:
The second video is not very detailed, but at the end the device of the fat lamp is shown:
And at the end the third, educational and entertaining video lesson on building an igloo:
So, if there was a lot of snow, yes - 20 outside, we could build an igloo :)
Based on materials (and much more details) http://www.skitalets.ru/books/iglu_kuznetsov/