new project "our first greenhouse"

just a quick update,
im going to use flagstones on there edge for the base, with a timber shelf around the inside for the plant pots to sit on.
i marked out the base with spray paint

then dug a trough for the the footings

ill be doing a bit more next week

 

Glass greenhouses should have a firm level base due to the weight, glass doesn`t flex
I would be concerned the greenhouse frame may twist due the sloping ground. If its leaning from the off, gravity along with a snow/windload on the wrong side of the roof may be enough to push it over.

 

ill be putting the the slabs on edge, and the top of the slabs will be perfectly level, and concreted in at the bottom so i think it will be all good, also there will be a strong wooden framework on the inside, near the top of the flags. the flagstones that I'm using aren't the ones in the picture, i think they are 750x600's. they're about 40mm thick and that's the edge that the green house will be sitting on so I'll have to put them down quite accurately. ive gone through it all in my head, and am happy that it will work, just bare with me mate.
cheers hex'

 

I wouldn`t want to be inside a heavy glass greenhouse supported on just the 40mm width of paving slabs. It`d be much safer using something more substantial, like 4x4 timbers or old railway sleepers. A small amount of frost heave could lead to a lot of cracked glass.

 

thanks hex, the concrete flags that i'm putting down for the foundation are 50mm thick, i just measured them, and im happy that they will be strong enough, ive also been and bought some 4x2 and 3x2 tanalised timber for the frame which will all add to the strenght of the structure. im going to use epoxy resin on the corner flag joints and silicone or no nails on the straight joints, the flagstones will also be set into concrete and bolted to the timber frame. when it all becomes one it will be solid.

thanks john, im not sure how it is fastened down(suppose ill find out when i take it apart), and i havent given it much thought yet. in its current location its sat on brickwork with gobbo on the bottom trim (which is like a z shape profile) i suppose it will be drilled plugged and screwed to the brickwork, i think i will be able to do the same.

i was stood in my garden the other day when the wind was really bad and realise that it is a serious consideration. i mentioned this to my dad, and he was telling me that the wind flattened his first greenhouse in the seventies, i was young and dont really remember it, he said that when he rebuilt it he added diagonal tie wire braces fastened from the greenhouse down to the footings(and its still standing.), so i think that could be the way forward.

i hope to be making the frame work today. i'm putting the 4x2's around the outside of the frame, and 3x2's on the inside, to create an inch of fall for the water to circulate.

i also went and emptied the greenhouse the other day, took a load to the dumpit, and salvaged what ever might be useful, got some goodies, weed killer,bug killer, smoke bombs, a bag of clay pebbles, a brand new central heating pump, plant pots and trays, all contributing to my steptoes corner, but im sure it will all come in handy eventually.

 

there was also an old wooden propagator full of grit sand with a wire running through it, it was a bit battered so i removed the electrical part so that i can rebuild it later, will probably need advice when i get around to rebuilding it.
ill also be coming back to the hydro chat, thanks hex.
thanks everyone.

 

ok, so i made the frame and got it into position.


pics arent too good as it was getting dark.
and i changed my mind about which end the door was going to be on. still ot 100% tho.

 

hi all, the weathers changing at last, so im back on track with the green house project, ive managed to get a bit more done this week, including getting most of the base down, here are a couple of pics of my progress.





today i started to dismantle the greenhouse ready to fetch home, its going to need a lot of cleaning and i may need a bit of advice on gaskets and stuff from you guys who are in the know, i'll try and pst more pics in the next few days.
i really need to get a move on now!

 

I originally started this post to find out about hydroponics but i will have to put that on hold, at least for this year, but i will still need advice with irrigation if anybody is still watching.
The greenhouse as been up for a couple of weeks now, here are some pics,


I got the decking in,and ive been playing around with the irrigation system,
I got the water butt in with a ball cock, which i decided to connect directly to the mains water, I also fitted a tap(may come in handy).
I also got the mains electricity in, lights, socket and a temporary propagator.









