Comments on: Building The Kids An Igloo

By: Clarissa

Clarissa — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 01:50:48 +0000

My family has a different approach to igloos. WEegot all of my uncles (the tallest ones), and they worked for hours to roll a smowball as tall and wide as them. (I have seven very strong unces. So, to make this kind of igloo, you’re either going to need a sumo wrestler or about six or seven full-grown men) They all spent hours rolling out the ball. THE only reason they stopped is because it bacame too heavy for them ot roll. Then the fun began. Us kids got sticks and made small indedtations in the ball to show where we wanted things like hte door ot be. iN the end, we ended up with a huge igloo tyhat could fit six nine year olds in it, fit with chaire dug out of the sides and a slide out the back. Sure, it took a lot of extra work, but it’s one you can make without any blocks or anything like that.

By: thoughtchallenge

thoughtchallenge — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 23:41:01 +0000

I built an igloo when I was about 12. We had about a foot of snow followed by a nice mist, which made a crust on the top of the snow. I cut rectangles out of the snow and scooped them up with the snow shovel. Carefully each row was overlapped towards the center, until it was finally the sides were finally close enough to cover the top. Your method seems better, I’ll have to try this sometime. My method required just the right conditions and was very frustrating as the blocks would sometimes disintegrate. Definitely would recommend building the door way first, using some kind of cardboard box or other removable material. Also, a light mist late at night over the entire structure, provided that its cold enough to freeze over.

By: Chelsea:D

Chelsea:D — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 09:18:50 +0000

This looks really cool!
Thanks for the idea, I am well doing this when I get home<3

By: Living Around Livingston » Blog Archive » Snow Day

Living Around Livingston » Blog Archive » Snow Day — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:30:41 +0000

[...] the perfect storm…for building an igloo with the kids. . [...]

By: Elizabeth Kaylene

Elizabeth Kaylene — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:29:58 +0000

Very cool! I never made an igloo as a kid and hate snow, but this is still really cool.

By: eef

eef — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 02:17:34 +0000

A common technique to keep from making your walls too thin when digging from the inside is to insert sticks from the outside whose length is the desired wall thickness. You dig from the inside until you reach the stick ends and then stop.

By: qwertinsky

qwertinsky — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:31:17 +0000

For extra strength you heed to start a fire inside. Let is begin to melt the interior then put it out. This will make a nice strong layer of ice on the inside.

By: Jim Loose

Jim Loose — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:28:28 +0000

The technique used by igloo builders, to always build on a stable structure, is to lay the blocks in a stepped inclined spiral. Since the spiral is stepped and inclined each block, as it is placed on the spiral, is held in place by the previous block that forms the step. This technique overcomes the tendency for the blocks to fall to the centre. One person can easily build on the spirial by standing inside the structure. The technique is simple yet elegant. A credit to an ancient building tradition.
Jim

By: Remo

Remo — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 16:09:18 +0000

Of course, we only let them play in it while supervised. The bricks look heavy but were surprisingly light and tended to split into 5-10 pieces when dropped. Imagine getting hit by a soft snowball, just a really big one. Before we figured out to build each level in a full circle one of the walls fell in on top of the kids inside and they had a great time climbing out screaming “AVALANCHE!”

It lasted about 5 days before it rained, started to sag and finally collapsed into a sad pile of snow in the space of about 4 hours. We knew it was coming and it was fun to watch in a way.

By: john

john — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 14:11:41 +0000

pay attention to not bury your kids in snow if it’s about to thaw..

By: Tony

Tony — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:15:40 +0000

I did this a few times when I was younger, and learned all sorts of crazy things, like using 2-3 large plastic bags inflated and tied off for internal “insurance” during construction. if you want a tunnel entrance, build it first, and if you want a snow cave that will hold adults and you have the snow, start by piling it up, build the cave on the mound, then dig out the center for extra hight while keeping it stable…
Now that I am a stay at home dad I cant wait till my girls are old enough to be able to enjoy this sort of thing… building and another excuse for warm drinks are the only good that come out of having snow!

By: “No Spiders or Visigoths Allowed”- La vita è bella « crazy dumbsaint of the mind

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:54:43 +0000

[...] we finally get a nice,hefty amount of snow heaped upon us, we shall build a family igloo together. We’ll make it a deluxe igloo, large enough for a family of 7 (plus pregnant [...]

By: Stephani

Stephani — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 02:06:40 +0000

This makes the snow seem almost fun. As long as you have to have it you may as well enjoy it! Very cool.

By: KinKStar

KinKStar — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:17:32 +0000

You are a cool Dad for doing this for your children! What an experience and it’s not so bad looking either! Good Job!

By: jrr

jrr — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:19:43 +0000

I’ve done one kind of like this before, and I used a different approach for the door – I put a large cardboard box in its place, building on top of it, and then removed it afterward. I also learned that it helps to build the tunnel entrance from the start, instead of tacking it on afterward.