How do you build your igloos?

Hi All,
I made a homemade snowsaw (2' long with big teeth) and I tested it last weekend by trying to build an igloo. After 2-3 blocks, I already gave up on using my snowsaw...it took too much energy because of the huge range of motion my saw needed to cut efficiently. So I decided to go get my hunting knife (which has a 5" blade) and try to immitate the inuits I saw on some videos I watched and online pages I read.

I decided to follow the technique I read online:
1) Stomp the area with snowshoes (should have plenty of snow there, at least 4 feet). I did this the night before...cheating?
2) Mark the middle (I used the tip of my walking poles) of the igloo
3) Mark the circumference of the igloo's wall on the ground
4) Mark a trench 2 feet wide that runs through your igloo
5) Remove a wedge from one of the trench's end
6) cut blocks 2 feet wide, 2 feet tall, by 6 in deep through your entire igloo's length and make a levelled first row that's very slightly tilted towards the inner of the igloo ** see below for cutting technique
7) To place a block, gently drop it near where it needs to go and run a knife between the block you want to position and the block under it. This will ensure a good fit with the block under it.
8) Slide it next to the previous block (same row), run your knife between the block you want to position and the previous block. This will ensure a good fit with the block next to it.
9) Once you're done with your first row, you'll be 4 feet inside your igloo already and out of the wind, yay! Your blocks are 2 feet tall, resting on the outdoor floor...and you dug 2 feet deep deep to get the blocks. This outdoor floor -2 feet will now be the floor of your igloo.
10) Once your block has 3 good point of contacts (lower left, lower right and upper right corners), give your blocks a semi-gentle fist tap to set it firmly in place. You'll have to decide, based on snow quality, what semi-gentle is...
11) Choose 3 unlucky consecutive blocks and cut a slope through all three blocks
12) Continue making blocks from inside the igloo. Once you've used up your trench, carve blocks out from the rest of your igloo's floor and set them using the technique described before.
13) ?? cap the igloo ??
14) Excavate at least 2 feet deep (put the snow in the igloo on the side if you're alone and have to dig out) where you want the entrance to be and then move towards the outside of your igloo until you reach daylight Then move the snow excavated outside.
15) Create a ventilation hole over the entrance. Any cold air coming in will drop in the cold well that is the entrance and when you clear it of any snow that might block the hole, it'll fall in the entrance and not in your sleeping bag.

Here's a little something I picked up online (monkey see, monkey do as they say ), check the attached JPG.
1) Run your knife up and down 2-3 times on the left side of the block you want to create (red line). Make this cut 2 feet long.
2) Do the same for the right side (green line). 2 feet long.
3) Do the same for the under side (blue line). 2 feet long.
4) Do the same for the line that will determine the thickness of the block (gray line). Obviously, with your 5" knife, you won't be able to cut all the way in...
5) But here's the magic part: Fingers straighten out...jam your fingers and hands into the gray line's cut in one swift motion. If the snow is consistent, the block should pop out, almost perfectly cut 2'x2'x6". Give it a try, it's surprising!

Unfortunately, I ran out of time when building my igloo (the disadvantages of building an igloo alone!), so I covered it with a tarp. However I'm planning to build another one this weekend (7 foot diameter instead of 9) and will hopefully be able to finish that one. At which point I'll add instructions on how to cap the igloo.

So other than using an icebox, how do you guys/gals do your igloos? Do you do anything different?? I'm real curious to see what others do...

Fish

Was the snow you pack down real dense?

How cold was it outside?

How did you make the saw and what metal was the blade made from?

The snow saw I used was 18" long so my blocks were 18" X24" X 6-8" and even then there was considerabe deviation.

I think once you get the basic construction conceps down it becomes an art since conditions can determine how well a block holds up.

I'm thinking now of more of a snow cave/block leanto type structure because snow caves and igloos take a lot of time and energy to make.

If the temps were really fridged then the enclose snow shelters are the warmest. I hope to dabble with this more in the years to come as I work on my winter 46.

O ya, I think an igloo is a two or three person job.

Hi!
The outside temp during the day wasn't that low: -15C or so. The snow was pretty dense because I stomped it the night before, but after a couple of feet of dense snow, there was a layer of sugar'ish snow, which was rubbish for building anything.

I bought a 3 feet piece of aluminium from canadian tires and cut (with a metal saw) big teeth into it and then made a L-type handle. I'll try to post a pic soon.

When we went in the Chic-Chocs, we timed ourselves doing a snow cave:
We dug for 30 minutes with 2 people, then continued for another 30 minutes (after lunch) with a 3rd person. After 20-25 minutes, both of us were out of the wind (it was fairly windy) and after 40 minutes or so, all three of us were out of wind (two of which were inside the cave). Amazing (time-wise) option for an emergency shelter. Unfortunately, it started raining a lot, so we didn't spend the night in it, but it would of been comfortably cozy for 3 Had we been 3 from the start, we estimate we would of been able to do the snow cave in about 45 minutes or so.

I'm still hoping to be able to build a decent igloo in relatively short amount of time...but the stomping of the snow sets me back all the time.

How do yours fare? and how long do they take to build?

Fish

Last winter I joined a group from MOAC to make a quinzee. There were about 8 of us. It took as long to wait for the snow to sinter as it did to pile the snow up, but it was a fun experience.

If I've done it right, here's a picture.

eruggles said:

It took as long to wait for the snow to sinter as it did to pile the snow up, but it was a fun experience.

Click to expand...

That's always a problem with our snow...That's why inuits can build igloos for survival. I mean, other than learning the skills required to build an igloo (which once learned isn't a problem anymore), it's very convenient that wind packed snow is readily available.

You don't need to move and pack snow and then wait for it to sinter...all of this has been done for you by mother nature.

I'm wondering if the fact that our snow isn't dry snow could change anything in the building process..."wet" blocks would be heavier and might not lend themselves to building proper igloos, or at least they might make the task that much more difficult to complete. Anyone that went out west that tried to build igloos both here and there could speak on this?

Cheers,

Fish

I think your other thread would be good for people to check out as well.

ADK88 said:

I think your other thread would be good for people to check out as well.

Click to expand...

My problem is I wouldn't bring and depend on my cheap knock off of the Icebox for shelter without a proper backup plan. It's cool, it cost peanuts to make, but realistically, it's not as sturdy as the real thing. Fairly close! But those coroplast panels could easily get crushed and mangled. Plus, even with all the gear...it still took us 7hr to complete (starting with 5 people for 1-2 hr, then switching to only 2 people for the remainder of the construction).

This is why I'm trying to perfect the art of building igloos with basically just my hunting knife. I also think that with proper technique, one could be relatively safe from the elements (mainly: Wind) after building a fraction of the igloo. I only tried building an igloo with my knife once...and I was alone. Took a long time and I didn't finish it (it was perhaps a tad ambitious at 9ft diameter ) I would hope that 2 people could build a 7 feet diameter igloo in 1hr (not counting initial sinter time). Realistically, anymore than that and it's a lot to dedicate for a shelter especially if building in adverse conditions (a very decent sized snow cave took us 1 hr flush to build). But I might be asking too much...

Fish