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greenhouse High Tunnel / Green House started

AJ Drew

AJ Drew

First it was Mother Nature fighting me (rain).  Then it was delivery of the 12 foot lumber and concrete fighting me.  Today, finally got the first poles in the ground.  Now working on skirt.  Son painting poles.

This is very exciting for me and the kids.  In the past, have relied on mini green houses.  Could never afford the extra money to build a walk in being dirt poor n all.  Hoping this is the first of several which will essentially form a wall down the back of the property. Between that wall and the fence are a series of unfinished ponds, one feeding the next down a slope.  Idea being by boxing off that area, I can range the goats there so they can keep down the weeds by the fence and ponds without eating the garden. 

Back walls of green house are planned to look like stucko.  It will be a couple years before it is all done, but the first should be done in a week and offer enough that you can get an idea of the whole project.  I am really looking forward to being able to have people to the property without being embarrassed about how run down things have gotten.  In the photos, you can see some of the fences that need fixed and painted.  Most things are like that round here, functional but needs work.

First Pictures Here - http://www.peppersbymail.com/photo_albums/pepper_porn/gallery34/
 
First problem - The dome ribs are 20 foot long.  They are made up of two 10' pvc tubes ( 1 1/4" ) and a 4 way joint.  That way the 4 way joints can be used to make a spine at the top.  Used heavy duty pvc cement.  Label says can be pressure tested after 30 minutes.  Waited 30 minutes and tried to bend it into place.  It popped out of the joint.  Tried again with screws threw joint and tubes, ripped itself out.

Plumber friend of mine says even though label says it only takes 30 minutes to hold water under pressure that it can take overnight to set up to full strength.  I asked him if he is sure, he asked me if I ever tried to take them apart after being glued.  Yep, I think he is right.

So come inside cause wife is screaming.  Shower drain is flooding basement.  I got the fix.  I like it when things like that happen in such a timely manner.
 
Glass is a much better way to go, but it scares the hell out of me cause I have kids and critters.  There is a hotel in Florence, KY that has an indoor swimming pool and recreation area inside a huge glass structure.  All of their plants are fake, fake bushes, fake trees, fake plants.  It makes me wanna slap management with a dead flounder.
 
I was gonna say something earlier but got side tracked.  From the picks on your site it looks like gray pvc glue.  That is used for gray pvc that electricians use.  You want the med or heavy made for white pvc.  The orange is for cpvc.  You don't need to prime with purple if its new pipe and not chalky.  After you make up your joint give it a 1/2 turn.  The glue actually melts the pvc and make a chemical weld.  Turning it makes it melt together better.  Check it out buddy...I could be seeing it wrong. 
 
Rairdog, so what you are saying is that I should not listen to the guy at Lowes?  Normally I dont, but was without my daughter and can not read the labels with my diabetic eyes.  Trashed some of the cross connectors experimenting so gotta go hardware store again anyway.  Thanks for the color coding.  Orange glue it is.
 
ajdrew said:
Rairdog, so what you are saying is that I should not listen to the guy at Lowes?  Normally I dont, but was without my daughter and can not read the labels with my diabetic eyes.  Trashed some of the cross connectors experimenting so gotta go hardware store again anyway.  Thanks for the color coding.  Orange glue it is.
Click to expand...
Not orange.  That is for the Cpvc water pipe (slightly yellow and made to handle hot water).  You want the clear Pvc glue. 
 
I just checked the Oatley website.  The gray is for what your doing.  I have not seen it around here.  My bad.   Try a 1/2 twist after gluing and making up joint. 
 
Rairdog, I got my daughter to read the label and it does say for water pipe.  Got diabetic eyes.  I tested a couple today and they held just fine.  I think for full strength they take a day to dry but will be twisting the rest a bit also.  Additionally, once they go up I am going to leave the plastic off for a day unless I get a frost warning.  I think that the longer they stay bent, the more they will like being bent.  Kind of afraid that if one gives, it will pop up and rip the plastic.  On the other hand, the plastic might also hold it in place.  Kind of thinking that if it stays together for a week, it will kind of settle and be fine for years.  Time will tell.  Thrilled even to be trying.
 
