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greenhouse Started on my Greenhouse
- Thread starter wordwiz
- Start date
Wow, why didn't some of you have been there and done this tell me? It's not as simple as sticking some posts up, adding a roof and sidewalls and having a greenhouse!
I'm not complaining at all, but I realize I need to do a bit more wiring than I had imagined. This evening, I started my second season, though with only three plants (I have another five buckets reading to go, but want to make sure the plants I stuck in water tonight are not brown by this time tomorrow). Had to hang some lights, as it is no longer light here until close to 10 PM.
Thankfully, wiring everything up should not be a major problem. I need to upgrade a circuit breaker to 20 amps and run cable about 30 feet. I figure at most, I will be running 1500 watts which a 20 amp fuse can handle easily.
Grow log to start in the next day or two!
Mike
I'm not complaining at all, but I realize I need to do a bit more wiring than I had imagined. This evening, I started my second season, though with only three plants (I have another five buckets reading to go, but want to make sure the plants I stuck in water tonight are not brown by this time tomorrow). Had to hang some lights, as it is no longer light here until close to 10 PM.
Thankfully, wiring everything up should not be a major problem. I need to upgrade a circuit breaker to 20 amps and run cable about 30 feet. I figure at most, I will be running 1500 watts which a 20 amp fuse can handle easily.
Grow log to start in the next day or two!
Mike
Just talked with my mom and sister. One of mom's neighbors had her windows replaced and I am getting her old ones. One is a supposedly a "huge" picture window. There are also, again, supposedly, some storm windows which would be very welcome, as they would allow me to open the GH up on warm days and put the windows down at night.
This is going to be one of the challenges here in Cincy. I can easily see the temps falling into the 30s of a night and getting up to over 100 (inside the GH) once the sun comes, especially in fall and spring.
Mike
This is going to be one of the challenges here in Cincy. I can easily see the temps falling into the 30s of a night and getting up to over 100 (inside the GH) once the sun comes, especially in fall and spring.
Mike
I got the windows today. The "picture" window is 52" x 56" with the framing, and it has two side windows that are about 24" x 56." Also got five other ones that range in size from 28x38 to 39x44." Still want to get the twinwall polycarb for the front, but I'm rethinking the sides.
Mike
Mike
Hey Mike, with the night time lowes being what they are, how close are you to moving in?
Pepperfreak,
Real close, in a way. Actually, I have eight plants growing now and need to double that today. It's suppose to get to 40 tonight but it was suppose to be 45 this morning and my thermometer read 53 at 6:30 am. I'm close enough that if I really need to I can hang plastic up until I get the polycarb and windows up. Alas, today I get to help deliver over 4,000 newspapers so I won't get to spend a lot of time working on it.
Mike
Real close, in a way. Actually, I have eight plants growing now and need to double that today. It's suppose to get to 40 tonight but it was suppose to be 45 this morning and my thermometer read 53 at 6:30 am. I'm close enough that if I really need to I can hang plastic up until I get the polycarb and windows up. Alas, today I get to help deliver over 4,000 newspapers so I won't get to spend a lot of time working on it.
Mike
wordwiz said:
That is good to hear that you are that far along. I know that this part of Ohio has been getting quite chilly at night, in fact my wife has already turned on the furnace. It's just a matter of days for my plants I fear.
Stormin said:
crazy8 said:
I would show pics but then I may need to completely alter them in PhotoShop in a day or two. I posted I got those windows - well, they are going to replace the polycarb in the front (which I have not ordered yet). One-fourth of the front will have plenty of glass exposure, the other 3/4 will have close to 2' of lumber at the bottom, since the windows are not all the same height. But, the plants are in buckets and the top of them is 16" high, so that gives me at most, 8" of plant that will not get sun when the globe in the sky is not high on the horizon. But... I can set the front row on blocks to raise them until the plants get a foot or two high. And realistically, once they start growing, the bottom doesn't need light.
This presents a question - I already have plastic (bought and paid for) on the top. Do I spend some bucks ($150) and time to replace 1/2 of the roof with polycarb? My grandpa preached that if a job is worth doing, it is worth doing right. My dad drilled into my head not tow waste money just for the sake of spending it. I'm split. Putting PC up will let a lot more light in and plants need light. But the plastic lets quite a bit in also and lots of GH growers use it. Plus, with the much shorter days, I don't have near as many hours to work on it, and it will take a decent amount of time to take the plastic off and put the PC on. Not to mention, I have only a couple of weeks until I have to make sure the place can withstand temps in the 30s.
I'm leaning toward forgetting about the PC this year, realizing the lighting will not be ideal. But if I still get produce, then next year using PC for the entire roof. If it is economically unfeasible to keep the GH going in the dead of winter - and the PC would make it a bit easier - then I don't need to spend my treasury on a losing venture.
I guess I will live and learn.
Mike
It's 47 outside now and is suppose to drop to 38-40. I put a shop light over the plants in hydro. My thermometer is 10 degrees higher and it is about 1.5" lower than the plant canopy. Keeping my fingers crossed. And I will have all but the bottom part of the GH enclosed by this time tomorrow, at least I hope.
Mike
Mike
With pics - finally!
Today was my day off so I made use of the time to get most of the front and a big chunk of the sides covered.
Elected to go with the windows in the front, rather than the polycarb. The PC probably has better heat retention but if I line the inside and outside with clear, six-mil plastic, I don't think heat loss will be much different.
Yes, it ghetto - I said it would be from the beginning. But, then again I have only about $340 in materials - still need to but insulation, 6-mil plastic and heaters, along with a fan. The heaters and wiring will double the cost but they will be a one-time expense and should last for a decade.
