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Posted: 10/12/2011 3:49:59 AM EDT
Anyone made one? I have an area of yard that is on the south side of my house that is worthless for anything else, it's 24 ft long by 5 ft wide, house on one side privacy fence on the other so I decided to build a greenhouse to winter my outdoor plants in, here are some pics.
on this one you can see the green house on the far right side of the yard. If anyone else has one even if it's not home made, I would love to see some pics and maybe lets us know what you use it for. |
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Posted: 10/12/2011 3:56:20 AM EDT
[#1]
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Posted: 10/13/2011 3:53:06 AM EDT
[#2]
No interest huh? oh well.
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Posted: 10/13/2011 4:02:44 AM EDT
[#3]
I like it. My wife has been getting info on hoop houses. It would be nice to extend our growing season, which is funny this year, because our garden is still producing. Can't imagine you'd need to extend your season, but you could have fresh greens year round, which is nice.
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Posted: 10/13/2011 5:16:51 AM EDT
[#4]
Pretty cool... I've just started thinking about greenhouse ideas... yours is neat. Pvc on the top?
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Posted: 10/13/2011 6:07:05 AM EDT
[#5]
Yah, 3/4" schd 40 pvc.
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Posted: 10/13/2011 7:13:34 AM EDT
[#6]
That's an awesome greehouse.
I was gonna build one until I purchased the farmhouse. |
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Posted: 10/13/2011 8:13:02 AM EDT
[#7]
Nice work - what is the thickness of the plastic you used, and any concerns about wind tearing it apart?
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Posted: 10/14/2011 5:03:37 AM EDT
[#8]
Quoted:
Nice work - what is the thickness of the plastic you used, and any concerns about wind tearing it apart? It's 6 mill and pretty heavy,the area sets on the south side of the house and there is another house just 5 feet to the side of that I don't think wind will be a problem. |
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Posted: 10/14/2011 11:02:58 AM EDT
[#9]
Do you think there is a chance that condensation will start forming on the brick, and lead to green algae growing on it?
Also, what side of the house is it on? |
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Posted: 10/15/2011 3:35:48 AM EDT
[#10]
Quoted:
Do you think there is a chance that condensation will start forming on the brick, and lead to green algae growing on it? Also, what side of the house is it on? It's on the south side , I installed a window on one end and a screen door on the other, with fans inside I don't think condensation will be a problem , but time will tell. 
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Posted: 10/15/2011 5:54:43 PM EDT
[#11]
Thats great! I love seeing people use the space that they have to fullest. Nice work!
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Posted: 10/16/2011 7:37:28 AM EDT
[#12]
I have it in mind to build one at the new house once we are settled in. Mother Earth News had a good write-up on the subject in the latest issue. I don't know if you read that magazine, but I am willing to bet they would be interested to see what you have built there. Nice work!
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Posted: 10/16/2011 8:04:38 AM EDT
[#13]
Very nice, how did you fasten the pvc pipe at the top?
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Posted: 10/17/2011 5:08:44 AM EDT
[#14]
Quoted:
No interest huh? oh well. Plenty of interest! And great pics BTW  Still working out the details; I'm thinking I want to incorporate my winter chicken nesting in a small part of the greenhouse for the extra BTUs (however minimal in practice that may be) The Survival podcast had an idea thrown out by a listener I'm thinking of trying. Basically cover a small metal frame garage with plastic instead of the metal that comes with it.
Those cheap metal garages are ~$400 around here for 16'x20' or bigger; I may get a smaller one to test this theory. I could easily bolt the legs to 4"x6" lumber to keep it secured to the ground and cover it with heavy duty clear plastic instead of the metal. As needed I would use the metal sheeting to maintain structural integrity. The chickens would stay on the northeast side of the building (farthest from the wind and closest to the house. The spot I have in mind is laid out so a long side would be facing almost due south. But, that may be a project for another year. I'm running out of time to complete that this fall and it's so wet even minimal ground work around that part of my yard will make more of a mess than it's worth. |
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Posted: 10/18/2011 5:52:25 AM EDT
[#15]
Quoted:
Very nice, how did you fasten the pvc pipe at the top? I used pvc end caps screwed them to the wall and the glue the tubing into the it worked great. 
