Plastic for Wind and Rain Protection?

[UltraZelda64]

I'm planning on getting pepper plants this year again, only this time, they will probably all be on the porch (assuming I can get them all to fit... lol). My plan for this year is to put up some clear plastic film to act as protection from the wind and heavy rain, and it'll probably help to increase the temperature on the porch and maybe keep some nasty pests from getting on the porch (there are a bunch of weeds they no doubt infest just beside the porch). I just went to Lowe's and asked, and they said they have some clear plastic, but it's meant for windows and will not last in the weather. Instead, they pointed out some other plastic, which is thicker and they said will take a beating, but this plastic was a light, milky white color.

So now I'm left wondering... would this stuff be good to get? Or is there some better plastic online somewhere that would satisfy the two desired characteristics: clear and heavy? The plants will get full morning sun, until noon or 1PM, so they won't be getting the strongest rays to begin with. I definitely don't want to deprive them of *too* much light, though, so the somewhat opaque appearance of the plastic has me wondering if it would be good to use.

 

[AlabamaJack]

the 6 mil polyethylene (visqueen) is what I have on my hoophouse and it has withstood 45+ mph winds so far this year...the heavy plastic is transluscent rather than clear and I think that is what they call clear...it's pretty tough and easy to work with...unless you work with huge pieces by yourself...it will probably last only one year if it is out all year long even with all the UV protection it says it has...

 

[UltraZelda64]

It doesn't bother me if the plastic doesn't last more than a year, because for now I'm only concentrating on the current year, and I'm not sure if I'll be living in this house next year anyway. The primary things I'm worrying about are it lasting for this spring/summer/early fall, but even more importantly, the plastic not blocking too much natural light (again, this is *the* primary concern). We don't seem to get high winds too often here, so I doubt I'll have problems with it ripping, and the house itself will protect it from damage caused by winds coming from the west and southwest (and maybe even from the south for the most part). What winds we do get seem to come mostly from the south and west, ironically.

I don't know how intense early morning Texas sun is, but I would bet it's a lot stronger than the early morning sun here in northeast Ohio. Again, that is what I'm worrying about: whether the plants will get adequate light with a semi-opaque white plastic sheet between them and the main (relatively weak) sun they get, morning sun. If the plants got full afternoon sun here, I don't think I would be asking this question... the heat and light from the sun is pretty strong in the afternoon.

I've had too many plants fall over to the ground (and even worse, off the porch) last year and had a hell of a time dragging all of my potted plants to safety for storms, this is the primary reason for wind/water-proofing the porch. Later in the season, they got pretty top-heavy and it didn't seem to take much to tip them over, even a nice little breeze could do it. They were in 9-10" containers BTW, which later proved to be a bit too small (planning to get 12" ones this year). I look at the water shielding capabilities as more of a side benefit actually, since the vast majority of bacterial spot (my main concern of water) was in the garden last year, not in pots, but IMO prevention is probably the best bet and I wouldn't have to haul a bunch of plants indoors every time there's a strong thunderstorm and bring them back out when it gets nicer (that got real old last year... heh).

 

[AlabamaJack]

If you go with a thinner plastic, it will let more direct light through...they make it in several different thicknesses...of course, the thinner it is, the less tough it will be...

 

[VegHead]

the 6 mil polyethylene (visqueen) is what I have on my hoophouse and it has withstood 45+ mph winds so far this year...the heavy plastic is transluscent rather than clear and I think that is what they call clear...it's pretty tough and easy to work with...unless you work with huge pieces by yourself...it will probably last only one year if it is out all year long even with all the UV protection it says it has...

+1 This is what I use.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_16925-18632-RSBH610-25C_0__?zipCode=82001&firstReferURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lowes.com%2Fpd_16925-18632-RSBH610-25C_0__%3FproductId%3D3238065%26Ntt%3D6%2Bmil%2Bplastic%26pl%3D1%26currentURL%3D%252Fpl__0__s%253FNtt%253D6%252Bmil%252Bplastic&catalogId=10051&productId=3238065&pl=1&findStoreErrorURL=StoreLocatorDisplayView&selectedLocalStoreBeanArray=%5Bcom.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%405faab142%2C+com.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%405fc93142%2C+com.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%405fe93142%2C+com.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%405f093142%2C+com.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%407b71b05e%5D&currentURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3D6%2Bmil%2Bplastic&Ntt=6+mil+plastic&URL=TopCategoriesDisplayView&langId=-1&storeId=10151