This greenhouse looks amazing. I have often wondered why our culture has not embraced more underground structures and take advantage of the temperature stability.
My son has a bucket on his tractor so I told him I would gladly give up some of my part of the garden if he wanted to start digging! (I have two greenhouses already, but if I didn't, I really like this idea!)
Name: Ric Sanders Dover, Pa. (Zone 6b) And his children Are his flowers ..
I have a bunch of large 8X8' steel framed warehouse windows stored in my barn. I had planned to use them for a greenhouse but we have changed our ideas over time. What I have recently considered is digging a trench (walkway) through part of the garden and setting them up as a low A frame, closing the ends with a rollup or removable gable. I would think I could extend my growing season by 1-2 months most years. It would also give you grater control over water use as well as weeds and bugs. Hmmmmmm...
That was the original idea for the windows. They would have been used on the back wall of the house, great solar gain from that direction. What I wanted was more of a Conservatory than a working GH. I love the look of the many paned large glass windows reminds me of an old fashion conservatory. We have been told that the cost of heating a GH made from the single pane glass and metal frame would be so high that we could pay for more efficient materials from the savings. The design of our house is passive solar and we would use some of those ideas in the Conservatory GH when we build it no matter what the material turns out to be. I have been thinking that we many still be able to use the big windows for the walls of the Conservatory and use a more efficient double wall poly panels for the roof. That would still give me the look I like and cut back on the heat loss. About the time Ric came home with the windows he also came home with quite a few black radiators rescued from a Church where they were modernizing their heating system. He put a row of them against the wall under the benches in the HFGH as solar collectors and will use the rest in the Conservatory GH. Much like they used the black drums. The insulated and painted concrete floor in the HFGH was modeled after the floor in our living area. So many great solar gain ideas out there.
Life is Great! Holly
Please visit me and learn more about My Life on the Water a Personal Journey Thread in the MidAtlanticMusings Cubit. http://cubits.org/MidAtlanticM...
