has anybody had or got one of these

hi there has anybody had or got one of these poly tunnels
and what do you all think of them are they a waste of money
eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace

 

I have one of those 3 x 10m tunnels awaiting erection, and I also have 2 of the (not so high spec) 2 x 4.5m tunnels from that supplier, one of which went up last year and the second one is in the process of being intalled.

The 3 x 10m has a good frame with hoops at fairly close centres and I'll be fixing it down using lengths of drilled metal straps cast into concrete foundations. The strap will fit between the hoops and the horizontal ground rail with the connecting bolt passing through a hole in it.

At every other hoop I'll be using a raking timber post with the botttom cast into the ground and fixed to the framework at the top using some metal fixing band , again secured at the hoop/horizontal tube junction by the bolt passing through one of the holes in the strap.So there will be 3 of these raking support each side and vertical door posts (tops fixed in sam way) at the zip end.

The bottom rail will sit on a brick on edge plinth consisting reclaimed brickslaid end to end with those vertical straps passing though narrow gaps between them. This will get the bottom rail off the wet soil and enable reclaimed decking boards to be used either side of the internal, central path to form a raised bed inside without losing any height. I wont lose any cover to the perimeter skirt because the soil will be mounded up to the top of the brick plinth.

It will be similar to how I've done things with a smaller tunnel on this thread: http://gardenerscorner.co.uk/forum/poly-tunnel-gardening/31751-my-%A350-polytunnel-ebay.html I got my 3 x 10m tunnel when they were being auctioned last year for £132 incl P&P, but had to bid on loads to get it at that price. If your bidding note that the P&P on auctions is normally more than on buy it nows. It should have been under way by now, but that freezing spell stopped work.



P.S. Be prepared for the zip to break after a while and be ready to make a hinged door, or better still incorporate the necessary timbers in advance when you're erecting the tunnel.

 

thanks scrungee i will read your thread later when i get time
thanks

 

3m x 6m...

Digger, I have one of the lower spec models too, anchored in a different fashion to scrungees and has withstood 110mph winds. I also have one of the ones you are looking on ebay at in my shed, waiting to go up on the plot this spring.

I've also helped a friend erect his tunnel, which is the same as the one your viewing on ebay, it too has withstood 110mph winds. It much stronger than my older tunnel. But a couple of notes for you.

When erected ensure you have some padding between the cover and the ends of the ridge bars to stop the fabric ripping. And make yourself a door for the tunnel, have a look through my polytunnel topic here stickied at the top of this polytunnel section or here http://gardenerscorner.co.uk/forum/poly-tunnel-gardening/33026-steves-polytunnel.html for an easy way to make one, the door is just too large on the new tunnels and is a pain to open and close as it takes two people to roll it up, the door is much better as you can open and close easily without losing heat from inside.

Steve...

 

many thanks for that steve did read your thread and i am ordering one this week end
many thanks :yess:

 

You'd be better doing a self-build using decent polythene really - cos the main problem with these is the rubbish covers. They may be 'UV open' (which actually isn't an advantage) but actual transmission is poor to begin with, and the surface makes algae buildup faster than regular poly.

Worse than that, the cover isn't adequately UV stabilised which means it becomes brittle after a couple of years. It'll fail round the zips first, then round doorways or anywhere it comes in contact with the frame. Padding with hot spot tape might slow that down a bit, but it'll happen anyway.

Another factor is noise, which is a problem for some people - loose-cover models like this flap like a badly pitched tent on windy nights!