Any greenhouse experts about?

[cumbriasteve]

Last year my Mother (aged 90) decided she wanted a greenhouse, bought one, a 2mtr x 2mtr, erected it, tomatoes galore and now a load of bottled chutney filling the cupboard shelves....lovely jubbly.

The problem is I readily admit that I made a mistake and bought one of the polycarbonate glazed one's, I fell for the advertising that the sheets are just about unbreakable, all that means is they are very light, flexible and when they blow out they can travel 10 miles without smashing... but I can't find them.

I had even used some silicone and extra clips but living on a hill with strong winds defeats it easily.

So glass it will have to be and my options are:

Advertise on Facebook for anyone with glass or a greenhouse they no longer want ....no replies to that so far

Buy 3mm greenhouse glass from the glaziers, reckon about £150

Buy another greenhouse (about £275), use the glass and sell the new frame with the poly sheets ( now stored in the shed)

Think both options will have the same financial outcome and input of labour

or, always amazed by some of the helpful advice here for strange questions... can you think of any other suitable option... afraid I can't, but no harm asking here before I do something.

 

[Spark plug]

You could glass it witch will be better than polycarbonate, but glass can blow out too in height winds. The difference bering the glass will brake with no chance of rescue and once one pain brakes and you have a hole more tend to follow quickly. I have seen every pain go in one night regularly on the site ware I have my allotment.

Personally on a hill with no wind protection I would get a poly tunnel as they cope much better with winds and are less Maintainance.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

Shame you are not closer as we have thousands of panes here, it used to be a tomato/strawberry nursery and we have dismantled five 100m long wooden glass houses. The timber frames went in the wood burners but all the glass panes are stacked up at the back of the plot.
From memory they are 24" by 18" and about 3 or 4 mm thick.

 

[cumbriasteve]

You could glass it witch will be better than polycarbonate, but glass can blow out too in height winds. The difference bering the glass will brake with no chance of rescue and once one pain brakes and you have a hole more tend to follow quickly. I have seen every pain go in one night regularly on the site ware I have my allotment.

Personally on a hill with no wind protection I would get a poly tunnel as they cope much better with winds and are less Maintainance.

Yeah can see the point, she had a glass one years ago that actually stood up well until a neighbours garage door demolished it during a storm, I intend to position it in a protected corner...less sun of course but a lot less exposure to winds too.

 

[cumbriasteve]

Shame you are not closer as we have thousands of panes here, it used to be a tomato/strawberry nursery and we have dismantled five 100m long wooden glass houses. The timber frames went in the wood burners but all the glass panes are stacked up at the back of the plot.
From memory they are 24" by 18" and about 3 or 4 mm thick.

Damn ..that old problem of distance wins again, it always seems no matter what people want someone has it but at the other end of the country, never a couple of miles away... one of life's mysteries.. but thanks anyways.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

Damn ..that old problem of distance wins again, it always seems no matter what people want someone has it but at the other end of the country, never a couple of miles away... one of life's mysteries.. but thanks anyways.

It might be worth calling in to any dilapidated nurseries that you pass on your travels and inquiring if they have any panes they want to get rid of. If they are anything like us they will be glad to get rid of it!

 

[cumbriasteve]

It might be worth calling in to any dilapidated nurseries that you pass on your travels and inquiring if they have any panes they want to get rid of. If they are anything like us they will be glad to get rid of it!

Good idea..there are a couple of old un's around...good excuse to escape for a ride out too.

Considering the amount you have lying around, have you not considered putting them on a buy it now on ebay, even at 50p a sheet you may be surprised at how many sell, especially at this time of the year when gardeners are starting to thing about sorting for summer.

 

[Fazerruss]

How soon do you want the glass? I'm a lot closer (but maybe not close enough ). I'll be replacing all my house windows end of feb so you are welcome to have the glass units. None are toughened so will cut easily.

 

[cumbriasteve]

How soon do you want the glass? I'm a lot closer (but maybe not close enough ). I'll be replacing all my house windows end of feb so you are welcome to have the glass units. None are toughened so will cut easily.

A nice offer but I have never had much success cutting glass, may still be worth considering though, brother is in York and comes over fairly often.

Will keep you in mind if that's ok..thanks

 

[pedrobedro]

Bracing the backs of the panes with a cross of something stiff to stop them flexing seems to be the only answer till you find replacements. You can buy glass without the replacement frame and fit that. Ours is replaceable even though the greenhouse is ancient the sizes are still pretty standard.

 

[cumbriasteve]

Bracing the backs of the panes with a cross of something stiff to stop them flexing seems to be the only answer till you find replacements.

