10 Free Greenhouse Plans

by Tammy | Mar 3, 2018 | Attached Greenhouses, Family Greenhouse, Greenhouse Plans, Polyfilm Greenhouse

10 Free Greenhouse Plans

Here in Louisiana we call it Lagniappe [lanˈyap]. It’s a little something extra……for free! Everyone loves free. I get asked all of the time how to build your own greenhouse. So, today I have gathered together 10 free greenhouse plans for you. Not everyone can afford or needs a glass greenhouse kit. Tom and I have reviewed the plans and have added our comments to each. These comments are based purely on our years of experience building greenhouses. We have not received any compensation of any kind from any of these plans. So, enjoy and get busy building a greenhouse this week. Please keep in mind that as far as we know no engineers were involved in these plans. In other words, we do not feel that any of these plans have been built with heavy snow and/or wind loads in mind. Also, as a general note: A lot of the plans mention using plastic sheeting that is not UV protected. Don’t expect any more than 1 years use out of non UV protected plastic. We always recommend using 6 mil, 4 year polyfilm to cover greenhouses. With the appropriate waivers in place, let’s get busy building!

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California Style Roof Greenhouse

California Roof Style Greenhouse Plans – We used to sell and install sunrooms. That is how we really got started with greenhouses. Anyway, we used to sell a sunroom that looked like this and it was called the California Roof Sunroom. These plans seem very thorough. They even tell you how to square up your base. It is a bit distracting to try and read the plans on their website due to all of the ads, etc. But, they do offer a downloadable set of plans (ad free) for $5. Might be nice to have these to take to the jobsite.

YellaWood Greenhouse Plans

YellaWood Greenhouse Plans – These plans are from the manufacturer. They do give you a lot of specifications about the building materials, but the plans are pretty much a line drawing with measurements. If you are an experienced builder, you probably would not have much trouble with this. If you are a beginner and need more detailed instruction, this might be one to pass on.

Barn Style Greenhouse Plans

Barn Greenhouse Plans – They state one weekend for this. I am a bit skeptical of that time frame. This greenhouse has a lot of miter cuts and will require what seems like a lot of fitting to me. But hey, who can resist the looks of a barn style greenhouse?

Raised Garden Bed with Removable Cold Frame

Raised Garden Bed with Removable Cold Frame – This is a super plan and will work nicely along side of a standard garden and greenhouse. They are stating a 10 – 15 degree increase in temperature inside the cold frame. This is a great project for someone with limited space, or someone who just wants to get a head start on the garden.

300 Square Foot Hoop House

300 Square Foot Hoop House – This is a well thought out design and plan. I do however have a couple of issues with his recommendations. First is to use landscape cloth as a shade cloth. Why wouldn’t you just use a shade cloth that is made for greenhouses? Also, this is a little bit large not to have a ventilation system. I think a couple of roof vents and a ventilation package would make this greenhouse a whole lot more useable in the warmer months.

Attached Greenhouse Plans

RunnerDuck Greenhouse Plans– I really like the looks of this greenhouse, although I am wondering what it would look like with a small overhang on the roof on all sides. He has stated that you can adapt this to make a freestanding greenhouse with these plans as well. I do like the dutch door feature and the fact that he used a roof vent with an automatic opener.

Bamboo Greenhouses Plans

Bamboo Greenhouse Plans – What a great way to use bamboo! I would suggest using batten tape also when securing your film to your frame. I am not really crazy about using a door that is secured with velcro. If you are in a high wind area I would think this would give you problems. Other than that a great simple plan.

GeoDome Greenhouse Plans

Geo Dome – This may not be for a beginner. Lots of angles to cut for the frame to fit together properly. But, who doesn’t love the look of a dome greenhouse? Sounds like they did a whole lot of research before designing this. If you have some skills and time I would consider this plan.

$50 Greenhouse Plans

$50 Greenhouse – Of course this is if you can recycle a whole bunch of materials. But, he states that even with new material you can build this for around $200. If you are in an area with high snow be sure to look at the picture of what happens when you get a couple of inches of wet snow. His greenhouse collapsed. So, I would definitely rule this one out for snowy areas.

10 x 16 Greenhouse Plans

10 x 16 Greenhouse – These are nice plans. I think he is very realistic when he gives a one week time frame on building this. I would suggest a ventilation system and roof vents with a greenhouse this size. He mentions covering it with polyethylene/foil sheets. I am not really even sure what this is. I would recommend using 6 mil, 4 year greenhouse polyfilm.

