DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe

Scuba_Dave · 05-10-2009, 09:19 PM

Well, I thought this site was gardening when I signed up
Didn't realize it was about bananas
I guess I should have read more
But maybe I can do bananas in my "new" greenhouse

I 1st built it in '05 - too big, didn't like the roof
So I never finished it pending a redesign & other house projects
Last fall I took it apart & rebuilt it, much lower
I dug out the inside & put in the winter storms in March
I put the door on one day & it was closed in...and I was sweating
Next day I put a remote thermometer in there & it was reading 107

Ah, that's the temp up near the roof
I moved it down near the ground & put it inside 3" PVC to "protect" it from the sun
Much better....only 101

So now I need an automatic vent on it
I've had veggies growing since April
This means I'm getting a 6 week head start & will extend my growing season GREATLY

All the jalouise windows were $75 - included winter storms
**EDIT - jalousie windows were $75...I thought I got them for free
---but that was some other jalousie windows
The roof is sliding glass door panels - free
I spent less then $30 on PT wood, quite a bit leftover after redo
There is a 55g drum in the corner to collect rainwater
I'm hoping to pick up a pair of 330g tanks shortly

Old design was too big & blocked 2 windows

Michael_Andrew · 05-11-2009, 06:53 AM

Very resourceful. Looks like the perfect spot to overwinter a few bananas.

Michael

Bob · 05-11-2009, 09:24 AM

Good work. Try putting a thermometer on the ceiling and floor. Daytime temps are as much as 30* apart in mine(which is sheet plastic). At night temps can drop quickly. Looks to be a great plant starting / season extending spot.

Scuba_Dave · 05-11-2009, 12:09 PM

It went down to maybe 39 or so last night
The greenhouse was 51 when I checked it at 6:45a
I took the West side storms off (7'), South side (10') is mostly off
Only 3' of storms left on facing South. The East wall (7') still has both storms on. It's supposed to stay in the 50's at night after Wed.

This fall I'm going to dig down & insulate the perimeter to a depth of about 3' on the East & South sides. The West side I'm going to have to dig deeper as it borders the stairs to the basement. I have a bunch of insulation that was under the vinyl siding I removed
So I figure 1" should give me about R4-R5, I may be able to go thicker then that

Ideally I'd like a couple temp probes
Ceiling, floor level, 6" in the dirt & then maybe 2' down
I used to work for a company that had chart systems to track/check/certify furnace Temps. I'm sure by now the stuff is computerized. But I'm out of work so that will have to wait
And My HoneyDoList is pretty long
I'm getting ready to finish up the roof on an addition
24x36 garage, same size great room over it, & a walk up 19x24 attic

I'm debating on starting bananas this year, or waiting until next year. I know (think?) they can take a while to grow/bear fruit. So maybe I should start them this year. I'm going to have to spend some time going thru threads & researching

Bob · 05-11-2009, 12:27 PM

Re : Research. Smartest thing you can do. I collected most of my plants last Sept through Dec and have had no trouble(kept indoors). I was able to get a nice remote temperature gauge from home despot for about what you paid for your greenhouse. It's actually a lot of fun comparing indoor vs. outdoor vs. greenhouse temps throughout the day/ season etc. There were more and less expensive units but the $30 model works great and seems to be accurate.

LilRaverBoi · 05-11-2009, 12:29 PM

Very nice! Excellent work....and on such a low budget, no less! I hope it works out well for you!

Scuba_Dave · 05-11-2009, 05:22 PM

Thanks
I'd like to go thru one winter & monitor the greenhouse temps before I attempt to leave anything in there over the winter

Patty in Wisc · 05-11-2009, 07:39 PM

Very nice Dave. You are very resourceful! I heard of ppl using old patio & shower doors to make a greenhouse.

Scuba_Dave · 05-23-2009, 03:28 PM

I'm almost finished with the main garden support
I took apart someone's pool deck so the support posts were free
The pipes were leftover from some old fencing
I had to spend maybe $5 on some connectors

Finally support for my 8' tomato plants !!
There is another 4x4 support just to my left as I took the picture
I have one more pipe to cut & run across - you see the pipe end sticking put in the middle

I spread out the horse compost today
I still have a lot more seedlings to transplant

Patty in Wisc · 05-23-2009, 11:48 PM

Looking great Dave for supports. Put those 4 little guys in lower left corner inground & take them outof their pots

Scuba_Dave · 05-24-2009, 07:06 PM

Those were red japanese maples from MIL's house
They were growing where they were not wanted, so I took them
They were OK last year - nuttin this year

She has 2 more seedlings that are about 12" tall that she is keeping. If any more pop up I'll transplant them to my greenhouse instead of down in the garden area. It gets too crowded in the summer & I think they were shaded too much