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Posted: 10/19/2011 4:23:36 AM EDT
[#16]
I've got all the bits and pieces collected up for a 12'x24' freestanding PVC greenhouse, just haven't had the time to dedicate to getting it all set up. The onset of cooler weather has my wife giving me those meaningful looks, though, so I may be posting some pics in here before long.
Nice job on yours, OP! |
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Posted: 10/19/2011 5:04:49 AM EDT
[#17]
Nice use of space.
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Posted: 10/19/2011 6:49:15 AM EDT
[#18]
Well done, might try that myself, have the perfect spot.
TXL |
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Posted: 11/9/2011 4:08:47 AM EDT
[#19]
Well plants are in, mounted a fan on the wall some plant lights on timers and a heater
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Posted: 11/9/2011 6:44:01 AM EDT
[#20]
Quoted:
I've got all the bits and pieces collected up for a 12'x24' freestanding PVC greenhouse, just haven't had the time to dedicate to getting it all set up. The onset of cooler weather has my wife giving me those meaningful looks, though, so I may be posting some pics in here before long.
Nice job on yours, OP! I got a start on ours: 
... but had a catastrophic failure while assembling the frame and moving it into place: 
The "backbone" (ridge) broke in three places as we were trying to flip it over - I assembled it upside-down to make tightening the nuts for each rib down easier  . I think the main problem was that the PVC pipe has been sitting around outside for over a year, and got pretty brittle. Ordered another set of the 4-way cross adapters and am going to try again with "fresh" pipe. Also going to use bolts on all 4 intersections this time, so if something does break, I can replace individual pieces instead of rebuilding the whole ridge.
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Posted: 11/30/2011 12:55:54 AM EDT
[#21]
Quoted:
Quoted:
I've got all the bits and pieces collected up for a 12'x24' freestanding PVC greenhouse, just haven't had the time to dedicate to getting it all set up. The onset of cooler weather has my wife giving me those meaningful looks, though, so I may be posting some pics in here before long.
Nice job on yours, OP! I got a start on ours: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/ghouse4.jpg ... but had a catastrophic failure while assembling the frame and moving it into place: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/ghouse5.jpg The "backbone" (ridge) broke in three places as we were trying to flip it over - I assembled it upside-down to make tightening the nuts for each rib down easier . I think the main problem was that the PVC pipe has been sitting around outside for over a year, and got pretty brittle. Ordered another set of the 4-way cross adapters and am going to try again with "fresh" pipe. Also going to use bolts on all 4 intersections this time, so if something does break, I can replace individual pieces instead of rebuilding the whole ridge.
Any update on your project? |
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Posted: 11/30/2011 1:22:13 AM EDT
[#22]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
I've got all the bits and pieces collected up for a 12'x24' freestanding PVC greenhouse, just haven't had the time to dedicate to getting it all set up. The onset of cooler weather has my wife giving me those meaningful looks, though, so I may be posting some pics in here before long.
Nice job on yours, OP! I got a start on ours: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/ghouse4.jpg ... but had a catastrophic failure while assembling the frame and moving it into place: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/ghouse5.jpg The "backbone" (ridge) broke in three places as we were trying to flip it over - I assembled it upside-down to make tightening the nuts for each rib down easier . I think the main problem was that the PVC pipe has been sitting around outside for over a year, and got pretty brittle. Ordered another set of the 4-way cross adapters and am going to try again with "fresh" pipe. Also going to use bolts on all 4 intersections this time, so if something does break, I can replace individual pieces instead of rebuilding the whole ridge.
Any update on your project? Yeah, but it ain't happy news 
I rebuilt the whole frame, and we carrrrefullllly started bending the ribs into place... crack! sproing! CRAP! The bolted junctions between the ribs and the backbone just aren't strong enough to take the tension of the ribs being bent into a 12' diameter half-circle. I was building according to a plan I found online, to those dimensions and PVC size (1"), so I'm not sure how they got their version to work without the same result I did. I'm retooling now to take a different route, since I already have a decent foundation to work with. I'm going to quit jacking with the PVC, and go with a conventional wood frame, built on 2' centers (rather than the usual 16"). It'll obviously be a little more expensive than the PVC frame, but this should end up being much sturdier and more durable. |
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Posted: 11/30/2011 12:07:03 PM EDT
[#23]
I was reading through posts about the Harbor Freight greenhouse a couple weeks ago. One recurring theme I see is they reinforce the HFGH with conduit. Why couldn't you get some 1" conduit bent up for the junctions and then run PVC for the long runs? Then you are not worrying about the PVC shattering. Just a thought.
