Introduction: How to Make an Epic, Heated Snowfort

About: Architectural Designer and Volunteer Firefighter
This instructable will guide and inspire you to make an awesome snow fort in very little time!

Step 1: Tools

The only tool really needed for this project is a shovel. Mine looked like this. Its short enough to dig tunnels easily and wide enough to get efficient work done.

Step 2:

To make an awesome fort in little time, always choose the biggest snowbank you can find! That way, if you need any snow, its right there! Begin by shoveling a main room and while shoveling, use the chunks to build up walls around you. Pack the chunks together with more snow so that the walls are sturdy. 

Step 3: Entrance

Keep building up the walls, and tunnel an entrance through a snow bank. Winters are usually pretty windy where I am, so the taller the walls, facing towards the wind, the less strong winds you will have blowing on your face while in the fort.

Step 4: The Bigger, the Better

Over a short time, I built the outer wall even higher. Its about ten to twelve feet here on the inside.

Step 5: When Things Go Wrong...

I originally had a chimney that kept the whole fort very warm with a fire to the right of the tree. The cool part about having a fire in the fort is that the snow won't all melt on top of you. What happens is that is melts and freezes so it becomes even stronger than it was before. The chimney eventually fell down because the weather was warming up. Aftter that happened, I recovered the snow chunks to cover up my original entrance, and instead made the chimney area the new door, which didn't require crawling. 

Step 6: Invite Friends Over!

The best way to enjoy your fort is to have friends over for snowball fights, fires inside it, and building it. With friends, the project becomes so much easier and more enjoyable. Remember to be safe and have fun! Decorate your fort, put up Christmas lights, and bring in some candles for a brighter atmosphere at night. Thanks for reading my first Instructable, I hope this inspired you to make awesome forts of your own!