Your Greenhouse Foundation
When starting to build your greenhouse, there are many different options for your foundation.
On occasion, when buying a do it yourself greenhouse, people will not take enough time to plan and plot out exactly the best place to put it. That may be on gravel, or dirt or even grass. Your greenhouse may come complete with a roof and walls, as well as a floor.
If you choose to build your own greenhouse,You will need to prepare the ground underneath. This could be as simple as smoothing the earth and laying down railroad ties spaced an inch apart. An alternative step up could be creating a simple platform of eight-foot 2 x 4′s or 1 x 6′s nailed to 4 x 4′s spaced out about every 18 inches under the slats. That way you have a solid base and drainage.
These designs, however, leave you with the large job of controlling weeds, as well as controlling mildew, replacing floor boards and other issues with wooden floors.
The next step up is laying a cement foundation, similar to the type under many houses. This is easier than it sounds, but it requires more effort than the other alternatives and has a few potential drawbacks.
To create your foundation you will need to lay out an area, smooth and level it and build a temporary container around the area where you are going to pour the cement. You’ll want to make it fairly smooth and level – not an easy thing to do unless you have a fair amount of experience pouring cement.
You could be left with a foundation which would be hard to move if you change your mind about where you want to place it.
But a cement foundation will last longer and give you some options about heating. You could lay carpet or tile on top with heating tubes or wires underneath, for example. It is sturdy, and very easy to take care of. Cement floors also can absorb and reflect a lot of heat, which can be handy in a greenhouse.
Building a good cement foundation will require a couple of weekends. The materials, tools and construction plans are available at a hardware store or can be ordered online and delivered.
Beyond following the directions for mixing cement, creating the frame and properly forming the surface, the key is temperature and humidity. It’s important that you carry out the project when you expect moderate to warm temperatures, relatively low humidity and no rain.
Whatever foundation you choose to use, it is important to plan ahead. It is important to make sure that the floor will support you, and all the benches, tables, pots, etc. that you are going to need.After it is installed, it is much harder to fix, so it’s important to get it right from the start.
My next article will cover what is green about a greenhouse.
If you are interested in climate change, check out my web site at http://www.enesolarpanels.com/climate-change.html
