DIY polytunnel strength?

[starloc]

Has anyone built one of the diy polytunnels, made with scafolding pipes knocked into the floor , and the hoops between from 50mm plastic water pipe?
They look quite good to me, but im wondering how strong they would be, in the wind,
i can work out how to hold one down to the floor, but how strong will the top be, will it bend down in the wind? , i dont think they will bend that much being curved and the plastic pipe feels very strong?

what are polytunnels like with snow, does it slide off before it build up, or is it a knock the snow off every day job in the winter?

[chris]

I can't really imagine plastic pipes to be that strong.. If I were doing it, I'd build a wooden structure to help support the pipes.. Mainly incase it snows!

[Kristen]

Has anyone built one of the diy polytunnels, made with scafolding pipes knocked into the floor , and the hoops between from 50mm plastic water pipe?

Some info here:

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[starloc]

Some info here:

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Thats the sort of thing , it looks quite strong doesnt it? , he says it will survive storm force winds so probably worth trying

[texthe]

I'm in the process of building one of these from these very same instructions a 10' x 15', I have hammered in the scaffold tubes some 2 1/2 foot and got the hoops up on them and although awkward to push down over the scaffold tubes they are absolutly solid as a rock, reckon you could have a gymnast use them for a paralel bar exercise lol.

[Potstubsdustbins]

50mm ID MDPE pipe has a heck off a wall thickness and should be well strong enough.

Might I suggest you warm it (lay it in the sun) before you try and bend it.

Another point is the blue pipe is not UV stable so if you can get the black version which is that might be a better solution.

Colin

[penny]

my tunnel made by this method came down with the heavy snow, I was not living at home at the time due to a housefire so I couldnot keep the snow off. The water pipe was fine but the steam pipe I had used at centre top bent, easily replaced all well now the size is 5metres square to cover my overground swimming pool so probably less problem with narrower span.