I also made some raised beds on the north side of the greenhouse, especially for asparagus(which i have planted), i hope it grows because i love the stuff!


Its changed a bit since i took these pics, ill try to add some more over the weekend.

 

Hi Joe,
Thats looking neat and tidy,nice job. You should have plenty of room for nft (lettuce) and perhaps flood/drain beds for toms and bigger stuff. Buried reservoirs are ideal for keeping nutrients cool :wink:

 

Thanks for all your interest and input on this thread Hex, its been going on a while now.
Before I go any further I should tell you that i dont think that i will be going down the hydroponics route this year, it will be more like semi automatic irrigation, but your advice will still be much appreciated.

The old pond pump which i got originally, turned out to be just a lamp for killing algi , but i got my hands on another "real" pump (which didn't work but i managed to repair it)
it doest have much pressure, it can lift the water just under a meter high, but is able to move a large volume of water(too much really)

A bit about the system

Ive used 32mm push fit waste pipe and fittings from the pump(because it was easy to connect to the pump), upto a T and then around the greenhouse, with a stop on each end, Ive then drilled it about every foot to take the screw in irrigation pipe fittings (about 4mm). I drilled the pipe from the pump, inside the tank to give the excess water some relief(instead of a tap, for now anyway).
It all works great with 4mm open ended pipes running from it, i still need to T off from these to every plant, and im not sure whether to use drippers or just leave them open. Most of the excess water should return to the tank as Ive fitted the timber decking so that it is falling from every direction, back into the tank.
I havent fitted any kind of filter to the system yet,and im open to ideas!
will bacteria be a problem?

I also tried fitting a 4mm spray head, but i dont think that the pressure is high enough for it to work properly.

I was thinking of using a 24hour segment timer to control the pump, but the ones which i have seen only have 15 minute segments. will this do the job?

 

I wouldn`t let the water drain from the decking as it`ll probably promote algae and mould growth. Depending on containers/method you plan to use it shouldn`t be difficult to fashion simple run-off gutters to direct everything back to the tank (or onto the garden).
The pumps sounds good, irrigation distribution lines usually incorporate a complete ring of tube to equalise the pressure. The outlets near the closed ends of the 32mm pipe will get less pressure.

The hole in the pump tube is a good idea, i`d make the hole 12mm diameter then cut a short section of 32mm pipe (offcut) and drill a 12mm hole in that. On the opposite side cut the tube lengthwise. Now clip the split section of tube onto the pump pipe and fit a plastic clip/stainless jubilee above and below so it can rotate. Rotate the cut section for variable flow to the tank

The timer will depend on what irrigation method you use. With variable flow you might get away with 15minutes. Shop bought cycle timers are quite pricey but can go as low as 1 second. If you`re handy with a soldering iron you could make your own, thats what i do.

 

still havent decided what im going to grow in yet, but ive been and bought some grow bags,I dont suppose that i have to leave the compost in them tho, as i already have some 15 litre pots which i could use.
ive been told that they work just as well as more traditional methods for toms, ive also seen on the web that you can use them in different ways.
Id would rather use my pots, so that i would have rome for other smaller plants around the bottom, as the growbags seem to use a lot of space.
(images from google)

I like this idea


these look interesting, but i wont be doing it this way.

I might do half in the 15l pots which i have,
and half in grow bags with a small pot stuck on top

OK
If I use the 15litre pots should i just cut a growbag in half and put it straight in the pot, or should i empty half of its contents directly into the pot? and does it need any pebbles in the bottom of the pot?

If I use the grow bags as they are, but with a pot on top, how many plants per pot? what size pot? and do you water them from the top of the pot or just into the bag or both?

 

Hi Joe
I used to make a cut halfway along the growbag and then stand it up to form 2 deep bags. Transferring the compost to pots would work too.
I`m sure peeps have success using growbags flat, but to my mind a tomato plant likes more soil depth than 2-3". My tomato bed holds around 160L of compost. I don`t plant anymore than 12 cherry toms in there and the roots still utilise every inch of space.