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Posted: 11/30/2011 1:14:51 PM EDT
[#24]
Quoted:
I was reading through posts about the Harbor Freight greenhouse a couple weeks ago. One recurring theme I see is they reinforce the HFGH with conduit. Why couldn't you get some 1" conduit bent up for the junctions and then run PVC for the long runs? Then you are not worrying about the PVC shattering. Just a thought. Yep, you could do that... in fact a number of places sell tubing/conduit hoop-house frames as a kit. But as I started tallying up the costs and other pros & cons (like lateral stability, ease of attaching different coverings, going with a double-layer w/airspace cover, etc.) a wood frame started looking more and more attractive. I could tell as soon as we got started erecting the PVC frame that it wanted to sway, as a unit, frontwards and backwards (perpendicular to the ribs), so I was going to have to string some wire along the exterior to act as lateral bracing. The plastic would have helped with that once it was attached, but overall I just wasn't getting a good impression of the long term stability of the thing. All was not lost though. I just came back in the house from helping the wife use the salvaged pieces of the greenhouse frame to build a 16'x12' covered arch shade for our chicken run. It held up fine for that, since we weren't bending the ribs into anywhere near as tight a radius as we were with the greenhouse.
I think the wood-framed greenhouse will be an interesting project too. The only real complication is the roof, and I've got some ideas to pre-build some 2-by and plywood trusses to help with that. Rough plan: 
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Posted: 11/30/2011 5:07:12 PM EDT
[#25]
If you want to improve the efficiency of your heat retention, you need to do two layers of plastic, and install a squirrel cage fan to blow air between the layers. That's how we do it with big commercial greenhouses. Otherwise the heat bills keep it from being profitable.
You're far enough south that you may not need much to keep the plants alive, but if you want it to be more efficient, that's the way to get it.
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Posted: 12/1/2011 12:17:25 AM EDT
[#26]
Quoted:
If you want to improve the efficiency of your heat retention, you need to do two layers of plastic, and install a squirrel cage fan to blow air between the layers. That's how we do it with big commercial greenhouses. Otherwise the heat bills keep it from being profitable. You're far enough south that you may not need much to keep the plants alive, but if you want it to be more efficient, that's the way to get it. Yep, that's what I meant above by "...going with a double-layer w/airspace cover, etc.". With the wood frame, I can just staple plasic to both the interior and exterior edges of the studs and not have to mess with an inflation unit. Plus, I have the option to easily upgrade from "loose" poly to something a little sturdier, like these twin-wall poly sheets. Can even do those a few sheets at a time, as funds allow. |
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Posted: 12/1/2011 3:30:20 AM EDT
[#27]
Well when I left for work this morningat 3:00am it was 35 deg out side went and checked the temp in the G/H and it was 66 deg , not to bad.
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Posted: 12/1/2011 2:21:22 PM EDT
[#28]
Slick! I may have to do that as a temporary solution at my new place. I want to do it up right later, but that looks like a great way to go about it for short term.
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Posted: 12/1/2011 4:32:07 PM EDT
[#29]
Quoted:
Quoted:
If you want to improve the efficiency of your heat retention, you need to do two layers of plastic, and install a squirrel cage fan to blow air between the layers. That's how we do it with big commercial greenhouses. Otherwise the heat bills keep it from being profitable. You're far enough south that you may not need much to keep the plants alive, but if you want it to be more efficient, that's the way to get it. Yep, that's what I meant above by "...going with a double-layer w/airspace cover, etc.". With the wood frame, I can just staple plasic to both the interior and exterior edges of the studs and not have to mess with an inflation unit. Plus, I have the option to easily upgrade from "loose" poly to something a little sturdier, like these twin-wall poly sheets. Can even do those a few sheets at a time, as funds allow. Yes, I was actually thinking of the OP––with his PVC he could run one layer outside and one inside the PVC, and could then pump air with the squirrel cage fan. The fans inside for ventilation are a good investment, as most small greenhouses end up with fungal disease issues from not having enough air movement. |
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Posted: 1/11/2012 7:06:44 AM EDT
[#30]
It's still working good weve had some 24 deg nights and the temp inside the G/H stays around58 to 60 deg.
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