I don't use my roof vents anymore either, but I agree with troykd, I've seen posts mentioning just cutting flaps (in regular shadecloth) for the vents, so the vents can raise up normally. As Jack says, Aluminet does stretch in one direction, and you can even request which way you want the stretchiness to go when you order it (thanks to birdwidow for this tip.) I believe birdwidow has it installed on the outside of her roof, and the stretchiness of the material allows the roof vents to raise up under her Aluminet without tearing it. (I think she added padding to the vent corners, to be sure it didn't snag the Aluminet, if my memory is right.) Aluminet is very tough and forgiving stuff in my opinion! Also, you can cut it, and the cool thing is, it doesn't even unravel where you cut it. I tried to go the lazy way and I currently have mine installed hanging just inside my roof (I didn't want to battle our winds) but I think our heat will force me to figure out how to install it on the outside later this summer. Everyone says it works most efficiently that way, if you're trying to reduce heat gain. You can order Aluminet hemmed with grommets, or you can order it raw. I'm usually looking for the cheap route, so I ordered mine raw. I've found it easy to roll over the edges and sew by hand with a big needle and nylon thread, but my hand sewn edges have not been subjected to our 50 mph wind gusts yet...so we will have to see! :-)

The ceiling fans in my 12 x 16 X 12 ft. high GH are 52 inch, with 5 blades each, and as already noted, are outdoor models, and I have yet to see aluminum, or vinyl- rust. However, I would also argue that in a smaller, lower height GH, 2 smaller fans would be superior to a single large one, and I'll explain why. It's a bit of a long tale, but bear with me, because what I learned came from actual experience. It has been said that necessity is the mother of invention but in our case, it was more like desperation. Our house is a fairly typical early 1950's ranch, with a shallow hip roof and 8 ft. ceilings. (It's only real attribute is the fact that we burnt the mortgage 25 years ago.) It also has a combination forced air heating & AC system, with baseboard vents, which is about as inneficient a means to cool a structure as you can get, and until we replaced the old H/AC with a high effeciency system 2 years ago, cooling this place in our often blistering summers was often a decision between keeping cool, or gassing up the tractors. The first ceiling fan was a small $19.99 cheapie installed over the stairwell to the basement, intended to pull some of the air in that lovely sink of cool- up. It helped enough to encourage us to install a fan in our bedroom, which is long and narrow, with no cross ventillation, as the windows are all on the one exterior wall. However, because of the length of the room, we ended up installing 2 of them, both 52", and due to the ceiling height, mounted close to the ceiling, which reduces their effectiveness. Our bed is directly under one of them, and the first time we ran them in winter with the blades set to blow down, the breeze was just too much, so we reversed just that one, and to our delight, discovered total air circulation. The fans move the air continually, end to end, floor to ceiling and other than for cleaning, have not been turned off since. Once the porch ceiling fan had convinced me that I wanted one in my GH, the experience in our bedroom and pure logic dictated that the same would apply in my GH; so 2 fans there also. All it took to prove it, was a handfull of down. The fans are currently set to pull up, to draw air up and out of the roof vents. This winter, they will be set to run each in a different direction, to the same affect as in the bedroom. In a closed space, multiple speed ceiling fans will move air gently, or with force, depending on the set speed, and that's another feature missing in HAF's. I do not believe that ourdoor air moves in an even, horizontal direction, as our planet really is round, but will leave any further explanations to our resident expert on things scientific- Nathan.

It's been a long time since I was posting here, but my heart belongs to Smaller Homes. I'm a cottage living fan from the git-go. We now live entirely in Mobile Alabama, which is at the top of Mobile Bay and about 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. The home we bought in May of 2005, and then remodeled and furnished, was destroyed in August by Hurricane Katrina. So here we are now in a small stucco cottage just south of I-10 where I-65 terminates. And, we sold HIS house in Massachusetts last March 2013, so I no longer have to split my efforts between two houses and two totally different gardens. But, I learned to love HOSTA up there, and now have almost 500 different varieties here in zone 9a. Interestingly enough, they are thriving. Meanwhile, I've been saving like a pack rat in order to remodel the cottage which I've named White Dove. I have a dove with wings spread, made by Little and Lewis, as my name emblem. (I believe in naming things I love).The changes were so complex that I felt it best to hire an architect to include all the new specs required to meet hurricane country building code, including windows and roofs and general construction. Next week I meet with the builder and the architect so the permits and the cost estimate can proceed. I will wind up this post and make a new thread about White Dove cottage remodel. What started ostensibly as a kitchen remodel, wound up including much more. New roof, new hardwood floors, new entryway with relocation of the front door, tear off the old back porch and the deck, add some space for a sitting area to our master bedroom so I may view my back garden and have LIGHT. So while it may not be the smallest kitchen on the block, it is a very personal space incorporating the things I love, and a cross between modern and cottage. Hopefully before the summer is over, I'll be using my new 24"" Bertazzoni gas range, my enchanting Italian jewel, (which for the last 18-24 months sat crated up in my Teahouse), along with an under counter GE fridge (also in the Teahouse for a year),beside my baking/prep area. The old GE frenchdoor fridge gave out, so now there is a big Whirlpool side-by-side fridge replacing it. But don't get me started here....see you on the other thread. See all you folks around the forum this summer.

We like to build our greenhouses with PVC pipe and greenhouse plastic with a rollup mechanism at the bottom, like the picture shows. This helps vent the system while still covering it. Just use standard PVC fittings and pipe and attach your plastic or sheeting with Snap Clamps to be sure when you roll the edge it stays attached to the pipe. Good luck!