greenhouse A Greenhouse Database Would Make My Tail Wag!!

stettoman

stettoman

I can't believe the massive number of manufacturers and distributors and retailers of something so demo-specific as a simple greenhouse kit!! My brain has done glazed over!
 
Anyone know of a place online one can make a confident decision? Besides Amazon there are only a few dozen farm equipment sites out there, all telling me what I want to hear.
 
I live 6 miles from town so it gets windy here also. My personal feeling is that it can be improved on with a small cost and a little effort and still be less than half the price of many others, and for me total cost was a big concern. I doubled the clips that hold the panels on and added cross bracing to make it rigid. They give you stuff in the kit to tie down the corners but I did not use them and have not had a problem. This is my third season with it. I have also done some other things to keep summer temps down. If I get a chance later I will take some pics. Also, they put this on sale several times a year, I think it is just over $500 when they do that.
 
nmlarson said:
Some assembly required?
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Oh yeah. With those neato foreign instructions. Actually though, it was not that bad. The wife and I did it in about 3 weekends. The parts are all numbered or labled and you just have to pay attention to that.
 
skullbiker said:
Oh yeah. With those neato foreign instructions. Actually though, it was not that bad. The wife and I did it in about 3 weekends. The parts are all numbered or labled and you just have to pay attention to that.
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High tunnel is much easier on install :)

You can also used bent electrical conduit for more stability. You can buy or build the correct bending thing for your high tunnel.
 
austin87 said:
High tunnel is much easier on install :)

You can also used bent electrical conduit for more stability. You can buy or build the correct bending thing for your high tunnel.
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You are certainly allowed your opinion, but, if I wanted a high tunnel you can bet that I would have a high tunnel. I do not.
 
I don't have a database, but a quick and easy way to go is a shed kit or two from Northern Tools and cover with polycarbonate. My shed kit has lasted four years now. My Harbor Freight greenhouse only lasted about a year.
 
 
midwestchilehead said:
I don't have a database, but a quick and easy way to go is a shed kit or two from Northern Tools and cover with polycarbonate. My shed kit has lasted four years now. My Harbor Freight greenhouse only lasted about a year.
 
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Cute! Does it come with destructions or do I have learn to play it by ear?
 
stettoman said:
I can't believe the massive number of manufacturers and distributors and retailers of something so demo-specific as a simple greenhouse kit!! My brain has done glazed over!
 
Anyone know of a place online one can make a confident decision? Besides Amazon there are only a few dozen farm equipment sites out there, all telling me what I want to hear.
Click to expand...
 
A few years back I was looking into a "hobby" greenhouse for here at home and remember looking at this company, which seemed pretty comprehensive.  FarmTek/Growers Supply.  They are one and the same.   I can't speak to anything about the company, other than it seemed like it had everything I could possibly want.  http://www.farmtek.com  http://www.growerssupply.com
 
It comes with instructions and plans, and they are actually pretty easy to follow. I built an 8' X 10' structure and used 1.5 kits. All straight cuts.
 
I basically had it up in a day, but I was building on the left-over foundation from my Harbor Freight greenhouse. It seems the foundation is the toughest part and takes the longest to build. 
 
If you go this route, though, make sure you get the correct lumber lengths in the right places. Two of the 2X4 measurements are very close to each other, and if you mix them up, it is very difficult to impossible to put the "purlins" in place. Note they also have a gambrel shed kit if you prefer that style.
 
PS: I found some photos of my defunct Harbor Freight greenhouse:
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007.JPG

 
And here is the new one made from the shed kit:
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002R.JPG

 
 
stettoman said:
Cute! Does it come with destructions or do I have learn to play it by ear?
Click to expand...
 
 
midwestchilehead said:
I don't have a database, but a quick and easy way to go is a shed kit or two from Northern Tools and cover with polycarbonate. My shed kit has lasted four years now. My Harbor Freight greenhouse only lasted about a year.
 
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I enjoyed that link immensely, I assume you figured I can find my way to Northern Tool on my own.... ;)
 
nmlarson said:
 
A few years back I was looking into a "hobby" greenhouse for here at home and remember looking at this company, which seemed pretty comprehensive.  FarmTek/Growers Supply.  They are one and the same.   I can't speak to anything about the company, other than it seemed like it had everything I could possibly want.  http://www.farmtek.com  http://www.growerssupply.com
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I get their catalogs, along with a few even more "industrial" focused companies'. It's simply the volume of considerations that whelm me. For one, Skullbiker's required modification, I'm hoping to avoid that. $$ is definitely an issue, but at the same time I realize that if some coin isn't invested I'm going to wind up paying more....
 
midwestchilehead said:
It comes with instructions and plans, and they are actually pretty easy to follow. I built an 8' X 10' structure and used 1.5 kits. All straight cuts.
 
I basically had it up in a day, but I was building on the left-over foundation from my Harbor Freight greenhouse. It seems the foundation is the toughest part and takes the longest to build. 
 
If you go this route, though, make sure you get the correct lumber lengths in the right places. Two of the 2X4 measurements are very close to each other, and if you mix them up, it is very difficult to impossible to put the "purlins" in place. Note they also have a gambrel shed kit if you prefer that style.
 
PS: I found some photos of my defunct Harbor Freight greenhouse:
 
 
Click to expand...
 
Ahhhhh....yeah, that Harbor Freight unit just isn't appealing. Note that we get weeks at a time of 15-30 mph straight winds here, direction is cooks choice, though the south wind is pretty much the worst. Some of the info I seek is gambrel vs. gable vs. hoop for wind resistance, solid panel vs. 4-6 mil visqueen for durability and longevity AND wind resistance, what frame is going to stand up to a ridiculous 3 foot wet snow event, etc. etc. and so forth. Hence the desire for a database, or even a greenhouse specific forum....I've found a couple, but most are geared towards mom & pop DIY weekend gardeners and I'm kind of slightly more ambitious.
 
I do appreciate y'alls input (I lived in Knoxville Arkansas for 3 years, I can say "y'all")....
 
nmlarson said:
I'll be curious about what you decide to go with.
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I just got off the phone with Thee Olde Mann. He suggested a pit greenhouse. Said they did that in conjunction with the root cellar when he was a boy in the '30s....
 
 
 
 
 
:think:
 
stettoman said:
 
 
I just got off the phone with Thee Olde Mann. He suggested a pit greenhouse. Said they did that in conjunction with the root cellar when he was a boy in the '30s....
 
 
 
 
 
:think:
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We had a root cellar when I was a kid.  I hadn't thought of it for some time.  I hated when I had to go get potatoes as, in my 10-year-old mind, all those long squiggly eye-roots that developed were bugs and worms crawling up my arm as I reached in for a few potatoes.  LOL
 
A pit would certainly help to moderate the inside temps during your cold season.  A couple of months back, there was a tour of a local "battery climate greenhouse."  I was unable to go, but the theory intrigued me.  You might Google it....
 
stettoman said:
 
 
I just got off the phone with Thee Olde Mann. He suggested a pit greenhouse. Said they did that in conjunction with the root cellar when he was a boy in the '30s....
 
 
 
 
 
:think:
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midwestchilehead said:
Google "walipini" and you should find some good partially underground greenhouses.
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Holy cow I just went into a wormhole reading about pit greenhouses and walipinis... very cool stuff, thanks for sharing!
 
Welp, green/hoop/tunnel type houses got cleared off the table at 11 o'clock this morning.
 
My 20 year old Dodge Ram dumped the clutch. About broke my widdle heart.
 
The research, of course, will continue. But unless I find materials on-hand it'll have to wait....
 
Thanks for the links and advice, fellas...
 
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