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I need a low cost but sturdy greenhouse

I have tried the cheapy plastic and pipe greenhouses. My husband built 2 of them, and then I bought 2 others that were cheap. They all break. We used the greenhouse plastic that is supposedly made for this purpose and is supposed to withstand the sun, heat, and cold, but it doesn't. It ends up cracked before a year is out.

Any suggestions on a better type of greenhouse that won't break the bank? I'm going to have to change some of the types of plants I grow because of not being able to get a reliable greenhouse. Gone are the large hanging baskets of Alatas and Mirandas, ferns, and wandering jew and other house plants. There's just not room for them in a greenhouse all winter. I am trying to get more cold tolerant plants. Most succulents can handle cold temps. But anyway, I really need to look for a better greenhouse, and I have until next winter to come up with something. The ones I am using now can last the rest of this winter.

I'm thinking fiberglass or paneling. Any suggestions of where to buy these?
 
Build a wooden A-frame and get some of that hard corrugated plastic sheeting they use for sheds/porches. I found them in 20 sq. foot sheets at the box hardware stores for about $10, if I recall. My research is by no means comprehensive, but I'm convinced that wood and solid-panel construction is by a wide margin the most cost-efficient DIY greenhouse solution over time (initial investment is higher but it pulls ahead of cheaper methods after five or six years.) Not sure about good places for parts, but with the construction business where it is right now raw materials are relatively cheap. I'm getting ready to do some building myself, and while I have shopped around at local stores, I haven't found any spectacular deals yet.
~Joe
 
Good idea, Joe.
They have the clear patio/shed panels on pvc or some UV resistent pvc which is about 20$ for a 4' x 12' sheet if i remember correctly...at lowe's or home depot. You can insulate that on the inside if you want. Go with the wood frame which is easy to do and don't cost much.
 
What were you thinking in terms of insulation, Marius? I had an idea to build a frame with brackets on it so I could have a structure with interchangeable walls; that way I could use it as a greenhouse at the beginning/end of the year to extend my growing season, and switch to bird-netting during the summer to save on fans/air conditioning. My thought was that during winter I could use two panels with an air gap in between them for insulation, or maybe sandwich some bubble wrap in there or something.
There are also double-thick panels that they sell for greenhouse kits; they're flat like ordinary greenhouse glass but are built like corrugated cardboard, with a flat layer on the inside and outside and a corrugated layer in between for structural strength/insulation. But I have a feeling those are way more expensive than what you'd find at a hardware store.
~Joe
 
Nah, I'm done with DIY. My husband thinks he can build things but then they never work out and we end up spending more money than if we would have bought something to begin with. I want to buy one that comes with everything necesary, and with a warranty. I like the ones that Lowe's sells but they are small is the problem. I need bigger. I may have to get 2 of them or something. They have about a 7 year warranty, and for the price, it seems like it would save me a lot because right now I keep having to build new ones or get new plastic, etc. I'm tied of it, I need something dependable. I was outside yesterday WITH THE FLU transfering plants out of a greehouse that had acquired a hole in the roof somehow, into another one, and I didn't need to be out there doing anything. I need something dependable or else I'm going to get rid of all my plants that can't withstand the cold.
 
Be sure to recheck to dimensions.. They are very misleading. The 8' x 10' is only 7.06' tall, but they round it up to 8'. And the doorway is only 5'2" tall.. I'd be pissed if I spent $500 on a greenhouse and had to crawl to get into it. But then again, I'm 6'4".
I'm ordering mine in June, but I have to go with the 10' x 12' to be able to fit inside comfortably.
 
Yeah, the 10 x 12 seems to be the largest offered for hobbyist. I looked at a wholesale website for growers and sent them an email to get prices. It's probably outside my price range, but it won't hurt to check. If I can't get anything big enough, I'll just have to scale down and go with the 10 x 12.
 
