Greenhouse saga!!

[mandyballantyne]

Hi All,

Lots of you were kind enough to give me words of encouragment re a freecycle greenhouse a few weeks back.

OH was not happy about taking it down etc and my Dad backed him up!!!!! Not a happy girl.

On the brighter side, he has offered to buy me a new one which is great (but would have been nice to recycle)

I going out today to look at 8x10 sizes but which is a good make? I don't fancy glass as there are animals/kids etc about. So should I go for polycarbonate, toughened etc?

Thanks in advance, Mandy

[Alice]

Hello Mandy, sorry you're not getting your free greenhouse, but you are getting a new one. Maybe the guys are right as it would have been quite a bit of work to move it. I'm not up to date with makes of greenhouses but if I was going out to look for something new I'd be hoping to find something double glazed or with it's own insulation as it would save all the fiddle faddle with the bubble wrap. Hope you find what you're looking for and let us know all about it.

[Protea]

If you can afford it i'd go for toughened glass or polycarbonate. Toughened glass is stronger and safer than horticultural glass - if it does break its does so like a car windscreen, rather than shatter. Polycarbonate can be either twin-walled (opaque) or single thickness (clear), i'm not sure what the advantages/disadvantages of either are though - sorry!

There are so may different makes of greenhouse, you're best to go and try one out for yourself! if you can find a garden centre or a supplier that has some on show, go and stand in them to see if the eave height (where the roof starts sloping) is high enough for you and the crops you want to grow. I eventually went for a 'high eave' model because it meant i had more head room and could grow taller tomatoes! I got the 6x6 Elite high eave craftsman http://www.greenhousesdirect.co.uk/G...eenhouses.html

Seeing them 'in the flesh' so to speak is better than just looking in catalogues as the finish and quality varies so much between manufacturers.

Good luck!

[srodders]

If they're paying insist on nothing less than a Gabriel Ash with toughened glass

[mandyballantyne]

Thanks Alice, Protea,

Good point about the hieght I had not thought of that! I liked the Elite ones and I am going out whhen I finish work to have a look at them. Need to wait until pay day to buy but a least it will give me time to look.

I am going to try for a polycarbonate I think, any kind of glass scares me, just in case..

Let you know how I get on, Mandy

[seasprout]

I'm getting one sent next week from the greenhouse people they do many makes and have a nice brochure. Their online site adds up the total for you as you pick your specification's so you can have a subtotal as you go along.

Their add is usually somewhere at the top of this page. If not its www.greenhousepeople.co.uk.

[rustylady]

I've got clear polycarbonate, and I'm so glad I did after this winter's gales. If the panes do come out they seem to bounce. You do have to re-fit them, but at least you don't have to buy new.

I've a horror of broken glass, specially if there are children about

[Snadger]

I've got clear polycarbonate, and I'm so glad I did after this winter's gales. If the panes do come out they seem to bounce. You do have to re-fit them, but at least you don't have to buy new.

I've a horror of broken glass, specially if there are children about

Polycarbonate is a lot lighter than glass so there won't be much weight in your greenhouse, making it imperative it is well fastened to the ground!!!!

[Berr]

Mandy,
www.greenhousebonanza.co.uk are offering an 8x10 "Hidcote" for what seems a very reasonable price. I THINK it's made by Eden. If so, I'd expect it to be of good quality. At one time I had a Robinson and could not see how it was superior to a friend's Eden which cost a fraction of the price of the Robinson.

Good luck.

P.S. I think there'll be at least three Grapes at the Dunblane tattie extravaganza.

Berr.

[nick the grief]

Hi Mandy,

I've got an AGL & And Elite the AGL was half the price of the elite but there is a reason for that the frame is very thin and flimsy the Elite is a much better build. I agree with srodders about the Gabriel Ash but it would cost about £1500+ and you could buy 3 like my 8 x 12 for that!!!!

I got mine from Greenhouses Direct and found them very good to deal with and would certainly recommend them to anyone

[srodders]

Mandy,
an 8x10 "Hidcote" for what seems a very reasonable price. I THINK it's made by Eden.

Indeed it is, mines a Hidcote - a very old one mind and at 10x8 is bigger than I would choose. But it came with the house when we bought and I'm sure I will fill it eventually.

[mrskp]

Hi there, I'm more of a voyeur than a poster on The Grapevine but having had recent experience of wind, weather and g/hs, thought I'd throw in my tuppenceworth. Hope you don't mind.

My Hall's AGL 8' x 6' toughened glass g/h stood up well to the wind with only 3 panes dropping out (and bouncing not breaking at all). Simple replacement jobby with the addition of another two w clips on each pane.

My Norfolk 6' x 6' clear perspex walls and twin walled polycarbonate roof took a direct hit. Totally lost the fronts (including the doors), most of the rear and side facing the wind. The perspex just cracked round where the screws held the pane in place and the sheared panes were quite sharp (although not as dangerous as broken glass). A few panes were recycled to repair the sides and everything else is now a Heath Robinson contraption of an old plastic walk-in g/h cover with the green reinforcing threads through it and UV tape. The polycarb roof stayed undamaged. This one was 10 times more fiddly to put together than the Hall's was.

When I first got the Hall's I limited the accessories to keep within a budget, but soon realised that the extra vent and louvres were essentials, not options (got them for Christmas). Given my time round again, I wouldn't have bothered with the Norfolk and gone for a slightly bigger Hall's with bells on.

Have fun.

[Two_Sheds]

We got a Norfolk plastic jobby. took us 8 months to put the b*gger together, 8 hrs for the gales to break it apart again

[mrskp]

We got a Norfolk plastic jobby. took us 8 months to put the b*gger together, 8 hrs for the gales to break it apart again

I feel your pain !

[Alice]

Welcome to the Vine Mrskp and I hope you'll come on in more often. You've definately got things to tell us. I'm sure Mandy will be pleased with your greenhouse information. You can't be too far from me. I'm just outside Bearsden.