The greenhouse saga so far................
So, back to the blog. It has so far taken four weekends and sundry half hours straight from work before the light fades to get this thing erected. I likened it to my American dream that by the age of forty most Americans had built their log cabin and moved on to a second career. Well, at the age of sixty I have completed my greenhouse ........ still waiting to decide on the next career move !
Was it difficult ? It certainly was not easy. The patience of Job and the discipline of a civil engineer, and the help of your next door neighbours as well as the love of your wife - these are key elements in this construction.
Would I do anything different ? I would probably go back to the very beginning and think twice about the base and the requirements for anchoring the aluminum greenhouse base. This picture illustrates the issue. Anchoring can be in soft earth using post cement (which sets quickly) to fill in the hole. This is achieved by using the whole length of the corner angle plates and the plates that join base lengths together if you have ordered a 10 foot greenhouse. Or, like me you can choose to build on a solid slab foundation with the intention of drilling holes and screwing the base down. If you chose the latter method then the four corner angles and the plates that join the lengths, all have to be cut down to size using a hacksaw. I purchased a new hacksaw for the occasion and also found my late father in law's clamp which was duly fitted onto an old picnic table used for these odd jobs. Cutting alminum was not an easy task. Neither was it easy to keep it square. The end result is that the hacksaw blade is now smooth as a baby's bottom. But it also cost me about four hours of cutting time.
Consequently, this the start of the construction was also the most mind numbing part. Why could the manufacturers not consider this and for the benefit of both methods, include the finished article without the need for cutting ? Now there's a good idea.
Watch this space for more chapters on the construction.
4 comments:
Looking good so far Gnome. Your attention to detail is v commendable. Gold stars all round. When I built mine it was located directly onto compacted earth and I fixed it in place (it's quite heavy with all the glass in place) with giant 10-inch tent pegs!! Some trepidation about whether I'd next see it sailing off over the hedge but it was fine.
I am sure your attention to detail will pay off in the long run. My greenhouse was physically lifted and moved 8" off its base during the big storm this year. Looking forward to seeing the finished pics.
It's a bitter truth that by the time you have finished a large project, you will have learned a lot and be painfully aware of all the mistakes you made along the way - but you'll have to live with them now unless you want to get rid of what you've done and start again. Sounds like you're doing great, and being really painstaking. What are you going to grow in it?
Thanks Woody, I don't often get gold stars, but they are even better from a Travelling Wilbury.
Bring the storms on Matron, this greenhouse ain't goin' nowhere !
Grow in it Mel ? What on earth do you think I have sweated away for - just to go and fill it with dirt and plants ?
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