Harbor Freight greenhouses

[svalli]

Originally Posted by dcarch

You can get them cheap on eBay.

Luckily I live with a packrat, who collects all sorts of electrical parts. I could make a lot of money selling cooling fans from his stockpile on eBay.

[svalli]

Now we have a 10x12 GH kit in a box on garage floor.

I got my toy, so now DH is dreaming that he can buy himself an other ATV or a snowmobile. Why do I always get the least expensive toys in our family? I think my DH does not realize how good he has; I'm low maintenance, not a big spender and earn same as he does.

[Rena]

You are going to love having your own greenhouse. My dh loves expensive toys too.

[dcarch]

Congratulations! You will truly enjoy it for many years to come.

I have found a good cordless, variable speed, reversable drill to be absolutely essential to make the assembly go much faster.

dcarch

[Miss_Mudcat]

svalli, Congratulations to you on your HFGH! We purchased the 10x12 in Spring of this year and haven't been disappointed. We did the modifications as described on the other web site (GW) and built shelving with conduit which added a great deal of stability.

The HF vent openers are not reliable, but they can be tweaked and made to work. I do recommend, however, that you purchase at least one reliable (expensive) vent opener. We also purchased a louvered shutter with a solar opener from FarmTek.

Best wishes!

Lisa

[bigbubbacain]

Congratulations on your greenhouse! Unfortunately, I had already ordered a Janssen thru Sam's by the time I had discovered Harbor Freight's website. I was told that I might need glass vs. poly panels because of my climate. If you want to be sure your greenhouse is insulated well, you might consider having a concrete base poured to serve as your foundation. It also will give additional head room. My concrete form will be dry in 2 more days and then begins the long arduous task of putting this booger together.

[dcarch]

Originally Posted by bigbubbacain

-------- My concrete form will be dry in 2 more days and then begins the long arduous task of putting this booger together.

How about some pictures?

dcarch

[bigbubbacain]

Arch:

I'll start taking pics tomorrow, though all I have to show now is the base that still has the wooden form around it. I'm going to take step by step photos. This greenhouse is going to be a real chore! There are NO instructions in English, basically just diagrams and drawings of the side profiles of the different pieces of aluminum frame. The whole set of instructions looks like a book of pictograms or hieroglyphics!

[dcarch]

If you don't post pictures, we will not have a chance to insult you and criticize you, com’on!

dcarch

[svalli]

It is going to take some time before we can start building the greenhouse. I can not even plan it yet, since I do not know what kind of surface it will sit on. The house we are buying has been built on bedrock, which is also visible on the surface on the yard at couple of spots. There are mature pine trees on the lot, so there must be also some places, where the soil is deeper. We may do the foundation with concrete blocks, if we do not want to pour concrete to make it.

Now it is time to play with some other toys, when dreaming about the greenhouse full of tomatoes and peppers. Now I know why boys think that these toys are so much fun...

[Alpinejs]

svalli.....I think you will love your HFGH....eventually. You will find the assembly very
frustrating as there are 90 million little nuts and bolts and the Chinese written directions
are terrible, IMO. That said, once assembled, I was very pleased with it until the first
windstorm. After the storm, I went around the neighbborhood collecting my panels. Finally,
I did the modifications recommended on YouTube and they make all the difference in the
world and it has now been through two more wind storms with no bad effect. Mine is the
10X12, but I have the 6X8 in Canada and I am dreading seeing it this late spring. I can only
hope the heavy snow only took out the panels and left the framework intact. Just in case,
I am bringing extra spring clips in hopes that I can rebuild it.

Just tonight, I was perusing a catalog showing greenhouses and there was one almost
identical to the HFGH one and the price was about 5 times as high. In summary, I am now
a happy camper, but haven't been in the past. MAKE SURE you do those recommended
strengthening improvements. And then..........and then.......MAKE SURE that you enjoy your
time in your new greenhouse!! That's an order!!

[Tom A To]

Seven years have gone by, he should have it built by now, unless he's like my brother...

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Tom A To

Seven years have gone by, he should have it built by now, unless he's like my brother...

He is a she.

Worth

[ddsack]

And yes, greenhouse was built long ago, and there have been many posts about it since, like this fairly recent one: http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...ght=greenhouse

[svalli]

I am now starting my fourth season with the 10x12 greenhouse and I just love it. Construction was not so bad, since I printed pages of Mudhouse's blog to aid the construction.

I did many reinforcements and only storm damage so far has been a blown off roof panel in a December storm last year.


Luckily it was repairable. The panel has now a crack in the middle where the screw is and it seems that the self adhesive film I used to repair it is starting to peel off, so I may have to find something else to patch it with.

The spring is early here this year, so soon I will build my small plastic greenhouse inside the 10x12 and will start to harden off my plants. Growing my own transplants here without a greenhouse would be difficult, so I am grateful that we took the greenhouse kit with us. It may not be the most stylish greenhouse, but it has plenty of room and is practical.

Maybe someday I'll get one of these, but then I have to start crafting roses in there wearing Laura Ashley gardening apparel in floral prints . My DIY style fits better in the HFGH.