A few things that worked REALLY well...

[MedullaB]

So, after much reading here we embarked on our third burn trying a few new things. After returning, I have to extend my gratitude to the folks who have pioneered these ideas.

We tried three new things this year:

1. Hexa Yurts - AWESOME. Somewhat easy to make, and not all that expensive. The most dust free BM experience yet... Warm at night, cool in the AM, quieter than a tent and handled the rain well. Added a nice comfy cot and had some of the best sleep ever! Cut two holes for my sound system speakers and the yurt became a big speaker box turning my little 50W stereo into a decent sound system!

2. Monkey Hut with 90% shade fabric - I know temps weren't very high this year, but I didn't find a cooler structure out there. The wind is able to move through the fabric and take away the hot air building up underneath. U Shaped monkey hut kept sun out both in the am and pm so we did not have to keep finding the shade.

3. Towel based shower/evap pond. Great little shower and VERY efficient evaporator. More than handled our evap needs. Soak the towels and watch them dry out in a matter of hours. Extend the shower pole and it makes a good flag pole.

Thanks again to all those smart people who came up with these designs!

M.

[Nitevenus]

Great news and thanks for the post. I've been watching and wondering about these very items in the threads. Nice to know that I've been thinking in the right direction on what to bring on my next visit home. (add to the wish/get list) Now I just need to find someone with Figjams bucket evap cooler.....

[Bling]

Thanks for posting this--I searched and searched for the "What Worked, What Didn't" thread and couldn't find it. Here's what we did that worked:

1). Keeping the car A/C on "recirc" while we waited in line to get in (~3 hours). There was a tiny bit of dust when we turned on the A/C after leaving, but only for a couple of minutes.

2). UGG-type boots (fakes from eBay, but real sheepskin). Kept my feet cool and comfy all week. You CANNOT get a blister from UGGs, no matter how hard you try. No Playa foot problems, either.

3). 18" wrought iron tent stakes, made from 1/2" iron stock. (Helps to have a blacksmith friend). No rebar for us, these worked great!

4). Large misting bottles for water later in the week when it got hot. I pretty much misted myself & anyone in my general vicinity who wanted it continuously until it cooled off at about 5. Neutrogena spray sunscreen, too. We went through 4 or 5 cans.

5). El-wire jackets at night & tons of blinkies and LEDs. We couldn't believe how many people were NOT lit, whether walking or on bikes. Dumbasses.

6). Showering every afternoon. We brought our own shower tent and found we could wash our hair and then use a washcloth to get sunscreen and Playa off for 1/2 gallon/person. Next time: less water. Once the sunscreen is off, the dust doesn't stick to your skin. We felt clean until we had to sunscreen up again the next morning!

7). Dry ice. We froze jugs of water and had 2 large coolers full. Each day, we'd move a gallon into a small cooler to keep other food, beer, and drinks cool. We gifted several still-frozen gallons when we left on Saturday.

. 2-gallon ziploc bags. We put ALL of our clothes/costumes in these to keep the dust off, and we can use them to store stuff until next time. Laptops, too.

9). Spare car & trailer tires. We blew a trailer tire on the way to BRC and were glad to have a spare (had to buy another one at WalMart so we still had one). Hydraulic jack, too. And major toolkit. You just never know...

Big wastes of time:
-- Car cover. Never even took it out. We kept having to get stuff out of the car. Just not worth the bother.

-- Aluminet. We brought this to shade our Gypsy wagon/RV, but never bothered to put it up since it was cool early in the week. Guess we could have put it over our daughter's shade structure (over her tent), but didn't think of it...

[C.f.M.]

My Platypus water bottles instead of a bladder/hose.

[FIGJAM]

Everything I designed for the trip worked.

Shade, Playapod, Swampcooler, Electric trike, and pressurized 55gal. drum for running water anywhere in camp.

Read Q&A constantly to be prepared for next year.

[geospyder]

Filter taped over the cabin air intake worked wonders - no dust in AC

[Fire_Moose]

All my planning worked swimmingly.

The only thing that didn't work was the orientation of my monkey hut. It got set up in the entirely wrong direction because the first couple mornings were very cloudy and you couldn't see the sun at all.

Monday morning rolled around and it was like "dammit"

[joya]

1. Our North Pole Party Shade Structure worked like a dream! Easy to set-up and maintain... and plenty of shade during the day. (Of course, the dust/wind storms were minimal this year.) Highly recommend this structure!!!

