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Hoop House Advice

Pam

Pam

I got the hoop house up; and that mostly went smoothly, with only the one catapulting incident. The clips that are supposed to hold the plastic on the ends aren't working too well, though.

So, any suggestions for clipping plastic to PVC that aren't horribly expensive? Keep in mind this is a temporary greenhouse, I will be dismantling it in the spring, then using the PVC again in the fall to put it back up. The plastic is expendable once it gets me through the season.

Here's the design again.

http://westsidegardener.com/howto/hoophouse.html
 
Pam:

You may laugh at this but Duct tape (as opposed to Devil Duck Tape) will probably work as long as you insure there is enough overlap on the plastic to allow the adhesive to hold. Remember, duct tape is a handy mans best friend.
 
bentalphanerd said:
How wide is the pipe? My first thought was shower curtain rings, not to attach through any holes but they're fairly flexible.
Click to expand...

It's a 3/4 inch PVC pipe. I had to pick up some stuff for work from Walmart this morning and I did a pass through and looked at the shower curtain rings. The ones I saw would be too big.


AlabamaJack said:
Pam:

You may laugh at this but Duct tape (as opposed to Devil Duck Tape) will probably work as long as you insure there is enough overlap on the plastic to allow the adhesive to hold. Remember, duct tape is a handy mans best friend.
Click to expand...

Duck/duct tape is always an option. I expect some moisture to condense on the inside, though, and doesn't duck tape do poorly in moist conditions?

If you really want to laugh, this:

http://www.wholesaleimport.com/cgi-bin/item/81138/10350/Jaw-Clip-14cm,Jumbo-Asst-ColorsDZ

..is what's holding the plastic on right now. Works like a charm, but they're not sturdy enough to last for a whole season.

The article suggests large binder clips as an alternative, but they'd have to be some honking huge ones.
 
I went to Lowe's tonight, and got a bulk pack of spring clips.

And...Ta Da!

HoopHouse4050.jpg


And on the inside.

Inside4042.jpg
 
bentalphanerd said:
That looks great PAM :clap: well done.

Where did you get the plastic sheeting from, and what was the final budget?
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Thank you.

I got the plastic sheeting at Walmart in the paint department. It was 20 by 25 4 mil drop cloth.

Buying the spring clips added almost $20, so it came in around $80.

I'm thinking that they sold me the wrong kind of black poly pipe to make the clips from, though. If I'd had the correct kind, I wouldn't have needed the clips.

I just put a high/low thermometer inside. I'll let you know what the temps stay over night.
 
Pam, now I am the one impressed. Nice work and it looks very functional. Will be interested in the temps.
 
AlabamaJack said:
Pam, now I am the one impressed. Nice work and it looks very functional. Will be interested in the temps.
Click to expand...

I was running a little late this morning, so I didn't get out there to check. I'll check it this evening, though.

Pepp3rFreak said:
Great job, that looks fantastic!!
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Thank you.

POTAWIE said:
Great job Pam. Now you've entered the next stage of the addiction.:)
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Yeah, I was thinking I would start some lettuce and swiss chard this weekend. Usually I don't start it until January, but hey!

So, how do you keep your greenhouse warm?
 
I have a woodstove and a couple propane & electric heaters but I don't use the greenhouse until late March or early April and even then I section it off and only heat a portion of it.
 
POTAWIE said:
I have a woodstove and a couple propane & electric heaters but I don't use the greenhouse until late March or early April and even then I section it off and only heat a portion of it.
Click to expand...

So, all the plants that you're over-wintering are in the house?

Is there room for you?
 
I don't actually overwinter too many plants. The ones that I do, get cut way back to little stumps and usually start getting new green shoots by mid winter.
With my greehouse the trick is to have enough good healthy plants ready to go in by April to make it worth while to heat.
 
Pam,

I'm impressed, especially with the cost. If we weren't prone to some snaps when it gets downright frigid,we always seems to have a couple of nights of -5 to -10, and have been known to dip to -25, I would be tempted to indulge. Especially if I still had those kerosene heaters that were in vogue back in the early '90s.

Do you have any grow lights in there or just lights that put out heat?
 
wordwiz said:
I'm impressed, especially with the cost.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I tried to price it before I started. If it was going to get above a certain amount, it would have made more sense to keep on waiting for a real greenhouse. And seeing as how I just had an unexpected and whopping vet bill, I was very worried about the final cost.


If we weren't prone to some snaps when it gets downright frigid,we always seems to have a couple of nights of -5 to -10, and have been known to dip to -25, I would be tempted to indulge. Especially if I still had those kerosene heaters that were in vogue back in the early '90s.
Click to expand...

That's a concern of mine. Our winters are generally very mild; but, with the luck I've been having lately, this will be the one with weeks of below freezing temperature.

Do you have any grow lights in there or just lights that put out heat?
Click to expand...

No grow lights, I have 3 incandescent bulbs right now. I'll probably replace them with compact fluorescents later in the season.

Actually, I need to corner one of our lighting experts. I was reading a little about heat lamps today, but I never could find anything that said whether or not heat lamps put out more heat than regular incandescents or compact fluorescents.
 
POTAWIE said:
I don't actually overwinter too many plants. The ones that I do, get cut way back to little stumps and usually start getting new green shoots by mid winter.
With my greehouse the trick is to have enough good healthy plants ready to go in by April to make it worth while to heat.
Click to expand...

Ok, that makes sense.

I'm thinking that keeping an eye out for a small kerosene heater on sale might be a good idea. That would really take the worry out of the few bitterly cold nights we get around here.


Oh yeah, the outside temperature got down to 28F, and the low temperature inside the hoop house was 39.
 
Probably a good idea to get a Carbon Monoxide/smoke detector when burning fuels. A few years ago I bought a new propane heater. After running it the first night in the greenhouse, most of my plant had died. I don't know if the heater wasn't working properly(it was keeping things warm) or what, but it got returned and replaced quickly by a similar model and a lesson learned.
 
POTAWIE said:
Probably a good idea to get a Carbon Monoxide/smoke detector when burning fuels. A few years ago I bought a new propane heater. After running it the first night in the greenhouse, most of my plant had died. I don't know if the heater wasn't working properly(it was keeping things warm) or what, but it got returned and replaced quickly by a similar model and a lesson learned.
Click to expand...

*That* quickly?

Wow, I would have thought it took some time, like at the very least several days to see that kind of damage. Thanks for the warning.
 
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