new greenhouse help

[noodles]

Hi All,

We have just bought a second hand greenhouse, and we are very excited about it.
However, we haven't moved it yet, or located it on our allotment. I am looking for some help.

Firstly, any tips on moving the greenhouse safely would be very welcom.

Seconly, i need an idiots guide to making a base for the greenhouse. The greenhouse
will be going on uneven ground on the allotment, so i need to know where to start
in terms of making a good solid base. I would like to do this as cheeply and simply
as possible.

Thanks in advance

Noodles

[Annpan]

What is the frame made of? Is it glass or fake glass in it? how big are the panels?

We dismantled and moved a giant wooden framed greenhouse at the beginning of the year - still haven't re-built it yet.

Here is what we did...

1st step, remove glass slowly and carefully, one piece at a time and stack it you might need to stack in piles of different size. We found that it is now more difficult to find a bit that fits, since we stacked it all together. - our glass is up to 70x200cm... approx... yes, that is big.

2nd step take apart the frame, end first, then middle sections.

Can't help with the base yet, but I will be watching this post with interest.

[Green Aura]

When we put our greenhouse in we put it on a concrete rectangle, but to be honest it was never really satisfactory, we just couldn't get it completely level and had to pack underneath it to stabilise it.

When we had to move it we dumped the concrete and laid it on a rectangle made out of new sleepers. It was excellent and raised the eaves of the greenhouse by a good few inches.

[red]

assumings it aluminium- take out the glass carefully.. save all teh clips (although you can buy more from DIY places) wrap glass in newspaper to protect. unscrew the frame and reassemble at new location. take some photos first to help you remember what is supposed to look like!

On an allotment I would probably make a base out of sand and paving slabs. might be worth asking on freecycle for slabs. dig hole - put in sand, put slab on top, tamp down until level etc.

good luck w ith your greenhosue - and enjoy the tomatoes!

[noodles]

Hi All,

thanks for the tips, very much appreciated. The greenhouse is glass and aluminium,
and it's a 6 x 8. I think i will go down the slabs and sand route, that sounds simple
enough for someone like me with limited DIY skills. I had thought of taking photos
first, and i am sure this will be useful when i forget what it should have looked like.

Thanks again.

[Odsox]

One suggestion that you might find helpful later on ... take several photographs of the greenhouse before you dismantle it.
It can be a Godsend when you try to figure out where this funny short length of aluminium goes

EDIT .. sorry just read the above post ... you had already thought of that

[red]

Hi All,

thanks for the tips, very much appreciated. The greenhouse is glass and aluminium,
and it's a 6 x 8. I think i will go down the slabs and sand route, that sounds simple
enough for someone like me with limited DIY skills. I had thought of taking photos
first, and i am sure this will be useful when i forget what it should have looked like.

Thanks again.

post a picture when you have the greenhouse up!
we got given a greenhouse, it was already disembled, so we got a pile of aluminium sticks, lots of glass and some bits - we had to submit plans for plannign permission (we live in a national park) and had no idea what it looked like.. took a bit of faffing around.. but we got there in the end

[noodles]

Hi Red,

I will post a picture when i get the greenhouse up. I am going to take lots
of pics anyway, so that i won't forget what it looks like. I will have to sort the base
out first which might take some doing, given my bumpy ground. I am planning to
do the work over the xmas holiday, so i am hoping that the weather is kind to me.

thanks.

[Big Al]

When we put our greenhouse in we put it on a concrete rectangle, but to be honest it was never really satisfactory, we just couldn't get it completely level and had to pack underneath it to stabilise it.

When we had to move it we dumped the concrete and laid it on a rectangle made out of new sleepers. It was excellent and raised the eaves of the greenhouse by a good few inches.

I've always been told that a base should be about 6 rows of bricks then the greenhouse on top of that. the reason being you can grow shade loving plants under the benches and in thecool where as the glass area is there for the rest of the crops.
If this is not for you then I'd dig out a trench about a spade wide and deep and fill with concrete. I'd put the frame into the concrete whilst still wet then fix with a few bolts pushed into theconcrete. This would make it hard for the thieving scroats who weigh in alu greenhouse and also makes it secure in the winds. If this is not what you want then again do the trench but break up bricks and add a layer of cement mortar to bed the green house on.

HTH

alan

[Green Aura]

They can do what they like with it, Al. We live 500 miles further north now - not a lot of use to us. And we've now got a polytunnel which is much better.

[Colin]

It seems slabs are still popular, you could use 4x4 timber to make a base frame which gains you an extra 4" of headroom. The timber would also insulate the frame from the ground unlike cold concrete slabs
I`m a great believer in perimeter insulation (vertical, horizontal or both) to isolate the greenhouse soil from the rest of the garden. The soil warms up during the day as its sheltered by the greenhouse above, but without insulation the heat gained will be stolen by the very cold soil outside

[noodles]

Hooray,

managed to get 20 2x2 concrete slabs from freecycle. how good is that!!!
I have laid them out, but the ground is very uneven. The ground at the moment
is mainly thick grass, and big tufts of grass. It looks a nightmare to dig into.
Anyone got any tips on the best way to shift this orrible stuff? I was thinking
about getting an azada. Are they any good?

cheers.

[Odsox]

No idea what a azada is, but the best way I've found to clear grass tussocks is with a mattock.
Probably a bit expensive if you only have a small area to do though.

[noodles]

here is an article on azadas

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgur ... n%26sa%3DN


sort of like a mattock

[Marc]

There's an old woodworking tool called an adze which I guess is similar. Yep, it's a bit like a mattock. Not a tool I'd use for that job but it might suit you if you want to buy one. If you do then be VERY careful with it as I can see toes getting chopped if not. You need steel toe-capped boots.

What I would use is a good old-fashioned spade with a straight sharp blade. Modern spades never seem to be as good in my opinion, the cheap ones anyway have thick curved blades that are not very good at the job. Buy a good quality old one fron a boot sale or garage sale etc. Get down low and slide it under the turf and weeds then shovel or rake them away. Keep slicing off thin layers till you have it as level as possible. You may need to add a bit of soil or sand in places where you taken too much off. It's hard work but will be worth it