Other things that worked really well: 2. Being EXTREMELY organized. When everything has a place, and you are sure to put things back in that place when you are done... wow, that makes so much difference! I had our SUV broken down into sections: clothing, bathroom supplies, tools, and kitchen area. So even though we were in and out of the vehicle often and back and forth to our shade structure -- we always knew where to find what we were looking for.

Also, I have to admit... 3. I love my Spirit Hood. Despite a kind of high price tag -- it was perfect on the playa. Keep me warm at night and was fun to wear.

Oh, and for the women... it was MUCH easier than I thought to manage bleeding on the playa. Belt with small pouch, extra tampons, plastic ziplock bags, and spare tissues -- pack it in, pack it out... Done and Done.

[baconqurlyq]

I bought a pair of big stompy boots that I thought would look cool, but I was stupid and went for a pair that was two sizes too big. They were ok when I was riding my cruiser, but they sucked one night when I was on foot. I ended up tossing them out. $70 goes bye bye.

I bought a pair of fake leopard print Uggs at Wal-Mart in Reno for $11 and I just about lived in those. They were ridiculously comfortable and didn't cause any blisters at all.

When I was lounging about camp, I wore a pair of socks and my crocs sandals.

In all cases, as long as I treated my feet twice a day by cleaning my feet with baby wipes thoroughly and then slathering them with moisturizer, followed by a fresh pair of a socks, they were fine. I did a foot bath with Dr. Bronner's once during the week, and it was heavenly, but despite my feet being a mess most of the time, they did great.

My hands, however, didn't do so well. They were always dry and the cuticles cracked in a couple of places. Lotioning up at night and sleeping in gloves helped quite a bit, and they were able to adjust by the end of the week, although it took a few days for them to go back to normal after I got back.

And nails. Clip your nails! I thought I would go with a little bit of a nail to look nice out there. Stupid! Ridiculous amounts of dirt just accumulated under the nail because I didn't know that happens when you can't wash your hands under running water. Ewww.

[Bling]

So true about the hands and nails! It was frustrating on the Playa, because if I lotioned up, I just accumulated more dust. Nails were a mess. Next time: rubber gloves for lotioning up at night.

[jella]

1. Good socks ! I splurged and bought arch support socks and was so glad I did .
2. camo netting, never worried about leaving camp and having my shade structure blow away.
3. my Burt Bees lemon cuticle salve. saved my poor dry didgets . I ended up putting it on my whole hand a few times.
4. my fave, spraying lavendar linen spray on dust masks, such a nice clean cool smell, had fun gifting extra masks with a spritz on each.
5. taking time to do nothing at all, after all it is a vacation !

[Fire_Moose]

I cant believe we never met, Jells...well i CAN believe, it's just a little sad.

[jella]

I know right !, and camp mates even . just too damn much fun to fit into a week haha. ((hugs))

[C.f.M.]

...almond champagne...

[Bling]

Oh! The Neutrogena spray-on sunscreen was awesome stuff. We'd bring that again.

[jella]

I saved your bottle all week my dear I wanna mail it to you !
pm me your address

[Savannah]

* Aveeno spray sunblock worked really well. It does not have alcohol in it (the Neutrogena usually does, but it looks very pretty & shiny while worn). However I have found that sunscreen sprays with alcohol eat me alive, particularly on the upper arms. So, Aveeno it is!

* I always bring a nail brush, clippers & several emery boards to use or give away, and this year found that--if the superior soap & water treatment is not practical--putting a little sanitizer on a nailbrush and having a quick zip under the nails (once back & forth, not prolonged scrubbing or you may dry out painfully) can make you look and feel more clean for a couple of hours or at least long enough to change your contact lenses.

* Liquid bandage for hangnails. Available in drugstores. It seals hangnails or small wounds closed for about 24 hours. Wearing gloves no matter how short physical labor seems is also helpful, but I'm really pleased with the addition of liquid bandage.

* 3 sanitizer pumps (plus individual ones on caribeeners) unopened until the desert, of course. 1 pump for the bedside table, 1 pump for the kitchen, 1 pump for the 1st Aid Kit. Saved lots of inconvenience and walking back and forth.

* Spring clamps from the hardware store. They were very handy. It might have been Jella who praised them first? Whoever posted pics of her clamps, I brought 8 of them this year and happily used 6.

* Meeting FireMoose worked out really well. After his little history with indiscriminate slurs, etc, I was worried he was going to be a dick, especially 'cause he was camped with my friends and I didn't like the idea of them having to deal with any mishegoss, but the few times we crossed paths, he was good-natured and generous. He just plays an asshole on TV. Sorry to Out you, FireMoose.