Scuba_Dave · 01-10-2010, 10:34 AM

It went down to about 9 last night (11 according to weather site), 11 when I got up
The greenhouse was just about 33 degrees
So it looks good to winter the bananas in there next year

I still have to insulate part of the roof & some more storm windows to install

Scuba_Dave · 02-14-2010, 11:57 AM

Its 38 outside & the greenhouse is up to almost 60
I'm going out to dig around the inside foundation & put in some old "rigid" insulation that was under the vinyl siding

This should help keep the greenhouse warmer from the cold concrete
The sun is up over the back trees every day now
So the greenhouse will be warmer & warmer
Time to start the veggie seedlings inside so they will be ready to transplant to the greenhouse in a few weeks

I also need to build bench/shelving unit in the greenhouse to stack potted plants
I have some PT wood that I will use for that
Then finish connecting the 55g rainwater/watering system

Scuba_Dave · 02-20-2010, 01:35 PM

Finally found my pickaxe
So the South wall is dug down to ~2'
I also found the sewer pipe...only about 12" down
I was thinking it was deeper

It was 64 at ground level...I was in a T-shirt digging - 45 outside & sunny
Supposed to be sunny tomorrow too
So hopefully I can finish the South & the West sides
The East side has my 55g drum of water...which I will need to drain 1st

I'll also be redoing the roof this year
I'm removing the framing from the sliding glass doors on the roof
Then I'll put PT wood on the sides of the rafters & the glass will sit on the PT

Scuba_Dave · 03-02-2010, 01:19 PM

EDIT - some more of my posts were merged, screwing up the timeline again
So now I have no idea when these different things were done
This really screws things up...this sucks

Well I was bummed out for the past 10+ days
Cloudy & snowy - did not stick, but the greenhouse was not even going over 50
So today I went back out to finish up the insulation around the foundation
And discovered that I had buried the Temp sensor under the dirt
So it has been reading ground temp, & close to 50 isn't bad for Feb

I finished 2 walls, dumped the 55g water & waiting for it to drain/seep in
Relocated the Temp sensor where it is supposed to be
And with maybe 1/2 hour of sun its up over 77 in there !!

Finished insulating 3rd foundation wall
Its up over 81 now in there...bright sunshine
I took a bunch of rocks out, they will go in my dry river bed

I need to drill the 55g drum out & install a spigot
I also need to put in a bunch of mulch from the mulch pile
So maybe later in the week I'll be ready for seeds

Scuba_Dave · 03-07-2010, 09:35 PM

I really need to build a heat exchanger for the greenhouse
It was up to 90 out there (57 maybe outside)
I'd love to use that to heat the house !!

I'm planning on building one for this fall

Abnshrek · 03-08-2010, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scuba_Dave

I really need to build a heat exchanger for the greenhouse. It was up to 90 out there (57 maybe outside) I'd love to use that to heat the house !! I'm planning on building one for this fall

So if it works you thinking about expanding it to cool in the summer? (using the same pump ad a couple valves and dig a cooling line) :^)

Tony O · 03-08-2010, 12:54 PM

You've got it against 2 windows.

I had mine like that once. A box fan facing in from one will bring in the warm air during the day.

Dalmatiansoap · 03-08-2010, 03:30 PM

Anybody knows any DIY irrigating systems? Any ideas?

sunfish · 03-08-2010, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dalmatiansoap

Anybody knows any DIY irrigating systems? Any ideas?

What do you want to know?

05-10-2009, 09:19 PM	#1 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	DIY greenhouse - $100 maybe Well, I thought this site was gardening when I signed up Didn't realize it was about bananas I guess I should have read more But maybe I can do bananas in my "new" greenhouse I 1st built it in '05 - too big, didn't like the roof So I never finished it pending a redesign & other house projects Last fall I took it apart & rebuilt it, much lower I dug out the inside & put in the winter storms in March I put the door on one day & it was closed in...and I was sweating Next day I put a remote thermometer in there & it was reading 107 Ah, that's the temp up near the roof I moved it down near the ground & put it inside 3" PVC to "protect" it from the sun Much better....only 101 So now I need an automatic vent on it I've had veggies growing since April This means I'm getting a 6 week head start & will extend my growing season GREATLY All the jalouise windows were $75 - included winter storms *EDIT - jalousie windows were $75...I thought I got them for free ---but that was some other jalousie windows The roof is sliding glass door panels - free I spent less then $30 on PT wood, quite a bit leftover after redo There is a 55g drum in the corner to collect rainwater I'm hoping to pick up a pair of 330g tanks shortly Old design was too big & blocked 2 windows __________________ . Last edited by Scuba_Dave : 07-27-2012 at 07:17 PM.*

