[ytyynycefn]

Well, we finally fot the frame of my Freecycle greenhouse up at the weekend, was expecting it to be a nightmare, but it wasn't too bad at all.



So very happy - next weekend's job is to glaze it, which is where I have a couple of questions!  

Firstly, how do you put the glass in?  I know to start with the roof, but how do you actually put the panels in the thing?

Secondly, I have a pot of "Z" clips, which are quite small, and obviously (I think) for the roof, and a larger quantity of much bigger overlappy type clips which I can only assume are for the walls.  There weren't any of these "W" type springy clips with it, apart from one in the door, which was already glazed (until we broke the glass  :oops: ).  The whole thing had been owned by a very meticulous bloke, so I am pretty sure we've got all the bits - so do I need to be buying these springy W clips aswell?  The channels all have their black rubber seals, so it's all in pretty good nick.

Finally, where's a good place to get some replacement glass panels?  We don't have an allotment association here, so would I be looking at a glass shop, or a B&Q type place?

Cheers, dears!

[muntjac]

the z clips are for hanging a pane onto the bottom one / place a panel in the bottom of a side place .thwe butterfly clips press into hold this in place . now put a couple of z clips on the top o the glass with the bottom of the z on the outside .now place a second pane in these clips pushing it backinto place put 4 butterfly clips in top hold it , this goes for the bottom pane as well do this in all the panel frames . to get more glass panes  go to a glazier and ask for seconds or recycled glass panels cut the sizes of the ones you need replacing .usually 24x24 .. 18 x 18 .measure them up with an allownace for actually putting them in the frame . i usually measure one up that already fits............
just a note it souds like your short a few hanging clips as well as the butterfly ones /you hang the panes in the roof the same as in the sides etc .,



now for those who get a secondhand greenhouse with no rubber seals / lay the frame down on its side afore assembly and get a 3 tubes of silicone sealant /now trim the nozzle off to about 1/8th of an inch . wipe the frames down with soapy water to remove grime.( this helps the silicone grip ) now looking at the frame inside where the glass sits you will see a channel .take the silicone and apply this to the outside edge of this channel .not in the channel  but on the frame itself  this will be allowed to set and then the glass will sit on it without trying to go to the ends of the earth to get replacment rubber seals

[milkman]

When doing my second hand greenhouses I found it a useful exercise to locate and closely inspect other peoples greenhouses to see how they'd done things...

ps. congratulations on getting the frame up - looks good.

[ytyynycefn]

Cheers for the advice, Munty & Milkbird - went down today to look at the clippy things having done a bit of looking at pictures on the interweb.  I've got 28 Z clips for hanging, so obviously need about a million more of those.  The other clips appear to be glass clips, and I can see how they are supposed to fit into the channels and hold the glass in, but I'm buggered if I can get the sods into a channel even without glass!  However, I put one piece of glass in and clipped it down with the wire W clips I had a couple of, and that was easy, and seems pretty secure, so I'll get a couple of hundred of those.

I'm actually eyeing up tomato seeds with some optimism now  

[muntjac]

tip to fitting the butterfly ones is put the wire under the frame  press the curly bit around the glas and then push down and under to fit the other end .

[triage999]

I have just spent 3 days putting up my Freecycle Greenhouse and have just finished glazing it today!

Make sure you start with the roof panes, the bottom ones go on first with W clips to secure panes.

Place two Z clips at the top end of the bottom roof panes and then insert the top pane under the eave of the roof and slide down to sit into the  clips, add more W clips to hold the pane.

It is dead simple when you get going I now have a nice snug greenhouse!

Fingers hurt though from springing W clips into place, make sure you have thick gloves and a pair of pliers, and watch your eyes because if they spring into your face they will hurt and possibly blind you!

[John]

Brilliant advice re the silicone, Karl - wish I'd known that before I put my houses up,

Looks a good 'un ytyynycefn  

[muntjac]

only did it cos the robbing sobs wanted £22 to replace the rubber seals on my 8x10x2

[ytyynycefn]

Well, it's up!  Not an ideal day to be glazing, but needs must when the devil vomits in your teapot  :shock:  Got the glazing done in no time, amazingly didn't break any glass!  So it was surprisingly easy - we'd been dreading doing it, as everyone said it was going to be a nightmare.  So I'm feeling rather smug, and deserving of my curry this evening.



Only question is.... NOW WHAT?  What do I do with it???  I'm going to paint the wood panels white, to reflect as much light as possible (they're right by the shed and a wall at the back, so I'll lose minimal light on those sides), and dig out three 2x6' soil borders.  But what should I be planting in there now, if anything?

Clueless of the Rhondda xxx

[John]

Since you've no light through those panels, why not use silver foil stuck on with wallpaper paste - highly reflective of both light and heat.

[Bobby T]

I am a new oldboy and therefore fearfull of stepping in where angels fear to tread.  Do not see any roof vents in this shot.I would suggest moving side louve to bottom panel at far end of G/H which with part open door should help ventilation.You could also cut a square out of ply panel and fit one of those white sliding air covers from B&Qs ect.Works well for me and cheap Good luck.    Bob. :idea:  :

[DD.]

I think if you look carefully in the first shot, on the righthand side there is a bar halfway down the roof struts in the centre, I suspect there's an opening window vent there.

[ytyynycefn]

There's a louvre on the left hand side, and a roof vent on the opposite side - plus a little hole at the back where a corner got chipped off one of the triangular panels.

Great idea about the plastic air vents, Bob, I'll give that a go if I get too steamed up  

I got given a brand new parasene heater for a tenner yesterday (they're £47 in the garden centre!), so I was rather pleased with that!

[John]

Jammy - that's what you are - Jammy

[noshed]

Excellent idea re plastic air vents. Just in the nick of time for me to incorporate into my edifice. And is it better to have them at top or bottom?
What sort of silcone do you use for sealant? Is it obvious in the shop?