[Bounce530]

I was really happy with how well my little monkey hut worked out. It kept the temp in my little tent nice and comfortable.
Also the battery operated string leds worked great for hut and bike lighting. Although I did replace the batteries on all the strings in the later part of the week.

[Eric]

The cheap little LED blinkies worked better for me than my old EL wire ever did. Bought a bunch of the $1 pendant necklaces, but off the necklace & safety-pinned them to my coats. Just one on each side kept me fully visible without having to stare at the light constantly.

Best part- I only had one run out of batteries all week, and I have dozens of backup batteries. Cheap & cost-effective!

Next year I'm buying more so I can gift them to some of the darkwads running around. A couple of these are cheaper & brighter than a weeks supply of worthless glow-sticks.

[Mosin]

Cooking bacon in advance and keeping it in ziplocks in the freezer was the single best culinary tip I've ever received here. Ready-made bacon all week long...PRICELESS.

[Mosin]

Next time: rubber gloves for lotioning up at night.

Wasn't that tip originally provided by the ranch hand Curly? (Of Mice and Men). Oh wait, that was only one glove. Nevermind...

[Edana]

What worked well for us:

Our teepee ROCKED! Cool during the day, warm at night, decent airflow. Yes it got dusty, but as long as you keep things covered it's mostly fine. Next year we're not going to even bother putting up a tent!

Fake Uggs from EBay rocked my world. Found them a little too warm for daytime, but wore them every night and morning. Comfy and warm. Just perfect.

We took almost no food that required a cooler. Instead we filled our coolers with half gallon milk jugs filled with water and prefrozen to a hard freeze. Cold drinking water all week was fabulous, and no nasty grey cooler ice melt to deal with.

Putting each outfit in its own ziplock bag was GREAT. No need to try and figure out where this or that piece was. Easy to organize, easy to store, and prevented clothes you hadn't worn from getting dusty.

Prestrung LED lights that we bought on clearance after Christmas last year worked great for lighting up anything we needed. A little duct tape or a cable tie were all we needed.

Bike basket! I didn't realize just how often I ended up using this.

Pringles chips! For those salty snacky times, but can be closed up again, and won't get crushed. Excellent!

Poptarts for a quick breakfast. No mess, no fuss.

Small umbrella - small enough to carry around easily and invaluable for instant shade when out and about.

Premixed Margaritas (I mixed a bunch and stored them in old soda bottles). Just add ice for an awesome and super easy drink.

Baby wipes. Couldn't do it without them!

Spray on sunscreen was awesome.

[bluesbob]

So glad I brought several sizes of zip ties and bungee cords. Used extensively on everything, and came in really handy while packing up.

I hesitated on buying the 8 x 10 area rug, but then was extremely happy to walk around on it under our canopy. Much nicer than just a ground tarp and the playa floor.

I used tarps for walls on our canopy. But on one side I used Aluminet. Although it was expensive, I love Aluminet. It let the light in, let the breeze flow through, and gave us some privacy.

[Teo del Fuego]

Everything worked great this year! Couldn't do without my 5 gallon pee jug, though.

[VeganChoirGirl]

* Meeting FireMoose worked out really well. After his little history with indiscriminate slurs, etc, I was worried he was going to be a dick, especially 'cause he was camped with my friends and I didn't like the idea of them having to deal with any mishegoss, but the few times we crossed paths, he was good-natured and generous. He just plays an asshole on TV. Sorry to Out you, FireMoose.

No doubt. I camped with FM and though he wandered a great deal, the times I did get to hang a bit with him...totally awesome. What an awesome playa surprise!

[EmilyD]

I started a What Worked and What Didn't list for myself today so I can capture the info before I forget it. Here are a few:

What Worked

* I also did the pre-cooked bacon and it was FANTASTIC. I was able to cook a meal for most of our camp on a morning-after that was extremely appreciated by all. I had no idea everything tastes extra special good on the Playa. Chilled Cherry cider from Trader Joes was like ambrosia!

* Covering our ice chests with mylar bubblewrap, with metal tape, and up on pallets was ASTOUNDING! Ice lasted 4 days, regular ice!!!

* Sheets on the bed and trailer carpet. This was a real lung-saver. I wish I'd had one more sheet to replace the bed one and shift the other onto the floor. The floor sheet was so covered with dust we had trouble keeping it from flying around and making us cough.