05-11-2009, 06:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
Michael_Andrew Michael_Andrew's Photo Gallery Location: Toledo, Ohio Find me on the map! Zone: 6 Name: Michael Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 517 BananaBucks : 67,738 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 248 Times Was Thanked 384 Times in 182 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 226 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Very resourceful. Looks like the perfect spot to overwinter a few bananas. Michael

05-11-2009, 09:24 AM	#3 (permalink)
Bob Orang Puteh Bob's Photo Gallery Location: Washington Twp N.J. Find me on the map! Zone: 6a Name: bob Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 3,528 BananaBucks : 205,550 Feedback: 12 / 100% Said "Thanks" 9,537 Times Was Thanked 4,058 Times in 1,694 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 565 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Good work. Try putting a thermometer on the ceiling and floor. Daytime temps are as much as 30* apart in mine(which is sheet plastic). At night temps can drop quickly. Looks to be a great plant starting / season extending spot. __________________

05-11-2009, 12:09 PM	#4 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe It went down to maybe 39 or so last night The greenhouse was 51 when I checked it at 6:45a I took the West side storms off (7'), South side (10') is mostly off Only 3' of storms left on facing South. The East wall (7') still has both storms on. It's supposed to stay in the 50's at night after Wed. This fall I'm going to dig down & insulate the perimeter to a depth of about 3' on the East & South sides. The West side I'm going to have to dig deeper as it borders the stairs to the basement. I have a bunch of insulation that was under the vinyl siding I removed So I figure 1" should give me about R4-R5, I may be able to go thicker then that Ideally I'd like a couple temp probes Ceiling, floor level, 6" in the dirt & then maybe 2' down I used to work for a company that had chart systems to track/check/certify furnace Temps. I'm sure by now the stuff is computerized. But I'm out of work so that will have to wait And My HoneyDoList is pretty long I'm getting ready to finish up the roof on an addition 24x36 garage, same size great room over it, & a walk up 19x24 attic I'm debating on starting bananas this year, or waiting until next year. I know (think?) they can take a while to grow/bear fruit. So maybe I should start them this year. I'm going to have to spend some time going thru threads & researching __________________ .

05-11-2009, 12:27 PM	#5 (permalink)
Bob Orang Puteh Bob's Photo Gallery Location: Washington Twp N.J. Find me on the map! Zone: 6a Name: bob Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 3,528 BananaBucks : 205,550 Feedback: 12 / 100% Said "Thanks" 9,537 Times Was Thanked 4,058 Times in 1,694 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 565 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Re : Research. Smartest thing you can do. I collected most of my plants last Sept through Dec and have had no trouble(kept indoors). I was able to get a nice remote temperature gauge from home despot for about what you paid for your greenhouse. It's actually a lot of fun comparing indoor vs. outdoor vs. greenhouse temps throughout the day/ season etc. There were more and less expensive units but the $30 model works great and seems to be accurate. __________________

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05-11-2009, 12:29 PM	#6 (permalink)
LilRaverBoi Nanner Time! LilRaverBoi's Photo Gallery Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Find me on the map! Zone: 5 Name: Bryan Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2,937 BananaBucks : 114,045 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 534 Times Was Thanked 2,243 Times in 1,245 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 855 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Very nice! Excellent work....and on such a low budget, no less! I hope it works out well for you! __________________ BANANA RAVE! Feel the beat from start to stop, dancin' and movin' from bottom to top! lilraverboi@genxglow.com RIP Tog Tan. We love you and will always remember you! I'm Bryan with a Y! There is no 'I' in BRYAN!

05-11-2009, 05:22 PM	#7 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Thanks I'd like to go thru one winter & monitor the greenhouse temps before I attempt to leave anything in there over the winter __________________ .

05-11-2009, 07:39 PM	#8 (permalink)
Patty in Wisc tropical nut Patty in Wisc's Photo Gallery Zone: 5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 3,115 BananaBucks : 337,376 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,946 Times Was Thanked 2,510 Times in 1,203 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 69 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Very nice Dave. You are very resourceful! I heard of ppl using old patio & shower doors to make a greenhouse. __________________ Got a lite? Patty ____ Patty in Wisc has sadly passed away 9/05/11. We will miss you Patty.

05-23-2009, 03:28 PM	#9 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe I'm almost finished with the main garden support I took apart someone's pool deck so the support posts were free The pipes were leftover from some old fencing I had to spend maybe $5 on some connectors Finally support for my 8' tomato plants !! There is another 4x4 support just to my left as I took the picture I have one more pipe to cut & run across - you see the pipe end sticking put in the middle I spread out the horse compost today I still have a lot more seedlings to transplant __________________ . Last edited by Scuba_Dave : 03-18-2010 at 11:41 AM. Reason: sp

05-23-2009, 11:48 PM	#10 (permalink)
Patty in Wisc tropical nut Patty in Wisc's Photo Gallery Zone: 5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 3,115 BananaBucks : 337,376 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,946 Times Was Thanked 2,510 Times in 1,203 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 69 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Looking great Dave for supports. Put those 4 little guys in lower left corner inground & take them outof their pots __________________ Got a lite? Patty ____ Patty in Wisc has sadly passed away 9/05/11. We will miss you Patty.

