Robinson Greenhouse Glass Issues

Good morning,

We had a Robinson installed a couple of years ago. Was a disaster from the start. I've been cleaning the glass to rid it of algae & hard water spots.

How do people clean the top glass? For the vertical glass I jet washed, then cloth washed with water, then vinegar solution with a cloth so it's quite intensive.

Secondly, there are a few panes of glass that have slipped, especially the top glass. The profiles have to come off to access the screws, but that can only be done by taking the guttering off, which seems to be built into the greenhouse (no idea how yet). It's a big greenhouse so how on earth can one do that?

Cheers in advance

 

How big?
For my 12 x 12 Rhino it's a step ladder and a long handled brush.
With the Rhino the guttering and the top of the side/bottom of the roof are one extrusion.
As it was a couple of years ago you might still have the assembly instructions laying around. Failing that I'd ask Robinsons.

 

Thanks Nigel. It's 15 x 44! Reicliffe model. Will try a brush but it took a lot of effort to rid the sides of hard water marks and algae.

 

Cor that's bigger than a lot of houses, you could live in it, plants down one end and people down the other.
As for hard water marks; I'm lucky having soft water. The vinegar solution is probably the easiest solution.
Having had a look at the manual (available here https://cdn.greenhousepeople.co.uk/instructions/vic15_reicliffe_manual_issue226-10-2020-16-05-46.pdf) It appears that like my Rhino the guttering is part of the top side extrusion (see page 9 in manual) so you'll have to work round it.

 

For those slipped panes think you ought to fit some Z clips, if possible ?

see - Amazon.co.uk

 

In theory you shouldn't need Z clips on the roof panes as the bar capping should hold the glass in place. Any slippage you would slack off the bar capping and shove the glass back up and retighten. Two person job.
The glass is 4 mm toughened and I'm always careful not to damage or stress the edges in case it disintegrates.

 

That is some greenhouse! Lucky you! My only surprise in that being quite new it does not have the big single sheet safety glass which is a godsend from the point in view of no slippages and I am convinced it makes the greenhouse more sturdy. Mine which is about 10 years old withstood 100 mph winds recently. All this said in a greenhouse of your size, it would put quite a bit extra on the price I would imagine.
I use something like this for cleaning but that does obviously not solve the slipped panes.

 

Problem with a single sheet for the roof pane is they are flipping heavy, my roof panes are in two pieces one large and one small, the large ones were plenty heavy enough to be maneuvering into position.

 

Lol, yeah. It is slightly a wee bit big . Actually I wish it were smaller so I utilise the space better.

Thanks for the link. I have a manual but there is the middle segment, then an extension. Either way it's a nightmare. Have an issue also with the base as we did a concrete foundation to spec from what the company sent us. Then they told us atually the specs they sent were wrong, but too late. So now we have a flat base all around that makes water sit on top inbetween the inside & outside, conflating the algae issue. Absolutely nothing I can do about that though I don't think

 

The vinegar was fine for most vertical panes but the fresh air slats around it are seriously marked and vinegar hasn't done much. Will try bicarbonate of soda. When I can be bothered to take them all off. There's lots of them

 

Cheers for the link, will get one of them for sure. The joined windows is a pain. Not only because of the slippage but the algae and dirt that cumulates in between

 

On the Rhino the two roof panes don't overlap, but sit in a plastic channel.

Buy more plants, install a hammock, a bar, a TV, sound system and invite your mates over. Problem solved.

 

Mine slip as well , especially if it’s been windy ,, so use this but iam fortunate I only have the 1 pane in each section of the roof .. I add a capful of bleach to warm soapy water and apply with a window brush and dollop it on leave overnight then gets a wash and scrub

 

I use spray on bleach,just spray on panes and use a long handled brush to agitate, comes up sparkling. I also use a plastic plant label to slip in between the panes to remove algie a debris.