In closing, my first, and second greenhouses were both ones that we built ourselves with our own plans. They were both covered with clear plastic (non UV) film. We did not know where to get the UV protected film at that point. One year is the life expectancy of the non UV material. I wish at the time we would have known the difference, but we just kept recovering. Also, not to tell tales on myself, but at the time we were building these greenhouses there was no internet and no free plans. What a help that would have been! Most of these plans are from individuals who have taken their time and energy to supply these plans for us. We thank them for their help.

Greenhouse Shade Cloth Video

by Advance Greenhouses | Jun 19, 2017 | Greenhouse Shade Cloth

This is the latest video in our series “The Greenhouse Minute”. Today’s topic is greenhouse shade cloth.

Greenhouse Shade Cloth

by Advance Greenhouses | Jun 14, 2017 | Attached Greenhouses, Family Greenhouse, Glass Greenhouses, Greenhouse Accessories, Greenhouse Growing, Greenhouse Kits, Greenhouse Shade Cloth

Reflective Shade Cloth for Greenhouse

It seems to me that a lot of people struggle with the decision on which shade cloth is best for their greenhouse. I think they are way over complicating the issue. A greenhouse shade cloth is pretty much like stepping under a shade tree in the summer. You have felt the cooling pretty much right away when you do this. A shade cloth does pretty much the same thing. There are several different choices of material, but the differences are pretty basic. The woven shade cloth is the least expensive. It is a black color. It must be taped on the edges, or it will ravel. It is best used on the outside of the greenhouse. The next choice is a woven shade cloth. This will be intermediate in pricing. It is really nice, as it has some stretch and will not ravel, so the taping is not a necessity with this type. Although we do tape all of our edges so we can add grommets for simple installation. I personally prefer to use this with a greenhouse with automatic roof vents. The way we have always done it is to put the shade cloth on tight on the ends. As we near the vents, we don’t fasten the shade down as tight. We will go back for the next 3 or 4 days and adjust as needed. You want to make sure that there is no strain on the vents when they are trying to open. The next choice is the reflective shade cloth. This is the most expensive, but it is a good choice to use on the inside of a greenhouse. A lot of commercial growers like this for exterior applications as well. Probably the most common question I get is – what percentage should I use? The higher the percent, the more shade you will get. I have found through the years that a lot of orchid growers will prefer a 50% shade cloth. For general purpose growing, ie vegetables, annuals, etc, a 60% to 70% shade is typically used.

Greenhouse Growing, It’s a Learning Curve

by Advance Greenhouses | Apr 6, 2017 | Family Greenhouse, Glass Greenhouses, Greenhouse Accessories, Greenhouse Glazing, Greenhouse Growing, Greenhouse Kits, Greenhouses Information

I received a really nice email from a gentleman the other day who had read one of my previous articles regarding greenhouse accessories. He pointed out to me that he did not use the accessories in exactly the same way as I outline in my article. This just served as a reminder to me that greenhouse growing is indeed a learning curve for all of us. Here’s the thing – We all live in different climates. We are all growing different plants. It is up to us as greenhouse owners to learn how to supply the necessary climate in the area we live in. He mentioned that he only used his heater at night in his location. I would dare to say that someone in Wisconsin growing tomatoes in the winter would totally disagree with this. He also mentioned an evaporative cooling system. He was in a location with a desert type climate. I can see where that would work for him. But here, in Louisiana we have just about 100% humidity (I am sure it just feels that way) all summer long. An evaporative cooling system is totally ineffective here. He also considered a shade cloth as an optional accessory. I consider it an absolute necessity. That is, if you are using your greenhouse at any time except in the winter months. If you have it shut down in the spring, summer and fall, I would not really suggest getting one. When someone calls me asking about greenhouses and accessories, I recommend that they at least get a ventilation system at the same time, as it is installed into the greenhouse frame. This is easier as an initial installation than it is as a retrofit. I don’t like loading greenhouses up with a whole lot of equipment that you may not need at a later time. I suggest adding additional accessories one at a time and as the need arises. Of course don’t wait for the last minute, because everyone else will be in need at the same time. For custom made items such as a shade cloth, this can lead to a delayed lead time. The thing is, we are buying a greenhouse maybe for practical reasons, but most of us are purchasing them for our love of growing. So relax, take the time, learn what you need in your area, for your plants to make your greenhouse a success. And as always, keep growing!