From the front:
I ran out of "usable" windows before I ran out of room, so that 5.5' by 2' space in the center will be used for the tub where I water seedlings, a garbage can to hold nutrient solution, maybe the kerosene heater.
The right-hand side:
The door and middle window (brown framing) are both double paned glass that I will cover with plastic on the inside. The space in the middle is now covered with the same material as the roof. This doesn't really hurt much - my neighbor's house pretty much blocks any sunlight from that part of the yard until noon or so.
From the inside:
The old windows are hardly perfectly square and line up without and air gaps, so I used the 1x3" boards to both cover the gaps and give them strength in case of high winds. The dark board running up and down is a stud that was placed there when I planned on using PC for the front.
Next week, I hope to finish the sides and bottom of the front, so they are somewhat airtight, and would like to get the insulation in and Mylar on the back wall.
Because of our propensity for wild swings in temps during the next month - a low of 28 followed by a high near 70 a day later - I have to leave a way for hot air to excape. Today, the high temp was 65 but it was 85 inside the GH, and that was without windows or plastic on the sides or the door closed.
The plan - always have a plan! - is to put plastic on the top that drapes over the front and covers that area, but to have it attached to something that I can lift and place over the top so air can escape. Then once cold weather sets in and stays, I can attach it for the winter.
Oh, and some of my toms that seem to be doing okay in their home:
The one on the left is a Mira, the other three are Legend.
Mike
Today was my day off so I made use of the time to get most of the front and a big chunk of the sides covered.
Elected to go with the windows in the front, rather than the polycarb. The PC probably has better heat retention but if I line the inside and outside with clear, six-mil plastic, I don't think heat loss will be much different.
Yes, it ghetto - I said it would be from the beginning. But, then again I have only about $340 in materials - still need to but insulation, 6-mil plastic and heaters, along with a fan. The heaters and wiring will double the cost but they will be a one-time expense and should last for a decade.
From the front:
I ran out of "usable" windows before I ran out of room, so that 5.5' by 2' space in the center will be used for the tub where I water seedlings, a garbage can to hold nutrient solution, maybe the kerosene heater.
The right-hand side:
The door and middle window (brown framing) are both double paned glass that I will cover with plastic on the inside. The space in the middle is now covered with the same material as the roof. This doesn't really hurt much - my neighbor's house pretty much blocks any sunlight from that part of the yard until noon or so.
From the inside:
The old windows are hardly perfectly square and line up without and air gaps, so I used the 1x3" boards to both cover the gaps and give them strength in case of high winds. The dark board running up and down is a stud that was placed there when I planned on using PC for the front.
Next week, I hope to finish the sides and bottom of the front, so they are somewhat airtight, and would like to get the insulation in and Mylar on the back wall.
Because of our propensity for wild swings in temps during the next month - a low of 28 followed by a high near 70 a day later - I have to leave a way for hot air to excape. Today, the high temp was 65 but it was 85 inside the GH, and that was without windows or plastic on the sides or the door closed.
The plan - always have a plan! - is to put plastic on the top that drapes over the front and covers that area, but to have it attached to something that I can lift and place over the top so air can escape. Then once cold weather sets in and stays, I can attach it for the winter.
Oh, and some of my toms that seem to be doing okay in their home:
The one on the left is a Mira, the other three are Legend.
Mike
looking good. you're getting there.
It's been quite chilly here so last night I started filling in some places that had no plastic or wood. Hopefully, I'll have at least one layer on everything this evening and will try to run a 1500 watt baseboard heater over night to see how warm it stays. It's been dropping into the mid-40s of a morning and I am hoping for at least a gain of 10 degrees unless I get every thing plugged.
Later, I want to add another layer of film but it's too early just yet. Monday, we had very sunny skies but a high temp of only 65. Yet, even with a door open, no covering across the front/top eight inches, a small wall uncovered and the entire bottom (from six inches to two feet) bare, it was in the low 90s. Even today, with partly cloudy skies, I'm getting 28-30 degrees higher temps.
We always have a day or two in the low 80s in October and I can easily see the temps getting well over 100 inside, especially if it sunny, though I can lift roll up a couple of the covers and let some heat out.
But, in time, I will need to add that extra layer inside. My question is, which is better in the long run: 6 mil clear plastic with UV inhibitors or 6 mil IR/AC film? The clear plastic lets more light through (92 vs. 88 percent) but the IR is suppose to be far more efficient reflecting heat back - which will be very important from December through February. And, I don't know if the AC is needed. I noticed condensation on the plastic now but then I have only one layer. The cost is not much difference - $12.50 Both are suppose to be good for at least four years.
Anyone have experience with these films?
Mike
Later, I want to add another layer of film but it's too early just yet. Monday, we had very sunny skies but a high temp of only 65. Yet, even with a door open, no covering across the front/top eight inches, a small wall uncovered and the entire bottom (from six inches to two feet) bare, it was in the low 90s. Even today, with partly cloudy skies, I'm getting 28-30 degrees higher temps.
We always have a day or two in the low 80s in October and I can easily see the temps getting well over 100 inside, especially if it sunny, though I can lift roll up a couple of the covers and let some heat out.
But, in time, I will need to add that extra layer inside. My question is, which is better in the long run: 6 mil clear plastic with UV inhibitors or 6 mil IR/AC film? The clear plastic lets more light through (92 vs. 88 percent) but the IR is suppose to be far more efficient reflecting heat back - which will be very important from December through February. And, I don't know if the AC is needed. I noticed condensation on the plastic now but then I have only one layer. The cost is not much difference - $12.50 Both are suppose to be good for at least four years.
Anyone have experience with these films?
Mike