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How to build a Sami hut in wood!

How to build a Sami hut in wood!
This is a description with pics of how i built my Sami hut in wood.

What this hut has as a raw model is the hut that our Swedish indigenous people called Sami, have built and used for many centuries.
This type of building is/was also (to some degree) used by the Inuit, Aleut and Yupik peoples.

As i made it from reprocessed wood from torned down houses and other buildings this is a totaly green project.

Tools/materials you need is a hammer, saw, knife, drill, spirit level, nails, tarpaper, wood and alot of patience!

As a non American/English i use the metric system, so i had to use an online converter to be able to present the messurements in inches.

So please dont mock me for my English as i am from Sweden.

 
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Step 1Step one:

Step one:
The most important step is to get the ground where you want your Sami hut horizontal (level).
I did that with bigger stones placed at the outer rim as a stop for the smaller stones/gravels (30 millimeters in size).
This ground made of gravel/stones is also important because the need of drainage.
Heavy rains will now float under the gravelbed and not make your feet wet.

The bottom frame that the hut is going to stand on, is made of 8 pieces of 2 by 6 inch pressure treated beams with both ends cut at 22,5 degrees angle.

You nail them together to the shape of the octagon you see in the pic.

The length of all 8 bottom frame pieces is 2.0 meters (78.74 inches), messured from the both outer edges of the 22.5 degree angle cuts (see drawing).
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130 comments
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Mar 29, 2012. 1:12 AMAriedeB says:
Makes me want to have a giant backyard.
I'd build 2 of them, one Sauna and one guest house ;)

Liked the instructable a lot.
Oct 16, 2011. 5:40 PMWasagi says:
This is fantastic! It has that timeless appeal, and it's simple, I really enjoyed reading this instructable.
Jul 24, 2011. 4:02 AMjsimonsen1 says:
Inspiring...
Jul 9, 2011. 7:02 PMwęželson says:
good evening , i send my thanks for showing how to make this type of hut..truly goodly and kind of you.what are the messurements of the thin pieces of wood you had used to make the walls?

bless be well
May 30, 2011. 12:05 PMChin797 says:
Love the idea, I'm working on a plan to make a couple of these and connect them together, to make a sort of house for in the summers with friends, and put some electrics in it for light a tv and more, of course with a big Sami in the middle for tv and stuff like that.

Keep going on like this, because this is such a great design.
May 19, 2011. 6:25 PMhhostel says:
This is REALLY cool! Now I gotta show it to my husband so he can build us one in East Texas Piney Woods! I love this design! Thanks for sharing!
Dec 27, 2010. 11:10 AMkimpappa24 says:
I recently completed this project for a christmas gift. its alot more work than it seemed to be but im very happy with the end results. in total it cost me about $430 american dollars. i bought everything i needed at Home Depot besides basic tools like screwdrivers and saws. i think it tool apr. 30 hours to build total. we did do it in the winter so it was quiet cold and if done in the summer it would have been more fun and leisurely. we are going to add onto it and make it to our preferences like making the door come out instead of in and figuring what stain we want, ect. overall it was awesome and thnx for the plans!
Mar 31, 2011. 6:09 AMkimpappa24 says:
I'd love to show some..were do i upload them?
Mar 27, 2011. 1:45 PMVinsu says:
In Finland we call these "kota"s. This is by far one of the most beautiful ones I've seen.
Mar 19, 2011. 8:19 PMQuinn Z. says:
This looks very challenging
Dec 1, 2010. 4:03 AMsta2butler says:
very nice!!!!
Jun 16, 2010. 4:40 AMKohler says:
most of sami's live in finland -.-
Jun 12, 2010. 5:35 PMbig trav says:
That is awesome, I want one!! the missus would shoot me if I built that though instead of the kids cubby house. Well done it looks cool!
Jun 7, 2010. 4:31 PMlarksid7 says:
this teepee could be covered in pieces \of junk sheet metal which is easy to find and then stccoed and painted...needs a vent to at top or near it for ventilation....and of course it needs to be insulated
Mar 3, 2010. 6:40 PMCHIEFGR8TWOLF says:
Has anyone tried to build this yet? If so tell us of any issues you may have encountered. I am looking into my local building code requirements before proceeding. But after looking at this Instructable I have been drawing my plans up for presenting to the codes office. I will be adding a dormer and breezeway at the door, building a 3 foot vertical base wall for better headroom, an enclosed  wood / coal stove for control of the temperature, and lastly I will be extending two walls to give it an oblonged shape instead of a round one. It will look more like a Long House than a Tepee.  Thanks for starting me on my way.