  • #10
transfering plants out of a greehouse that had acquired a hole in the roof somehow, into another one, and I didn't need to be out there doing anything. I need something dependable or else I'm going to get rid of all my plants that can't withstand the cold.

Using poly film that isn't UV stabilized is bad for business!
 
  • #11
If you want something larger then you need to go to a greenhouse company..
IGC has larger/wider
lhttp://www.igcusa.com/hobby-greenhouse-garden-grower.html

Cheaper way to go is with a steel tube frame hoop house and inflated double layer 4 yr poly film. http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/Ranger-Series-Greenhouse/productinfo/CG-RAN/
for example a 30' wide 36' long steel frame is $3-4k depending on which load rating you go with. Poly film is only a few hundred $. vs the 12' x 12' with 6m poly carbonate for $4k.. polycarbonate is nice but adds alot of $$
 
  • #12
I was thinking bubble wrap too, Joe.
You must be using a bad poly film. You have to go with a double film, one on the outside and on on the inside frame.
If you don't want to do it yourself them is no cheap way to go.
 
  • #13
On a side note it is important to note which side of the greenhouse grade poly film goes out. They are made up of several layers and only the outer layer has the UV inhibitors. The same holds true for polycarbonate panels etc.
 
  • #14
On a side note it is important to note which side of the greenhouse grade poly film goes out. They are made up of several layers and only the outer layer has the UV inhibitors. The same holds true for polycarbonate panels etc.

I knew that about polycarbonate, but not about poly :0o:
 
  • #15
Maybe not the case for every poly film out there? But something to be wary of when installing it.
 
  • #16
Hmm, I didn't know that either. We have been buying the "greenhouse plastic" and it doesn't even last a year before it is cracking, obviously not holding up to the weather. We are just putting one layer of it on. I do see how 2 layers would help. At the rate I'm going, I could have bought a greenhouse for the same money as what I've been having to put into repairs on the ones I've got. But my husband insists on doing things himself, even though he doesn't know what he's doing. I'm sort of mad at him right now, so I'll hush...
 
  • #17
Greenhouse poly film comes in all sorts of grades from 3mil 1 year up to 6mil 4year. If you shop around you will find the 4year 6mil is not all that much more expensive than the cheap 1year film. I have had the 4yr 6mil film easily last twice that length. I replaced it not because the film was cracking but after a while a little hole here and a little hole there.. and it gets hard to keep up with taping the holes so the 2 layers will hold air. Even the 1yr film shouldn't be cracking before a year is out. I suspect you are not getting the film with UV stabilizers specifically for greenhouse application.

Some films to check out..
http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/Greenhouse-Film/products/1033/

http://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/cat1;ft1_greenhouses_accessories-ft1_greenhouse_accessories-ft1_greenhouse_covering;ft1_greenhouse_films.html
 
  • #18
Thanks for that info. I may go behind his back and buy a greenhouse, but then I would need him to help me put it together, and it might be better to keep the peace by letting him build a new one, but I will purchase the material this time to be sure we are getting the correct stuff.
 
  • #20
Cool, thank you for that! That's what I'm looking for. We have one that looks like that one on first glance, but I just read the instructions and I see several things that we did wrong in constructing ours. That makes a big difference in durability.

We are in Mississippi, so fairly mild winters usually. It's been crazy this winter so far, 3 snows already and we usually go several years without seeing any snows. We had a 2 weeks period where temps were in single digits and low teens without getting about freezing during the day, and that is extremely unusual for the south. Temps drop like that occasionally, but it warms right back up. It can be really low one day and be 65 degrees the next day usually.

I've been trying to keep neps in the greenhouse, ferns, and other house plants and tropicals. But I've had to move my nepenthes inside my house. I'm thinking of changing the types of plants I keep to suit the climate better. I lost a big beautiful fern, 5 baskets of wandering jew, and several large N. Mirandas, and 8 trays containing 18 plants each of N. Judith Finn. I'm looking into getting more succulents, because many of them can handle surprisingly low temperatures, as can ivy.
 
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