Avid gardeners know how important it is to have a greenhouse. A greenhouse protects your plants in the winter and promotes the growth of various flora all through the year. You can easily have one installed in your backyard by calling your local gardening supplies shop but this means you have to spend thousands of dollars. If your budget is tight, you have another option. You can build your own efficient greenhouse at a fraction of the cost. All you need are some basic tools and building materials and you can build yourself your very own greenhouse in just a matter of days.
Preparatory Steps
Before you start hammering away, though, you need to plan the details of your greenhouse. For starters, determine where in your yard you want to install the greenhouse. According to experts, the best spot for a greenhouse is the spot that receives the most amount of sunlight. If you can’t find a place in your backyard that gets some sun at all times during the day, choose the spot that tends to receive sunlight during the morning hours.
After finding a spot for your greenhouse, your next step is determining the size of the structure. Many different factors should be considered when making this decision, such as the available yard space, the number of plants you wish to house, and your budget.
Lastly, you need to determine which type of greenhouse you want to build. There are many different greenhouse designs you can choose from but if you are looking for the simplest, least expensive, and fastest to build, go with the A-frame style.
Old Materials You Can Use
The key to keeping the cost of your greenhouse construction as low as possible is to use recycled materials as much as you can. Search through your garage and other storage areas for materials you can use such as wood planks, old windows, plastic sheets, extra PVC pipes, and discarded brick and stones. Since most people have these kinds of materials laying around, try asking your friends for some of their spare materials. You also need basic items like wires and nails, which you are likely to already have in your toolbox. The tools needed are also just basic ones — hammers, saws, and so on — and you don’t need to buy any special equipment for the project.
Building the Greenhouse
Plans laid out and materials prepared, you can now start the fun part, constructing your greenhouse. How long it will take you to finish your greenhouse depends largely on how complicated your design is and how good you are with tools. If you are quite handy, you can finish the entire project by yourself within a day. However, if you don’t have much experience in construction, ask your family or friends to help you out. You can complete the task over a weekend with their help.