Chiefgr8twolf , I am a Native American (Conoy Tribe), gotta love it just like anyone out there we should all be proud we belong to the "Human Race."
Jan 22, 2010. 4:37 AMurwatuis says:
I think the base or sill should be pressure treated lumber as it will get wet quite frequently. Nice idea overall
Nov 21, 2009. 2:50 PMgeros59 says:
In case of using your project as a sauna, would you need other kind of protection for the wood? I mean, with the steam the wood could be ruined, wouldn't it? which one would you recommend?
Thanks
Apr 30, 2009. 3:28 PMrbenkhe says:
First off...anyone picking on this guys use of a word, should take a close look at how rudely they belittled the guy. Come on, grow up and stop acting like the class bully who picks on the foreign kid. Second off...FABULOUS JOB ....I am building one in sections so that it can be moved from location to location on a flatbed trailer. I have designed it to connect together internally with some Z brackets and externally with some "office divider panel connectors" that I am picking up from Bakers@work in Cambridge ontario. They are a hammer in plastic connector that works fine in the summer but will probably be replaced with someing else for the winter. As a modular unit, I do not need a building permit if I put it up on our property, and the floor deck will be modular as well so that I can set it up anywhere and still be high and dry off the ground. I will post pictures when I am done. Thanks for the inspiration God Bless Pastor Robert Benkhe Killaloe, Ontario, Canada
Nov 20, 2009. 9:20 AMJakeOlsan says:
 Word. This guy made a great Instructable in his second or possibly third language, that is super respectable. It would still be great even if it were in pidgen. 
Oct 7, 2009. 10:20 AMdustyplans says:
VERY COOL.   Do you need to insulate this??
Aug 16, 2009. 11:05 PMSETHARMSTRONG says:
really love this.... plan on building one for myself... what was the cost???
Aug 17, 2009. 8:26 AMSETHARMSTRONG says:
right... i think i can get ahold of all the wood for the skin for free so really i just need the 2x4s and 2x6s... thanks
Jun 3, 2009. 5:27 AMtlowery04 says:
your comment about the fish has me wondering... could this be viable as a smoke house?
Jun 6, 2009. 9:45 PMtlowery04 says:
yeah i think i would have to cut it down by roughly 1/2 to 2/3 just to start with, however i do really like this design and it might have a full size sister structure in the woods in Oklahoma some time soon.
Jun 4, 2009. 12:56 PMjamesdouglastx says:
I think that the middle picture should be labeled 135 degrees instead of the 45 shown. Saying this just in case someone needs that angle.
Jun 3, 2009. 3:21 AMwobbler says:
They can mock you all they like on your english, but they can't mock you on your design! Great job, I want one!
May 14, 2009. 12:39 PMthelame1 says:
Your english is very good. A very interesting building.
May 28, 2009. 9:29 PMmeginski says:
This is great! I only wish I had some place to build one.
May 26, 2009. 8:12 PMisabellayessi says:
so cool.I will try to do this when I have my own house and not renting.It looks so fun and is like a tree house.
May 7, 2009. 7:02 PMunclejack says:
Great looking project, I have a small camping hut back in the woods, but this might be a new project! Thanks for the idea.
May 2, 2009. 6:28 PMbrenryan says:
Excellent Instructable. What's with all the irrelevant comments? I am so fed up of people getting offended on other peoples behalf. Acting so PC, its absolutely ridiculous.
May 1, 2009. 11:49 PMtbor62 says:
Do you have any more photos of the interior, and any instructions on how to build the circular bench? P.S. I voted for your entry.
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