I got a circular in the mail from Harbor Freight. Their 6x8 greenhouse is on sale for $199. Since it's regularly $539(?) it's a substantial savings. I know there's a lot of opinion about this particular GH but any who are interested...

Thanks for mentioning this. We got a catalog today that has the 10x12 one for $549.99! They do take a lot of work to make them sturdier so they hold up to wind, etc, but it seems like a way to have a pretty good sized greenhouse on the cheap. I have a purchased Growing Dome that I'm using for both tropical plants and cacti and succulents. If I get one of these I could just do the cacti and succulents in it.

I'm still looking at the Palram but a lot of people like the Harbor Freight. I figure it doesn't matter if I want that brand or not - the info might be useful to someone and I feel that's part of what NGA is about.
I didn't see the 10x12 but that's not a surprise. That sounds like a good deal for that price. Thanks!

I saw the ad and believe it or not I drooled even though I already built one! I say, if you are even thinking about getting one, DO IT! Follow the blog for some great hints on extra support and whatnot. And don't forget the additional 20% off coupon!! That's quite a savings. If you are good at construction, you can get it done in a weekend after your flooring/base is done. If you are like me, and have to argue with your husband who wants to help so badly, it will take you 4-5 months. ETA it wasn't any extra work to do the extra supports and features. You just figure out which extra features you want or don't want, like, I didn't need snow supports, then add it to your To Do list. The Blog is very clear about when to add the extra things.

Thanks for the additional info, Cheryl. It does sound like a wonderful bargain.

I just read the ad again, and this time they specify that you can't use any other discount or coupon to get it at less than that price. Darn, but it's still a great deal.

ShadyGreenThumb said:...If you are like me, and have to argue with your husband who wants to help so badly, it will take you 4-5 months. ...

I have a similar problem except it's my daughter - she thinks I'm too old to do things. It would bother me except that she thinks anyone over 35 has one foot in the grave.

Perhaps the other coupon(s) could be used for accessories. Seems like we always want shelving, vents, auto vent openers.... Like everything else a GH takes on a life of its own. HF sells solar panels; running a 12 volt fan during the day for free is a good thing, and easy to hook up to a solar panel (even a husband can do it!) Lots of things the coupon(s) might would be useful for.

OOOOOOOH! Can you please show me the pic of the solar panel that would run a fan, Bob?? @diggindirt

Hi Cheryl,

A better price for solar panels is Northern Tools (http://www.northerntool.com/sh...) They have a 2 watt unit on that page for $17.99, and a 7 watt for $37.99. These will run small computer type fans; presuming you don't need to run fans at night you don't need a battery or regulator (which would be to prevent overcharging the battery).

A heavier fan would require a larger panel (or several panels connected together). Northern Tools has a Schumacher brand 12v, 1.8 amp - that's just over 21 watts (12 volts X 1.8 amps); it is 8" in diameter & I believe it oscillates.
RV and camping retailers deal in items for vehicles and trailers that run on 12 volt car batteries. Many of them will carry solar panels, fans, etc, but personally I would look to the online world for much better pricing.

Thank you for the information, Bob @Diggindirt. I will start my research on it. I am not builder and I don't do electricity/wiring very well at all. But I did install 5 light units <~~~~says proudly! But Solar is not electricity so I will forge onward with this project.

Currently my box fan runs on Medium 24/7 as we have some very hot evenings in here during Texas summers. I did some preliminary research and found:
"Galaxy Box Fan Energy Consumption Test Results: 105 watts on high, 77 watts on medium, 56 watts on low."

@77 watts, is that how much I need to look for in solar panels? That is a LOT of panels.

(Sorry for the hijack of this thread)

My HF GH would run so much more efficiently with solar power!

I don't see it as Hijacked - I simply wanted to pass the price to whomever might be interested. If other things get shared in the process all the better!

Since solar panels only work with sunlight, they obviously won't do 24/7, but even using them during the daytime would cut utility bills. As you pointed out the higher the energy (watts) needed, the more/bigger the panels. Think of the panels as batteries and you can appreciate it takes more 1.5 volt batteries to run an 18 volt tool than a small flashlight.
There are higher output solar panels (many homes & business are running on solar). The higher the power the more panels are incorporated, so obviously the more expensive they get.

Is the box fan you mention running on 12 volts? If so that's a pretty hefty fan!

IDK Volts from Watts or any of that. It is not even the Galaxy Box Fan brand I found on line...or maybe it is? It's just a cheapo Walmart box fan. Trust me, there is nothing hefty about it.

I stopped in at Harbor Freight to grab some signs for our new video surveillance cameras. "Smile! You;re on camera! ". While I was reading the box of the solar panels to at least give me a clue (they didn't) a shopper stopped and asked me if I live in an RV. He did apparently and he took about 5 minutes to show me pictures of it and all that. When I asked him if he was familiar with solar panels, he said he thought I would be the one cluing him in on them! Both of us were out of luck for some solar panel education today! The only difference is he thought he would have to hire someone to install them. I told him I was doing it myself. He gave me a funny look. Obviously, I still need to do research as to what I am getting myself into?

Cheryl, you built your own greenhouse; I'm pretty sure you can do the solar panels (once you find the instruction book! )

Sandy @weedwacker your confidence in me is overwhelming. I could dissapoint both of us very easily!

Nah -- you can do it!

Short simple general information;

A "watt" is a unit of power it is equal to voltage x Current

Solar panels supply DC (direct current)
Batteries will supply DC power.
Most solar charging systems are going to store power to a battery or batteries.
You need a "solar charge controller" to keep from over charging your battery.

Anything you plug into a wall plug-in is going to be AC (alternating current)
Here in the USA your going to figure about 110-115 VAC out of your wall plug.

To convert your DC from the battery storage to AC you need an inverter.
You see small ones that plug into your cigarette lighter and let you run small house hold items while camping or such.

Your box fan that plugs into the wall is going to be AC.
So if your fan uses 77 watts on medium and runs on 115 VAC it draws about .6 amps (.669)

Watts is the energy that is needed to make something work, so it does not change.
But the other two can.
So to run your fan you would need about a 100 watt inverter or larger.

So to run your AC fan you would need an inverter, or you could buy a fan that runs on DC.

There is LOTS more to it, but that is a simple overview.

BTW: I have seen a couple of fans with built in solar panels on Amazon. Most are made to clip on your sun visor in your car. But I have yet to see one with good reviews...