Shoot Logo
Take a photoPlans & pricingBook a demoGet started

install a greenhouse

install a greenhouse

Question from dorothy
1037 5
hi, i retire in a few months time and want to grow my own salad items. i prefer to have a greenhouse on a solid base as my garden is quite waterlogged. do i have the base laid and then set the greenhouse on top at some point or have a contractor do the whole job while the base concrete isnt set?. thank you.
Posted: Friday 8th of March 2013 11:04 AM

  • Re: install a greenhouse

    Valerie Munro
    I think that the first task is for you to find the best possible place for your greenhouse - and this may sound a silly thing to say. Possibly you have already chosen the site, but is it in the shade of over hanging tree branches, and therefore will be quite dark for much of the day? On the other hand, in the height of summer (assuming that we will have one!), sitting in the full blast of the midday sun's excessive heat may also cause difficulties.

    The next step is for you to measure the area and then select the biggest greenhouse that you can accommodate there and can afford - the larger it is the lower the cost will be per sq m of running it.

    Then think about how you might be heating your greenhouse in winter - perhaps being built close to a source of electricity might save you angst later.

    Having decided exactly what greenhouse, and where it is to go, then you should get your appropriate concrete base laid before you build the glasshouse itself. A completely flat surface is needed to avoid any future 'twisting' of the framework which would then result in windows cracking or, worse still, popping out.

    Perhaps you could also think about allowing some space around the structure so that you can have easy access to cleaning all of the windows.

    If you can find someone who can lay down the base, and also put it up for you once the concrete has set, then I would encourage you to accept the offer. My husband and I spend many miserable hours trying to re-assemble a second hand greenhouse, and I will never do that again - it was amazing that we are still speaking today!

    Good luck!
    Replied: Sunday 10th of March 2013 11:48 AM

  • Re: install a greenhouse

    dorothy
    thank you.
    Replied: Sunday 10th of March 2013 01:17 PM

  • Re: Re: install a greenhouse

    dorothy
    thank you
    Replied: Sunday 10th of March 2013 01:18 PM

  • Re: install a greenhouse

    Shoot User
    Hi. We inherited a greenhouse when we bought this house ... for some strange reason the previous owners had sited it directly on the lawn, and in doing so created a no go area which had become overgrown with nettles and brambles ... when we later cleared it we found a "Marjories Seedling" plum tree totally overgrown with bramble and bindweed .. obviously fairly young as it still had the nursery tag on. We decided to resite the greenhouse to create one wall of the vegetable garden, which we had cleared by letting our new flock of hens live in for a few months .. they took almost everything out for us! A local handyman/builder marked out a slab just slightly larger than the greenhouse frame and created a reinforced concrete base. We removed & numbered every sheet of glass, then three of us carried the frame to its new position, where it was screwed to the concrete and all the glass replaced. We rigged up a large water butt to collect the rain from the roof of the greenhouse and that has been largely sufficient to keep plants topped up. It has been very productive and is full of tomatoes, gherkins and courgette plants at the moment. We returfed the area of the lawn where it had stood and 2 years on, it looks as if it's always been where it is now.
    Replied: Sunday 26th of May 2013 09:39 AM

  • Re: install a greenhouse

    TotalPolytunnels
    Greenhouse is the best method to protect your garden from the harsh weather. Polytunnels are less expensive as compare to the greenhouses.
    https://d30qmn300ic0sk.cloudfront.net/assets/users/user_81707/forum_19659_579_20141229111912.jpg
    Replied: Monday 29th of December 2014 11:19 AM
TOP