cooling greenhouse
gwoods34 woods
10 years ago
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fruitnut Z7 4500ft SW TX
10 years agooakhill (zone 9A, Calif.)
10 years agoRelated Discussions
Best veggies to grow in a cool greenhouse.
Comments (11)Lots of good advice above. In Saskatchewan, in my unheated greenhouse, I planted turnips, radishes, kale and bok choy in the 15th to 20th of September time period, right after the first frost took out the eggplant crop. Double row covers plus plastic went on in mid-Oct. Bok choy and kale were ready for harvest by late Oct. Some are still out there for continued harvest through November. Radishes are also ready now. Turnips are undersized but it's Saskatchewan after all! Soil outside is starting to freeze up but is still holding in mid-40s inside. I won't let any for winter harvest, except some experimental kale to see if it returns in spring. A Maine winter is a piece of cake compared to Dec/Jan/Feb here. Also, don't let anyone convince you that SK winters are sunny. Four hours of watery sun every other day doesn't do it for me. Signed, Fed up of gardening in SK but still liking the challenge!...See Morehelp with cooling greenhouse
Comments (13)Shade cloth comes in % values that tells you how much sunlight it blocks. We have 50%. It also comes in colors, you can even get striped shade cloth if you want your greenhouse to look circus-like. :) Aluminet shade cloth is a favorite - it is made of finely woven aluminum threads. Google 'greenhouse shade cloth' and you'll find lots of options. It's most effective on the outside, but some folks do put it on the inside. You'll want to be careful to not cover your vents, and to install it snugly so it doesn't flap around and scratch your GH panels. A misting system is easy to make. You need tubing, little misting nozzles, and all the fittings to set it up in whatever pattern you need in your GH. It is also recommended to use a filter so that hard water does not clog the misters or coat your GH with minerals. You also need a timer which is the hardest part to find. After making my initial versions with locally-available parts, last year I upgraded and bought better nozzles and a much better timer. It all came from here http://www.dripirrigation.com/index.php?cPath=39_67 This source was recommended to me here on this forum and I found that to be just what I was looking for! Setting up a misting system will take some fiddling and a few trips to the hardware store. My advice is to not wait until the hot weather arrives to begin this process, as it takes awhile to get it dialed. It's not hard to do though, and it's satisfying to stand under the mist and revel in your DIY skills. :) Lastly, I would not run fans in an empty greenhouse. Why use the energy? Just let the vents stay open. All that said, we are enjoying a perfectly cool summer here in MT so I have barely needed to use the fans and misters this summer. How nice! Here is a link that might be useful: Shade cloth store...See MoreWhat fan do you use to cool your greenhouse?
Comments (3)Hey Apotos, sounds like you will definatly need ventiliation fans. A single circulaton fan would he;lp as well. I would recommend a single 12" exhaust fan with a a 16inch louvered intake vent. The ones at this site would be nice. I am recommending this link because it has wonderful informational resources and will give you an idea what is our on the market. Here is a link that might be useful: LittleGreenhouse.com Ventilation page...See MoreHomemade evap cooler to chill nutrient tank & cool greenhouse
Comments (11)some points to consider are: 1.if you move the pad a foot downstream from the fan it will help prevent moisture on the rather exposed windings in the motor 2. a box fan is a propeller which when loaded or restricted in air flow draws more current or loads up. A squirel cage fan is the opposite when restricting air flow it unloads or draws less current. Most comercial swampers are made with squirel cage fans. You may be able to find a junk fan from an old furnace for close to or nothing. 3. do you realy want to cool the nutrient?my understanding of plants is that if possible warmer nutrients produce faster growth. 4. beware of PPm of the nutrients as you stated you have added makeup water to offset this but most makeup water also contains minerals which you are now concentrating. Most comercial swampers also include a bit of overflow or wasting to help prevent mineral buildup which inhibits evaporation and clogs equipment. this is generally done by a unique balance in fill and overflow so that when it shuts off the remaining water in the lines and pads causes an overflow. when it starts the water leval drops to fill lines and pad causing fill valve to act. 5. The point has already been made and is correct evaporative cooling only works in dry air the effectiveness will be proportional to how dry the air is. I wonder if a better plan may be to run a swamp unit independant of your nutrient solution and if needed run the nutes through a loop in the pan of the cooler for some cooling without the addition of larger amounts of makeup water to the nutrients to allow for the evaporation. This would also allow some blowdown of mineral saturated swamp unit water without loosing nutrients or upsetting the mineral balance there.I would also question the need for cooling nutrients unless they are over 80 degrees. At any rate watch your ppm close while using until you get the kinks worked out. Sounds like a good idea in general as swamp cooling is about the only method feasable in greenhouses and most plants deal with higher than ambient humudity fairly well. Another option is shading in hot and summer climates most plants get more sun than they can use so partial shading may also reduce heat without loss in growth....See Moresand_mueller
10 years agosand_mueller
10 years agocole_robbie
10 years agogwoods34 woods
10 years agogwoods34 woods
10 years agofruitnut Z7 4500ft SW TX
10 years agogwoods34 woods
10 years agolesli8
10 years agogwoods34 woods
10 years agofruitnut Z7 4500ft SW TX
10 years agogwoods34 woods
6 years agoUser
6 years agogwoods34 woods
6 years agogwoods34 woods
6 years ago
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fruitnut Z7 4500ft SW TX