Greenhouse Plans_Part_One Tools & Materials

Materials: All lumber is treated. I don’t know what size yours will be and I don’t remember

well (anything) but this is approximately what I bought for mine:

1. 1” x 4” x 10’…. at least 8 2. 1” x 6” x 10’…….3 3. 2” x 4” x 8’…….at least 3 4. 2’ x 6’ x 10’………..1 5. 2” x 6” x 8’……3 6. Polycarbonate clear Plastic Roof

Panels……..5 7. Hinges…….at least 4 8. A handle of some kind 9. Square Horizontal Foam

Closures…….about 100 feet 10. A 10’ x 2” x 2” strip of Drip Edge 11. Weather Strip…….I think I used

about 3 rolls of ½” x ¾” x 10’ 12. Caulk……..maybe 2 tubes 13. Foam Board Adhesive…….maybe

2 tubes

14. Wood Glue or a tube of Liquid Nails

15. A light Fixture of some kind 16. A Plant or Incubation lamp of

some kind 17. A roll of Black Plastic……I think

my roll was 3’ x 20’ 18. Some kind of Irrigation

System…….I used soaker hose 19. 2 sheets of Reflective Foam Board 20. A Roll of Reflective tape 21. Various Screws…………see

pictures below 22. 4 Simpson StrongTie Angle

Brackets……..see pictures below 23. Maybe some kind of

Thermometer…….I had one they gave me at a nursery

24. That’s all that I can remember but if I left out something, you will notice it somewhere below.

One Company’s Spec Sheet. In recognition of my vast experience in doing things wrong and failing to anticipate problems, life has awarded me a PhD in Screw Up. As usual, I failed to anticipate problems in my initial design. I suggest you read through all three parts before you buy anything so you notice and don't’ repeat any of my screw ups.

For example, I built it on top of a little raised bed that I already had and I just left it full of dirt. After messing with it for a while, I got it all working right and the weeds discovered that it was a wonderful place for them to thieve in the dead of winter. I later fixed this and other problems and that is partly why the plans are in three parts. I suggest that, if you have no experience with carpentry, you DON'T try to build this thing. You don’t have to be a master (I certainly am not) but you should possess some tools and know how they work. It’s a simple little structure (not a piano) but you need to know how to use a tape measure, cut wood without hurting yourself and make things fit together. Also, there may be some oversights and mistakes in these plans which some experience would help you notice and deal with.

We spend our summers in New Mexico and our winters in Texas. I have always had a little kitchen Garden so I decided to build this a little Greenhouse so that I could have my Garden during our Texas winters.

Before I retired, I was a draftsman so I did my plans on the computer. I had only a small space (near the kitchen door and against a fence) so my dimensions are about 8’4” x 3’ x 4’9”.

You will need to adjust your dimensions according to the space you have available.

The top opens.

I already had a little raised bed which is just a 3’x 8’ rectangle made of 2”x 6” treated lumber. You will first have to make one of these (the size of your space) before you build the Greenhouse. The back of the Greenhouse

will be flush with the back of the bed rectangle and the inside perimeter of the rest of the Greenhouse frame will match, and sit on the inside perimeter of, this rectangle and therefore hang over about 2 inches.

Sometimes this little raised bed used to get a little overwhelmed. Tools:

1. A saw of some kind……………a Miter Saw makes it easiest but whatever.

2. A Driver or Drivers of some kind 3. Assorted bits, both drill and driver 4. Scissors 5. Markers 6. Tape Measure 7. Caulk Gun 8. Wood Glue 9. Hammer…….for persuasion

Materials:

1. All lumber used is 1”x 4”, 2”x 4” and 2” x 6” Treated. Various and sundry screws: Of course you don’t need these exact same screws but I have included pictures of those I used so that you can get similar ones from whatever source you have available.

I like these yellow ones (Zinc & Yellow Dichromate finish). These are 1 ¼” and ¾” drywall type screws with course threads that I bought at Lowes. They are used in various little odd places after general framing.

I got these at Lowes and they are made by the company that also makes the plastic

roofing material: TUFTEX. They are used to attach the plastic.

I got these at Home Depot and they are made by This Company: http://www.phillipsfastener.com/

But Home Depot packages them with their brand: Deck Mate. They are 2” and are used to assemble the frame.

4. Clear Polycarbonate Roofing Panels There are various brands available. I think this was the one that Lowes had: http://www.tuftexpanel.com/. Another company is SUNTUF. Don’t use Fiberglass Panels like these:

The Fiberglass has a wavy pattern like corrugated metal roofing panels. The Fiberglass panels will be damaged by the sun and hail within a couple seasons.

The Polycarbonate (at least the one here) has an angular pattern and this is what you want.

I put the Polycarbonate on our little patio roof more than 25 years ago and it has been through many hailstorms and Texas summers without damage.

5. Enough of these things to close all the spaces between the plastic and the frame. I think I ended up using about 100 feet.

6. Weather Strip. I used ½” x ¾” x 10’ rolls made by MD……………..enough to seal the lid……….maybe 4 rolls.

7. Some kind of reflective material for the back of the whole thing. This is particle or wafer board with a foil face. I decided against it but you might consider it. You will have to weather seal it……………water makes it come apart after a while.

I decided to use Foam Board because it’s easy to work with and it may (I don’t know) have more insulation value.

Another possibility that I considered is this stuff…………I may eventually add it.

8. Reflective Tape. The Foam Board wasn't quite long enough to cover the back so I had to add a piece and tape the seam.

10. Four of these corner brackets to hold

the lid together. They are made by Simpson StrongTie. It’s on this page (http://www.strongtie.com/products/connectors/RTC-FWH.asp) and is called an RTA2Z.

In a perfect world you won’t need any of these things but I had a little warp in a corner and if that happens to you, this is a way to fix it. They are also made by Simpson StrongTie and I usually keep a few around for stuff like this.

11. At least 4 hinges. You may want to

use more but I am a cheapskate and only used 3 for the lid and one for the brace that holds up the lid when it’s

open. A long piano hinge would be nice but too expensive for me.

12. Some kind of thermometer. They

were giving these away at the nursery so I used it.

13. Some kind of light fixture and a

Plant Light or poultry incubation, heat lamp.

I happened to have an old drawing board light fixture hanging in the garage. You’ll just have to scrounge around or buy one…………..ask at a nursery.

14. A piece of Drip Edge or similar

galvanized angle.

This is just to keep leaves from accumulating in the crack between the lid and the frame. Don’t worry about that roll of Green landscape fabric above it. I thought I might need it occasionally for shade to prevent excessive heat inside but I only used it a few times and decided I didn’t need it.

14. A roll of Black Plastic. As I explained at the beginning, I first grew a great crop of weeds along with the good stuff so later I did this. I dug two little trenches and lined the bottom with plastic and put a walk board between them down the middle.

This way I can keep all the desired stuff in pots and control the weeds. The two little

trenches retain a little of the water under the pots. I think my original roll of plastic was something like 3’ x 20’.

After awhile, I started putting the plants on the walk board and busybody that I am, I move everything around often.

15. Adhesives and Caulk. If you use

Foam Board, you will need a Foam Board adhesive. The Caulk is for whatever little cracks that might let out the heat.

16. A Handel of some kind to open the

lid.

17. Some means of irrigation. There are

many systems on the market for this and I may upgrade someday.

Meanwhile, I had several old pieces of soaker hose left from other projects so I just run it across the pots. I think I have covered the materials and tools so this concludes this part of the plans. The next part is about cutting and assembly. Part Two