Buying a greenhouse. Any advice please?
greenlove
Posts: 164
I am looking to get my first greenhouse ever for my garden and was wondering if the more experienced members can guide me in the right direction please. I dont want to buy someething that would rot or collapse after a year or two and at the same time dont want to "go mad" and buy stuff that I dont need.
My initial thoughts are: apex roof, 10foot wide. Where we live the trees and buildings are scarce so not much protection from wind.
Budget is no more than £2000 for the total.
I am aiming for a length of around 16-20 feet however getting a green house at that length is very expensive so I will go for two smaller greenhouses (i.e. instead of one 10' x 20' I will get two 10' x 10').
Going for aluminium frame. I assume this is the best option?
Powder coated or bare aluminium? I have noticed that the powder coated option on a 10'x10' adds a good £500 to the price. Is it worth it?
Out of the three options toughened glass seems to be the best one. Is this correct?
Should I get side Louvres? Should I get auto openers for side and roof vents?
Anything else I need to bear in mind?
And finally any recommendations in terms of where to buy from? Trustworthy companies with good products and customer service.
Any advice would be very much appreciated.
Posts
Hi Greenlove. I think you have pretty well made the choices you want. This is mine
8x8 high eave powder coated aluminium; louvres; fitted with automatic vents since picture taken; toughened glass; heater; two doors for easy getting stuff in and out. I got mine from Elite but other greenhouses are available, Brother and I erected it.
I bought a Hartley Botanic one almost 20 years ago with toughened glass. I have only had one broken pane in all that time.
I am planning to grow tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, runner beans and similar things. Would 8' be sufficient width or do I need to go for 10'?
Ladybird4 are the automatic vents worth it?
In regards to powder coated aluminium, what are the benefits of it? Is it worth paying a £500+ premium compared to standard alumimium? Or should I just buy standard aluminium version and paint the frame before putting together with a suitable protective paint (if one such thing exists)?
I don't have a green house now - but I did at a previous property.
If you're a serious gardener you'll always fill whatever you have - so I would recommend the largest you can afford / have space for.
Yes - auto vents are worth it - if only for the days you go out and the temp fluctuates as the sun comes and goes.
If you can, it will make life much easier if you can have electricity in the greenhouse (you need outdoor, waterproof sockets). This will allow you to operate a heater, electric propagator, heated mat - whatever else you may need - and also have the radio on while you're working
.
If you can have a tap nearby this will also be incredibly useful & save lots of time. If not, rig up guttering and water butts.
A central path of slabs or shingle is a good idea. Somewhere clean to stand when working and you can spray it with water in the summer if you want to increase humidity.
Re powder coating. I think it looks really nice - but I couldn't afford it so just had plain aluminium - which was fine. Maybe it depends if the gh's will be a bit of a feature in the garden? Don't know if there are other benefits to powder coating.
I don't think most people paint their plain aluminium greenhouses - I certainly didn't - but I guess you could if you wanted. But that would then be an ongoing paint maintenance job in future years.
Enjoy
Last edited: 25 April 2017 11:46:57
Topbird, thank you very much. That clarifies a lot of things.
I will look to get a 10'x12' or 10'x14' depending on price. Plain aluminium and wont bother with the paint. Automatic vents and side louvres. Toughened glass.
In terms of electricity; my outhouse will be about 10' away from greenhouse and it does have a fusebox in so I will extend a line from that.
Outside tap is nearby so that's sorted.
Inside I intend to have raised beds on both sides in order to plant. The reason for this is that the soil in my garden is quite heavy clay.
I am also thinking of preparing a nice flat concrete base because the garden is uneven.
I assume the function of the guttering is simply to gather the rainwater (as opposed to offering protection? If that is the case then I am not bothered about guttering.