* Coats with LED Xmas lights sewn and pinned on. I too was amazed at how many people were completely unlit. It was scary to see these folks dart out when on our bikes. Worst was unlit bike riders who almost slammed into us.

* Our shade structure performed PERFECTLY! Our trailer, and the area behind it, got only 1/2 the wind and dust of the area outside it. When the dust storm got really bad our campmates took refuge in our calm, bar area.

* A favorite of ours and our campmates was the cool portable hammocks I found. I had to pry one of our friends out of it. He took to napping in it every afternoon.

What Didn't Work

* Unfortunately heavy duty earplugs coupled with high decibel earphones couldn't keep out the horrendous pounding of shitty rave music all night. We were located between DPW and Anonymous Village on Detroit and every goddamn, crappy, mutant vehicle seemed to drive down our street every night. Sometimes they parked outside our trailer for an hour blasting their pointless single-note pounding ear poison. This was the only part of my entire Burning Man trip that I couldn't find a way to embrace. The only thing that helped me laugh about it was when a campmate described it as "the sound of a tennis shoe in the dryer."

* I brought too many socks but that's okay. I never had to wash my feet though my hands got pretty beat up during our teardown. I used gardening gloves which allowed dust to get inside and abrade my skin. I should have used my leather work gloves.

* I brought two parasols but never used either. Big hats were much more useful.

* We never could figure out where to put our dirty shoes at night. We didn't want them inside the trailer but having them outside was really inconvenient. I think we need to rig up some kind of bag or box that will keep the dust from flying around the trailer but will fit inside. The trailer is tiny and we have very limited storage space.

I'm uploading my photos to Flickr as I type this and will post the link as soon as they're done.

[Elorrum]

TRIKE
no shit. forget about the old lady with the little dog in the back that you saw at the market when you were a kid. (o.k. that's my memory)

three wheels, no worries. no tipping, no sore neck and shoulders from long rides through dunes and ruts and traffic. go slow and look around, stop and have a seat and look around. stop and let the darkwads walk directly in front of you... no crashes now. I cursed less since it caused me less trouble. Disassembled, it packed flat in my little car and I loaded everything else on top of it.

next year with better music, fenders, maybe a passenger seat, maybe a motor.

[ohCarie]

Ok I'll start with the most obvious:

Trailer with a bathroom. Even though showers were abandoned after two unsuccessful attempts, the toilet was worth it's weight in gold. Also switching the mattress with an 8" thick futon one I got on eBay was the BOMB. Didn't need A/C or bring a gennie, and left the windows open most of the night.

Spray sunscreen!

My last minute shaded goggles saved my life! Worked at night too, though next year I'll get a clear pair. http://www.maximumeyewear.com/productfolder/burning-man-goggles/burning_man_goggles.html

Benadryl made those nightly mutant ghetto blasters go *poof*

Bike basket! This is where I kept my water jug and backpack most of the time. I never locked my bike nor did I lock my backpack to the bike (like I planned). Never had the desire and never lost a thing. My BF stopped using his camelbak after the first day; we preferred the jug of water with a splash of juice/gatorade/koolaid. Oh and reusable mug with lid was PRICELESS. Oh and bottle holder mounted to the handlebars. Is this one thing or 10?

Wore my tutu every other day.

Ended up wearing UGG-like slippers all day and night. But wore sandals sometimes and didn't anything close to playafoot (perhaps the pedicure really did work.)

[Bling]

Benadryl! I had it with me--why didn't I think to take it? It was easy to sleep (with earplugs) early in the week, but later on it got louder and louder...

Totally forgot: I bought a bunch of furnace filters (with a white fluffy layer and a yellow sticky layer) to block the screens in our wagon--and cut one up to sew into bandanas. These were COMFORTABLE even all day long on Saturday when the dust was blowing. We brought N95s with valves, but they felt so nasty on our skin that we couldn't use them for long.

And whoever kept saying "you don't get hungry on the Playa," Ha! I was STARVING all the time! We ate 3 meals a day. I was kinda hoping to lose a few pounds, but between the crappy road food on the way down and back and always being hungry while we were there, that probably didn't happen.

[ohCarie]

I agree Bling! I was STARVING. I think it's all the biking. I ate mozzarella and tomato slices, tuna & crackers, pb&js, cheese sticks and full meals. Missed the dusty diner's late night grilled cheeses--dang! But we made some during exodus--again awesome to have the trailer! Oh and the pineapple juice was great later in the week. YUM.