05-24-2009, 07:06 PM	#11 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Those were red japanese maples from MIL's house They were growing where they were not wanted, so I took them They were OK last year - nuttin this year She has 2 more seedlings that are about 12" tall that she is keeping. If any more pop up I'll transplant them to my greenhouse instead of down in the garden area. It gets too crowded in the summer & I think they were shaded too much __________________ .

01-10-2010, 10:34 AM	#12 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe It went down to about 9 last night (11 according to weather site), 11 when I got up The greenhouse was just about 33 degrees So it looks good to winter the bananas in there next year I still have to insulate part of the roof & some more storm windows to install __________________ .

02-14-2010, 11:57 AM	#13 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Its 38 outside & the greenhouse is up to almost 60 I'm going out to dig around the inside foundation & put in some old "rigid" insulation that was under the vinyl siding This should help keep the greenhouse warmer from the cold concrete The sun is up over the back trees every day now So the greenhouse will be warmer & warmer Time to start the veggie seedlings inside so they will be ready to transplant to the greenhouse in a few weeks I also need to build bench/shelving unit in the greenhouse to stack potted plants I have some PT wood that I will use for that Then finish connecting the 55g rainwater/watering system __________________ . Last edited by Scuba_Dave : 02-14-2010 at 12:05 PM. Reason: closer to 60 now

02-20-2010, 01:35 PM	#14 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Finally found my pickaxe So the South wall is dug down to ~2' I also found the sewer pipe...only about 12" down I was thinking it was deeper It was 64 at ground level...I was in a T-shirt digging - 45 outside & sunny Supposed to be sunny tomorrow too So hopefully I can finish the South & the West sides The East side has my 55g drum of water...which I will need to drain 1st I'll also be redoing the roof this year I'm removing the framing from the sliding glass doors on the roof Then I'll put PT wood on the sides of the rafters & the glass will sit on the PT __________________ .

03-02-2010, 01:19 PM	#15 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	EDIT - some more of my posts were merged, screwing up the timeline again So now I have no idea when these different things were done This really screws things up...this sucks Well I was bummed out for the past 10+ days Cloudy & snowy - did not stick, but the greenhouse was not even going over 50 So today I went back out to finish up the insulation around the foundation And discovered that I had buried the Temp sensor under the dirt So it has been reading ground temp, & close to 50 isn't bad for Feb I finished 2 walls, dumped the 55g water & waiting for it to drain/seep in Relocated the Temp sensor where it is supposed to be And with maybe 1/2 hour of sun its up over 77 in there !! Finished insulating 3rd foundation wall Its up over 81 now in there...bright sunshine I took a bunch of rocks out, they will go in my dry river bed I need to drill the 55g drum out & install a spigot I also need to put in a bunch of mulch from the mulch pile So maybe later in the week I'll be ready for seeds __________________ . Last edited by Scuba_Dave : 04-28-2010 at 05:36 PM. Reason: Posts Merged by Lilraverboi with older post from March 2nd

03-07-2010, 09:35 PM	#16 (permalink)
Scuba_Dave Location: South of Boston, MA Find me on the map! Zone: 6-7 Name: Dave Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 732 BananaBucks : 58,478 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 501 Times Was Thanked 1,218 Times in 451 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,414 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe I really need to build a heat exchanger for the greenhouse It was up to 90 out there (57 maybe outside) I'd love to use that to heat the house !! I'm planning on building one for this fall __________________ .

03-08-2010, 12:54 PM	#18 (permalink)
Tony O Junior Member Location: Jay, (N.E. corner of) Oklahoma Find me on the map! Zone: 6 a/b Name: Tony O Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 104 BananaBucks : 13,870 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 80 Times Was Thanked 62 Times in 40 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 7 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe You've got it against 2 windows. I had mine like that once. A box fan facing in from one will bring in the warm air during the day. __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Happy Gardening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From - - - - Tony O. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

03-08-2010, 03:30 PM	#19 (permalink)
Dalmatiansoap Let there be light Dalmatiansoap's Photo Gallery Location: Makarska, Croatia Find me on the map! Zone: 9 Name: Ante Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 9,160 BananaBucks : 606,436 Feedback: 10 / 100% Said "Thanks" 6,508 Times Was Thanked 8,381 Times in 3,031 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 720 Times	Re: DIY greenhouse - $30 maybe Anybody knows any DIY irrigating systems? Any ideas? __________________ https://abnb.me/AXJty518xib

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