Alexey Cool to Warm All-in-one Greenhouse

My intend is to create several posts for this threat, providing info on different aspects of the greenhouse construction and operation.



Despite that orchid collection was moved to the greenhouse one year ago, it is still ongoing non-completed project. GH was build as a south facing lean to attachment to the workshop. In reality (based on the proportions) it is a GH with attached workshop. Double glass walls and five-wall-polycarbonate roof provide optimum light penetration and heat retaining during gray winter days on Vancouver Island. If I recall it right, thermal insulation properties of five-wall-polycarbonate is 50% more efficient than double glass (good for winter time). Five-wall-polycarbonate also provides approximately 40% shade (good for summer).



Wood structure on left side of GH is used to keep some orchids outdoor in summer. The structure allows accommodate temporary shelves, roof (polyethylene) and shade cloth. White ropes above the roof of GH is a mechanism for retractable shading. Now shade cloth is dismantled for a winter time.



My workshop has its place from the entrance door to the right (west) end of the building. The left of the entrance door belongs to GH and includes potting area and light box. The box is not completed yet. In total GH has L-shape and takes approximately 4/6 of the entire structure.

Hope to prepare photos and next post for this threat tomorrow.

 

Natureman, GH kit has aluminum frame.

Kelly it is 22' x 8'. It was a customized kit from Canadian supplier.

Sure Marni! Next post will be dedicated to the targeted criteria, developed during design phase and will have some photos of the inside. I am also planning one more post about use of GH space with more photos of the GH interior.

 

Naoki, photos were taken last weekend and yes, the grass is still green! I like local seasons.

Scruffy, I am afraid that shade cloth will be reinstalled no earlier than March. Will try to post more photos/details about mechanism soon

 

In a few days I am planning to post more photos of the interior setup of the GH. To avoid confusions with its unconventional setup, current post is about GH design “philosophy”. Luckily, I had almost 1 year between decision to move from Alberta to Vancouver Island and my family actual relocation. That gave some time for research and planning. The resulting “Code” of my GH building can be outlined as:
·It is a hobby GH;
·It has to be energy efficient. Satisfactory looking today’s energy bill can became monstrous in 10 – 15 years;
·It has to be build of a good quality materials to insure long life span of the structure (i.e. it is better to take more expenses on aluminum frame today than think how to repair rotten wood structure in few years, when I will be at the retirement time);
·It should be one, not three, GH and at the same time it has to accommodate a diverse collection with reasonable results;
·It has to be “restrictive” in size (a line between orchid enthusiast/collector and orchid addict/hoarder is very thin!).


GH design, relatively narrow (8’ wide) lean to structure sunken 2’ below the ground level, provides additional energy efficiency to the GH glassing (double glass walls and five-wall-polycarbonate roof). Almost 12’ height along workshop wall allows vertical distribution of the collection and gives benefiting temperature difference between the lowest and highest shelves.



Conventional builder would put a vapour barrier on the workshop side of the wall. I have seen several lean to greenhouses, were adjacent walls of the house or garage were severely damaged by mould growth in the wall cavities. Humid air of lean to GH can easily produce condensate in the wall cavities, providing moisture for mould growth. Adjacent workshop wall of my GH has a modified structure: vapour barrier is beneath vinyl siding, facing in to GH. BTW: all these photos were taken after watering and looking at the excessive condensation on the glassing one can have an idea about wall cavity conditions without proper vapour barrier installation.



Repotting area of the GH has plywood walls and ceiling finishes. All seams between plywood sheets were sealed with bathroom grade sealant and painted with exterior grade paint. Re-potting bench was made of plywood and painted with deck grade paint/coating. So far works good – no scratches or paint peeling. At the far wall is a non-completed light box, which is temporarily used as a storage. Need some time to complete it.

 

Despide that my GH still has approximately 30% of the free space on the benches and mounting walls, one of the tasks was - a rational use of the overhead area between benches (above pathway). That area accommodates metal grid panels with mounted and potted plats, which prefer bright and warm conditions. The panes are high enough to allow me freely work being on the pathway.



The two step ladder, visible on the photo above, is used to take care of the plants on the highest shelf of the right bench. But it would be too awkward to use it for the plants on the grid panels. The solution - each panel is suspended on two retractable hangers. Here are back view of the panels in their upper position.



Here is one of the panels in its lower position.



The retractable hangers were invented for the flower baskets and can be found in the garden stores or Lee Valley. In all these sources they are rather expensive to buy enough of them for GH needs. Another approach - wait until next sumer, when they will be at garden seasonal sections of $ Stores. Cost of $2 per hanger is affordable to use them not only for panels, but for a single basket or pot as well. Here are Brassavola nodosa (on right in upper position) and Tolumnia hybrid (second right in lower position).

 

Yes Kelly, first photos were taken 2 weeks ago, when grass was green. Last one is a today's condition