Dream Big! Greenhouse Help.

[sadie]

So, if you were going to build a greenhouse what features (other than LOTS of orchids) would you want?

We are seriously talking about building a new house and a glass greenhouse that is connected to the house is on the table. (You may be able to hear my shouts of joy from where you sit!) We are going to meet with a contractor this weekend or the first of next week. I have dreamed about a greenhouse for so long, but now that I am going to have to tell someone what I actually want built, I am drawing a blank.

You lucky souls with greenhouses--what do you love? what do you wish were different?

Dream big with me -- what would you want?
What size? Flooring? All glass or just huge windows and skylights? What kind of glass? How would you heat/cool it? Southern exposure / eastern exposure?

What would you do?

[Diane]

I don't have a greenhouse, but I want one! I looked at a lot of options, but haven't got the space right now (or the money or time....) But consider the type of heater ( I saw a great hot water heating system, which won't dehumidify your GH) and cooling system (misters, fans, automatic windows and skylights, swamp coolers, etc.) Think long term operating costs... gas over electric, etc.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Yes, I agree. I have been wishing we had an electric heat system instead of only the gas system. The gas bills this winter have been extreme and we have it turned down as low as we dare go --even turned off the gas water heater. We we water on the weekends, we turn it on and let it heat up and as soon as watering is done, we turn it back off.

Must haves in no order:

1. Large - deep sink with good drainage. We have a laundry sink and I sometimes wish we had a double laundry sink.

2. Two water hose locations for watering if your GH is very large. We put one on the end near the water heater and I wish we also had one on the opposite side on the other end. Dragging the hose around is a pain, plus if we are not careful, we can end up knocking pots over or worse - breaking a bud or spike.

3. Dual exhaust fans. We originally had only one in the opposite end of the greenhouse from the cool cell. This should have been fine, but during August temps here in Arkansas can be over 100 degrees for several weeks at a time. We ended up installing another exhaust fan and that really helped. And, when the belt broke unexpectedly in the original fan this past summer, the back up fan kicked on and the plants did not burn up!

4. Fertilizer mixing system for watering. It is really nice to be able to just flip a couple of valves and have the fertilizer come right out of the watering wand.

5. Large work bench with overhead lighting. This bench or table should be really sturdy and have a non porous surface so that it can be easily cleaned.

6. Electrical plugs all around the greenhouse - like a kitchen. Even though we put in plugs about every 10 feet around the gh, we could have used more. You use them for extra fans to move heat around or to keep seedlings warm, or to plug in a lamp to force buds to open quicker...on and on...

7. A cooling system. We use a cool cell. We also added a huge air conditioner for the August -September months here in Arkansas. The humidity is so high during August, it is hard to cool the air with just the cool cell. Using an air conditioner, we remove moisture and then the cool cell adds it back in. It is expensive to run, and we only use it during emergency situations, but it has been necessary at least three times during the summer each year.

8. Good quality shade cloth. The level you need will be determined by you gh location.

9. Locking door if you have neighbors that like to 'tour' your gh when you are away from home.

10. Sturdy benches that you can reach easily - both the top shelf and the lower shelf.

11. Good drainage in the floor. Gravel is great for us because it is easy to clean and holds moisture for the plants.

...Oh yes, one more thing....build larger than you can imagine ever needing. We thought we did, but filled up the space very fast.

Okay, I am sure there are other things people will add and may even disagree with, but that is my starter list anyway. Good luck and give me a call if you want to come by the gh again and take a look at our setup.

Cheers,
BD

[Gin]

to the above , I also have a regular air conditioner, just in case and a mist system .
Mine has sliding patio doors on 2 sides did have 3 before adding on to it , except the north side it is a solid wall , When we built ours it was not possible to face the long side south , which was a mistake .
My old green house before moving here was faced long side to the south we used big windows that opened at the bottom the west was blocked by the house it was connected to , both the green house and the house were earth contact . The roof was fiberglass panels , we put up a dropped clear ceiling under the trusses with the exhaust fan between them it caught the hot comming in thru the roof worked well . Had a big evaporative cooler (swamp ) cooler thru the wall it did not work very well to cool, too much humidity where we were . Heaters in both green houses had mechanical thermostats so the heat would come on if we lost power . South and east light is the best imho. Make it as big as you can never have enough room Gin

[sadie]

Thanks guys -- those are some things I hadn't even thought of. I think this is really going to happen. Hoorah!

When we get the architect's rendering of the greenhouse, I'll post it. BD, I may take you up on the tour. Last time, I was so mesmorized by the orchids that I wasn't really looking at the greenhouse itself, other than just general envy. When it is done, BD and Gin are probably close enough to come see it sometime.

[Gin]

Looking forward to seeing it Gin

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Thanks guys -- those are some things I hadn't even thought of. I think this is really going to happen. Hoorah!

When we get the architect's rendering of the greenhouse, I'll post it. BD, I may take you up on the tour. Last time, I was so mesmorized by the orchids that I wasn't really looking at the greenhouse itself, other than just general envy. When it is done, BD and Gin are probably close enough to come see it sometime.

Please do. Just give us a call before making the drive so we will be here!

Looking forward to seeing it Gin

ME 2!

Cheers,
BD

[WolfinKW]

I know this may be a little late BUT:
1) make sure all outlets are GFI that way you won't get zapped
2) I would recommend either Silestone (tm) or Corian (tm) like countertop area on work bench both are non pourous and silestone which is a man made quartz product has microban built in to it.

[sadie]

Wolf, Thanks for the input. I agree. Good to see you back again.

[Cjcorner]

I noticed this and thought I would bump it... It gave me a ton of ideas about a room i've been wanting to add on forever.
Great ideas!