Building a lean-to greenhouse

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celjaci

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Building a lean-to greenhouse
« on: April 12, 2009, 22:28 »
I would so love to have a greenhouse but no chance at the plot - everything gets smashed. So I've moved a shed in the back garden and think I can get one in a corner against a wall, possibly 15ft by 9ft. Would like to build in wood & glass

So anyone any ideas or sources of plans/information? Particularly size of timber needed for frame, spacing for glazing bars, pitch of roof etc
Playing all the right notes but not necessarily in the right order!

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philskin

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #1 on: April 13, 2009, 08:33 »
if you could give a little more information it would be helpfull .is it going onto bare ground or concrete ,do you want glass or twin wall poly .For the main frame work i would use scant this is swiss or Norwegian timber in lengths of 10 ft to 14 ft and its two and three quarter inch by  two inch .if your using twin wall i would make the roof supports with this as well .if you need more help pm me and i will give you more help and my phone number phil
If the early bird gets the worm how come the 2nd mouse to the trap gets the cheese ??

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Stree

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #2 on: April 13, 2009, 19:06 »
I am building just that , a wooden greenhouse, lean to style.
This will be sat on a dwarf brick wall, ( just got 1200 bricks, handmade circa 1830)
The timber is not quite as large as suggested above, I am using 2"x2" sawn and treated, built with housing and halflap joints, glued and screwed.
It will be in sections, sides, front etc which will be joined together as it is built up on the wall.
The wall will be on footings, with no oversite, ( oversite is the infil concrete  used as a base or floor) so it will be soil inside. Probably a line of pavers or gravel down the middle and sides left clear for planting... A grapevine probably .
For glazing I decided on acrylic, clear 3 or 4mm.
The frame is rebated out to take the glazing and will be held in with a glass beading pinned on.
Glass is heavy and of course can break more easily than other glazing materials.
The doorway will be in the middle front rather than one end and the doorway will be projected forward about 30" and have a pitched roof above it that will run into the slope of the lean to roof.
The doorway will be 50" wide because I am using a set of french doors, georgian glazed so the overall look will be more a victorian summerhouse, mainly because most greenhouses detract from the looks of a garden.
Thats another reason why I am using clear acrylic ,  glass I  have mentioned, heavy brittle and expensive, and polycarbonate twin wall is just ugly.
It will be built against a workshop gable end and so I can get power into it easily and there is a water butt nearby so I will pipe in a water feed from that.

I only got my first greenhouse 2 seasons ago and its done great, but it is only a roofing batten timber frame with polythene over and is not big enough and will not last much longer anyway , but its been enough for me to decide to build a better one.

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Kristen

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #3 on: April 13, 2009, 21:15 »
Sounds like you are planning to make something lovely, so I hesitate to suggest this, but I have bought two greenhouses on eBay with good results.

I made a search and carefully refined the search to keywords and attributes that I wanted, and then did the "Save this search" and "EMail me any matches" ... and then sit back, wait, and delete the majority of, inappropriate, matches that arrive by email.

I have eBay searches that run for years before I find what I'm looking for, and that seels at a bargain price.  Obviously no good for something you need NOW! but I have lots of nice-to-have, non urgent, things that I'm on the lookout for.

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Stree

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #4 on: April 13, 2009, 23:35 »
The only greenhouses I saw when I considered buying one ( a consideration that soon passed) either looked ugly and mechanical or looked graceful and complementary to a garden but cost thousands.
I realise that people make things from old window frames and pallets, with odd bits of bubblewrap and PET bottles, plumbing pipe and such, but the aesthetics are thus sacrificed for something that may or may not be a successful functional design because of the constraints of the raw material.
I think  a greenhouse is a green enough statement as it is. So it might as well look pleasing to the eye as well.

Interesting point about the alert on Ebay, never used that, just done occasional browses for such non urgent things, but obviously the longer one can leave it the more the chance of a really good purchase
I will however be purchasing the glazing from Ebay, so might use the method you suggest. Not in a rush to finish the greenhouse before winter.


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celjaci

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #5 on: April 14, 2009, 06:44 »
thanks for ideas everyone

Philskin, I will PM you tonight but I'm sure others will be intrigued to know what is scant and where can you get it??

Stree, I've got similar idea to you - dwarf wall and french doors in the middle - sort of half conservatory half victorian kitchen garden.


Kirsten thanks for the idea but I thought I would have to build it myself as off the peg would either be too utilitarian or too expensive, I've been looking at some of the adverts in ''Garden'' magazine - wow!!

will keep you posted but it may be a few weeks before I get started

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Kristen

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #6 on: April 14, 2009, 08:48 »
I have a fairly generic search+alert on eBay for greenhouses.  It has turned out ONE gorgeous wooden greenhouse in the last year. Probably not worth holding your breath!

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Lardman

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #7 on: April 14, 2009, 08:59 »
Without sounding too AOL "Me too".

I've got this project on the list of things to do this/next year, after i've finished the hard landscaping. Partly due to aesthetics but also due to build quality and cost of anything better than a plastic tent. Although Id be building a  free standing one.

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Stree

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #8 on: April 14, 2009, 11:15 »
Seems like a good opportunity to pool ideas and resources..............Maybe a home built greenhouse thread/section?

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Stree

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #9 on: May 22, 2009, 23:43 »
So far...
DSC03028 (600 x 450).jpg

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oldbean

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #10 on: May 23, 2009, 22:19 »
That looks like CLS timber. Is it pressure treated?

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Lardman

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #11 on: May 23, 2009, 22:36 »
Looks good so far Stree - have you figured out the glazing around the "dorma" yet? looks like it might be tricky.

I see you don't get the "banana wood" I get from my local timber merchant - if must take all the fun out of build things square :D

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Bombers

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #12 on: May 23, 2009, 22:38 »
That looks like CLS timber. Is it pressure treated?
I am using 2"x2" sawn and treated,
Life begins... On the kitchen windowsill.

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Stree

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #13 on: May 23, 2009, 23:21 »
I know what to look for when selecting timber, and always go for the straightest and nearest the finished cut size. Never buy wide boards to rip into narrower sections. It will twist.......
avoid knots. In Burr walnut they might be decoration but in any construction they are a liability.
Yes its all 2x2 apart from the wall plate and the ridge timber front to back. These will be all 4x2 as will the rest of the roof timbers. It will be strong enough to walk on when done.
 The "Dormer" angles are tricky because its two unequal pitches, and  its a different set up when glazing as opposed to tiling. so a bit of working out to do.
As you see it above it is in six sections, sides, fronts and two sides of the "sentry box" doorway,,, Mixture of joints, half lap, housing joints on the sections, already screwed and glued and butt joints dry screwed between each section. .
Although it is constructed from 2x2 when a section is jointed to another it becomes a 4x2 adding stiffness and strength.

Wall for it is built, remember its more summerhouse than greenhouse, so its taller than a dwarf wall, sand is laid inside on top of 6" of ballast, and will be topped with gravel for a finish......

Heres a pic of the wall
DSC03039 (600 x 450).jpg
DSC03048 (600 x 450).jpg

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2peasinapod

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Re: Building a lean-to greenhouse
« Reply #14 on: May 25, 2009, 00:03 »
afaik
CLS is Canadian Light Spruce
Scant is Nordic Pine

CLS is what the merkins build everything out of, both are smooth sawn and slightly smaller than the normal 3x2 ect and are very size consistant.
If you pick a stright one from the pack theres a good chance it will stay stright.
very few knots.

HTH
dont permissum dandelions frendo vos down.

If it cant be pulled by hand,
1; its not ready
2; use a landrover...



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