Yes, I could frame it to use the glass on any of the sides, but obviously East or South would be preferable. The site where I'm planning to put it is south facing, but the south side will be shaded part way down (the bottom part of the wall) so my thought was to use glass on the East side and a few of the poly panels across the top of the south side to get the most light. It looks like it might be less expensive to incorporate a lot of roof ventilation (and maybe even use the solar openers, though not sure how much weight they can lift? The panels I have are fairly heavy) rather than buying a set of louvers and all that. I'll definitely need a fan of some sort just for air circulation. The material I was looking at is described as 7.5 oz/sq.yard woven clear polyethylene fabric with UV inhibitors, 19mil. Looks like pretty solid stuff, but what I'm concerned about is not being able to seal everything tightly enough to keep humidity high enough to make the orchids happy. One option is to frame it up, get the roof on and glass wherever it would go best, then cover the rest with a relatively temporary (and inexpensive) thing like the 6mil film. In a year or three, if I have te money to redo the sides with poly panels I could, or I could just replace the film. One last question about the roof. If I go with a single sloped roof rather than a pitched roof, is there any consensus about how steep to make the slope (in terms of reflectivity, best absorbtion of light)? I was thinking about a 6 foot front wall and an 8 foot back wall, making the slope pretty gradual.

Here are several links I hope you will find one or two useful. I had a friend build one just like this and is very happy with it. He used two furring strips instead of wiggle wire. It makes it a little cheaper to build. http://dnr.alaska.gov/ag/Grants/BrianOlsonHighTunnels2008.pdf Here is another plan. The two furring strip method is shown half way down. http://www.hightunnels.org/ForGrowers/SitePlanning&Construction/Articles/CareyHow-toBuild.htm There are also two more PDF's you can download on the right column. Here are several more here. http://www.hightunnels.org/forgrowers.htm#SitePlanningandConstruction Hope this helps. Good Luck, Jay

Idaho, The shed near you live reminds me of a book in my personal library on NE connected farm buildings - "Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn". I actually have a current design client who desires a very large custom house that gives a visitor the sense that it has been expanded through necessity, but with everything connected. Your vision sounds very charming. I can build an outbuilding by right (w/o going through PZ) up to 25% of my lots' total area - minus the main house + garage - which equates to about a 5,000 sf shed/greenhouse. But, it would have to be 20 ft from the rear property line, instead of 3 ft with my current footprint. I do not need a structure that big, since we already have a 2.5 car garage and 10 x 22 shed, and my gardens would be compromised with that setback. Although, as you most likely know, we never have enough space for our toys :). I like your idea of a high window between the shed and greenhouse - or a half-glass door connecting the two spaces - would be great for light, and/or a transom over the door. I also like the relationship of a potting/garden tool shed - perhaps open to the greenhouse with French doors via a set of steps. Thanks for the ideas.

Marcy, If I may, make a couple of suggestions. My personal recommendation for you would be to use a fiberglass window. Fiberglass is impervious to moisture, chemicals, salts, etc. for your pool environment. It does not conduct heat or cold (thermal performance) and is not affected by extreme heat & cold either. Vinyl expands and softens (melts) at high temps, and contracts rapidly as it cools. This will cause it to become brittle with age. Aluminum conducts heat & cold, wood requires Paint & maintenance. So I would recommend fiberglass inside and out for your design. Most underground storage tanks, chemical equipment, and boats are made from fiberglass because of its strength and because it performs so well. Vinyl is the most cost competitive product sold today, however, I personally would stay far away from vinyl if your intent is longevity of your windows. Aluminum windows are still popular in your part of the country, however, even thermally broken aluminum will sweat in that environment. Let me qualify "Fiberglass Window" by saying an INSULATED (cavities foam filled for sound reduction if sound reduction is important) fiberglass window frame. Also Be very careful of what some consider to be or call "fiberglass" and what truly is fiberglass. For instance, certain companies have products that use the word "Fiber" in their name, but it is merely a composite of wood, vinyl, and fiberglass strands for reinforcement. Thats NOT fiberglass. True fiberglass is thermally set during the manufacturing process, and once cured (in about 20 Minutes) its shape cannot be changed by re-heating or melting. In the interest of full disclosure, I work for a distributor of winodw products, and thus have gained a VAST education in the subject of Manufactured goods & thermal performance. Thus, I wont recommend a specific product, but I will tell you that spending a little more for a fiberglass frame in your area of the country will give you many more years longevity, & they can even be painted (even dark colors) without voiding the warranty. If you think about it, Fiberglass windows & Glass (key components are derived from silica sand) are both made of the same raw materials. Therefore, what small amount of expansion and contraction they do have from hot and cold temps is minimal, but they will move at the same basic rate. This prevents separation of frame & glass, and degradation of the product over time. Tri Pane windows are expensive, and will improve your thermal performance and your STC/OITC rating, but not enough to justify the expense unless you are in a severely cold climate. If noise & thermal control are your primary concerns, I suggest you ask any window seller to SHOW you their STC/OITC ratings, their thermal (NFRC) ratings, and a Corner cut sample of the product you are interested in. Much can be learned about quality and serviceability by these 3 things. I do however recommend you use at least a doubled layered (LowE2 - 1 Layered and 1 sputtered) coating on your windows. Double coat low-e reflects heat gain in the summer and retains heat in the winter. It provides some solar heat gain during the winter months as well. This is difficult to explain, but the mental picture is this: The secong coat is sputtered on and done so at an angle. The reason for this is because the angle of the sun relative to the earth is higher in the summer and lower in the sky in the winter. Therefore, in the summer it reflects the suns rays and the winter it allows more of those rays to pass. Since the area is enclosed, without some sun protection, you simply wont be able to cool the area when competing with the power of the sun. I suggest you use solar sun shades for summer time as suggested above, this way you can manually control summer vs winter heat gain, and even on an hour by hour basis. Besides, they will also provide you privacy for a night swim if desired. As for your plants, Low-e coatings still allow a generous portion of the suns spectrum through to nourish your plants. My house is covered in vegetation that performs very well behind these coatings. I hope my knowledge helps you better understand how these things work. Best of luck! JH