Do you have a sketch or website that you based your design on?  You can set  4-way on top of a post after you glue up the proposed curved pieces.  Tack a couple nails to hold it in place.  Then let them sag naturally for a day or 2.  Then forced them on top/between your posts to make the final curve.  Then connect your laterals between the 4 ways.  I don't have your design so this is just guessing.  It sounds like you need to make the proper bends more gradual.  
 
University of Kentucky plants started me off.  They use 20 foot sections to span 10 feet.  I am going 20 foot section to span 12 feet, less of an arch.  They did not use the four ways.  I wanted a spine and 10 foot is off the shelf, so went with two 10 foot and a four way.  If I have any more problems, I am going to run another smaller pvc in the middle threw the coupling.

The ones they built have stood for years with this design, but I dont think they get the wind I get.  Also, I just could not bring my self to securing the plastic by piling dirt on it.  Seemed too cheesy so building wood skirt.

Link to U of K design here - http://www.uky.edu/Ag/NewCrops/hightunnel.pdf
 
Mine was 10' wide spanned by 20' of pvc. Like the UK plans I guess.
 
I can tell you that having a frame all the way around that is a little tighter than you want to span and attaching the pvc to that frame by way of pipe clamp makes for a lot more sturdy structure. 
 
Mine withstood 50-60mph winds multiple times a year for a few years. Not that the wind finally got it, I just dont put it up anymore. I didnt even have mine glued together.
The ribs on mine were about every 3'.

ajdrew said:
.  Additionally, once they go up I am going to leave the plastic off for a day unless I get a frost warning.  I think that the longer they stay bent, the more they will like being bent.  Kind of afraid that if one gives, it will pop up and rip the plastic.  On the other hand, the plastic might also hold it in place.  Kind of thinking that if it stays together for a week, it will kind of settle and be fine for years.  Time will tell.  Thrilled even to be trying.
Click to expand...
 
I had a few pops from a top joint before I got them perfected. I prolly should have used glue. But I took mine down every summer. Yes, if one pops it will rip, no the plastic wont hold it.
 
I think you have about 3 years before the pvc gets too brittle from the UV.
 
I would cover them now. Warmer pvc will hold the shape better. And its going to take a while....
 
You can always leave the ends off or roll up the sides, but its already pretty cool here.
 
Heckle, I went with poles in the ground and a skirt because the U of K plans look like they will fly away.  I am also putting one inch galvanized pipe into the ground for each pvc, then a quarter inch bolt will go threw the skirt, pvc, galvanized pipe, and back out the pvc.  Like you, the wind here is killer. 
 
Thinking about warm pvc, that makes sense.  I am going to get the plastic up as soon as I have the ribs done. I am moving fairly slowly.

 
 
I've been thinking about doing something similar. I was going to place 4X4 posts sticking out of the ground about 3 or 4 feet and place the pvc into the end of the posts. That way it will allow me to have a higher ceiling height and to be able to build benches for my seedlings.Also I will be able to roll up the bottom to allow for ventilation.
 
I was wondering if you were going to use any kind of barrier between the pvc and the plastic? Depending on where you look they say that the plastic will degrade where it comes in contact with the pvc. Who knows? Anyway they recommend this stuff  http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/product/white-felt-with-adhesive-backing/s . Not sure if it is needed or not, but I would think that it would also prevent holes getting rubbed in your plastic if it wasn't tight enough.
 
I have thought to cover the joints with duct tape because they have an edge, but nothing else.  I do think the plastic moving against anything will eventually wear a hole, but thinking since it is only good for something like three years that the UV will eat the plastic before the friction.  I guess I will know in three years.  Thinking I am a trial and error sort of guy.  Sometimes, that is not a good thing.
 
I did not finish in time for first frost, so I put the plastic up early and skipped things like the back wall, doors, and painting some parts.  But it is finished enough to hit about 90 degrees today.  I could not believe it.  Here is photo from the inside.  Note everything is in the ground.  This is how I plant to do each of the tunnels I hope to build, learning and improving from each one, but always in the ground. 

http://www.peppersbymail.com/wppg_photo_details/?gallery_id=34&image_id=3096
 
Ya know, I wasnt bright enough to put a thermostat on the outside.  I should.  But looking at the weather report, todays high was 68.  I was not able to figure out a way to have roll up sides on this first one.  Had some ideas, but ran out of time.  If I do not figure it out by summer, I am going to run a huge fan blowing front to back.  Not sure it will be good enough, but going to give it a try.
 
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