They have already been removed and stored before they end up in the next county.

It's useless stuff, too flexible which allows the clips to spring off, have seen a sheet fly out in very little wind, glass has weight and rigidity which helps a lot.

my daft fault for buying that style of glazing

 

[pedrobedro]

I edited the other post but will reply again. Our greenhouse is ancient but the glass is pretty standard and easily obtained, you could take the plastic out and replace with glass without buying another frame couldn't you ?

 

[rtbcomp]

Greenhouses crop up from time to time of Freecycle and Freegle.

 

[CRB]

Try some local plastic fabrication companies, or sign makers, for thicker polycarbonate. I doubt that it was 3-4mm thick, probably 2mm.

Glass is better as long as it is not under attack from stones.

Polycarbonate is available in plain and UV coated. Obviously the UV coated is a little more expensive, but will not become clouded and brittle in the sunshine. It does eventually, but a considerable time hence.

A little more work, but fixing polycarbonate with screws is perfectly acceptable as long as there is an amount of freeplay to allow for expansion, and straight holes, NO countersinks.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

Drill holes through ajoining polycarb panels (with frame inbetween) and cable tie together.
I gave my 8' x 6' greenhouse away as needed space in the garden to store materials for new shed / workshop build. Intention is to buy another at a later date but am also considering a small secondhand UPVC conservatory. Looking on eBay you can sometimes get them for 99p if "buyer dismantles" as people would have to pay builders otherwise.

 

[cumbriasteve]

Drill holes through ajoining polycarb panels (with frame inbetween) and cable tie together
That would certainly keep them in and would do me but she is a fussy old bird and the greenhouse can be seen from the kitchen window, I just know I would get earache about the ties.

Think the problem may be solved though: a coffee and chat over neighbours fence and been informed I can get a full height sheet of glazing glass locally for under £7, he said it was called a dutch glass, so 18 x £7 seems the cheapest option for 'new' replacement unless I find used glass locally before spring.

 

[zx9]

Dutch Lights are the big wooden framed windows that older greenhouses and cold frames were made from. As a kid I fell through one, blood everwhere I have a scar on my right wrist forty years on, looks like I have been trying to slit my wrist.

However back to the original qusetion, one way of securing polycarbonate sheets is to use foam double sided tape on the glazing bars and fit a length of aluminium angle around the green house mid way up the sides (just bolt it to the existing slots on the aluminium extrusion) , drill the polycarbonate sheet and fix through the aluminium angles with bolts, penny washers and a dab of silicone.

 

[cumbriasteve]

However back to the original qusetion, one way of securing polycarbonate sheets is to use foam double sided tape on the glazing bars and fit a length of aluminium angle around the green house mid way up the sides (just bolt it to the existing slots on the aluminium extrusion) , drill the polycarbonate sheet and fix through the aluminium angles with bolts, penny washers and a dab of silicone.
Yep another decent idea, I think I will have a play with an assortment of the suggestions and put one panel back in (cable tied and braced as you mention) then leave it over the probable storms we will get this next couple of months and see what happens.

Just had another realisation too, I know glass is nicer and easier but she is 90 years old and has had the occasional stumble, visions of a nasty accident are now in my mind...wish she would just get the damn tomatoes at the supermarket... I would even pay for them.

 

[eSCHEn]

When we moved into this place we're in now the then current occupiers asked if we wanted to buy their polycarbonate greenhouse. We did but unfortunately it was taken to pieces by a winter storm not two months later. The problem was that the frame flexes and the depth that the sheets are inserted into the channels is not deep enough. This allows one part of the sheet to pop out and then the wind just pulls the rest apart. The previous occupier had reinforced using different methods with varying success. Silicone made zero difference, wire bracing was partially effective and places where he'd braced with a bit of angle bar screwed into the frame all survived.

Fortunately we had insurance and made a claim (first one ever) and with the money we got we bought a frankly enormous polytunnel which has proven much sturdier and is so much nicer than a greenhouse ever was.

 

[cumbriasteve]

The problem was that the frame flexes and the depth that the sheets are inserted into the channels is not deep enough. This allows one part of the sheet to pop out and then the wind just pulls the rest apart

Exactly right, even though I fitted a couple of steel stays to the wall, once one corner breaks free the sheets are in the next county before I can catch them.

It's twin walled polycarbonate and the wind pressure bows them allowing the edges to break from under the clips, they really are a rubbish system, they weigh virtually zero so have no self weight to hold in place.

Still annoyed I was daft enough to buy the bloody thing, usually I research for ages.