how to anchor pvc hoop house to sand?

15 years ago

Hi,

I am building a pvc hoop house in my backyard. it is a lot smaller then most greenhouses because i don't have much space....there are only 2 hoops. i pretty much just pounded rebar into the ground and put the pvc on top of the rebar...but it gets really windy here and my soil is almost pure sand since i live right by the beach. i'm having problems with the pvc popping off the rebar....sometimes one or two pvc ends will pop off and start flailing around. i attached twine to the top of the house and anchored it with small metal stakes with loops on the end and put a large rock on top.....because those stakes can;t stay in the ground, it's sand! even the rebar moves around. so far the twine has worked (i'm still in process of building it so the twine is only anchoring one side, i still haven't put the plastic on the other side yet, or the door) but i'm not sure if it's going to hold when the wind gets really crazy.

any ideas?

i was also going to sew a zipper into the plastic as a "door" so it would end up being like a tent......i don't have the money to get more pvc to build a real door....or for wood....(yeah it's kind of a cheap impermanent greenhouse that i would be taking apart once a year to use the same pvc set up for shade when i camp)

hope it works!

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Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)
15 years ago
Pound pipe into the ground instead, and then slide PVC into pipe (e.g IIRC 3/4 SCH 40 pvc needs 1 1/4 pipe). Drill a hole for a cotter pin. If the PVC breaks in this, then this idea is not a solution for you.

Better grip would be to drill more holes in pipe for sand to go into pipe (but not above where PVC will be).

Hope it works so you can blunt the wind!

Dan
thespirals
Original Author
15 years ago
what kind of pipe?
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Rick I just built a new hoop house and the dimensions for the plastic are pretty easy to figure. The only difference for me is I am siding the north end wall with plywood. it will add a bit more insulation and block the wind. The top piece is the length of the hoops(18') x the length of the house(14'). When I ordered my top piece I added 2 feet for each side of the arch and 1 foot for each end of the length. The web has many different ways to attach the plastic. I am going to sandwich it between the base frame and a 1x4 over it. some people use a channel and wiggle wire that you can get at most all greenhouse supply sites. You will want to skin the ends first then the hoop so that the top overlap will give you some waterproofing. For the ends Im planning to just get the big box store plastic versus the UV treated I got for the top. The reason I decided this is because come spring I will most likely remove the south end to let more air flow and I dont want to destroy an expensive piece of UV plastic. The link below is where I just ordered my plastic. I ordered is last monday and got it by that friday. You could order the 20' piece x 15' or 16' and have plenty of extra for attaching. I cant vouch for how good the plastic of theirs is yet but as far as customer service and shipping Im happy. Mike Here is a link that might be useful: ACF greenhouse
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I erect a simple hoop house in my garden for the winter. I made mine out of an old 10 by 20 foot canopy frame (metal) with extra cross pieces and braces made of pvc pipe. It is all very homemade and crude but it works like a charm. I don't go for all the fancy stuff because I am only storing large potted plants in it instead of trying to grow a crop. I don't even have doors on it, I just bundle up the extra plastic sheeting on the two ends and clamp it all shut with large plastic clamps at night and open them up during the day (unless it stays cold). I live outside Raleigh. Occassionaly I have a mild frost inside the hoophouse but most of what I am growing is dormant by late winter anyway so I have rarely lost a plant. I heat with a small electric space heater on most nights and if its going to get into the low 20's I drag in a kerosene heater and let it run all night (it usually makes it too hot!). If the temps are supposed to dip into the single digits I cover the whole thing with an extra large fabric tarp and run both heaters (I've only had to do this once in the 8 years I've lived here). Many plants are sensitive to the ethylene gas given off by the kerosene heater but I haven't had a problem - and I collect impatiens which are very sensitive to it. I imagine if you wanted to grow a food crop you would need to build it sturdier and have it heated better and probably install some lights. Most of the tomatoes or peppers I have tried didn't get growing strong enough to produce a crop in mine. I mostly store large citrus, tree ferns and other potted tropicals that can actually take a light frost. Most people that see it are impressed with the easy construction of my hoophouse - I use no power tools to set it up, everything is held together with duct tape and clamps. But my yard is sheltered from strong winds and I haven't had much snow so it hasn't gone through much winter weather. It all depends on what you want to grow.
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What are you growing that will be 15 feet tall? Trees? Here is my suggestion, scrap all the connectors, that is what make a PVC tunnel weak. You would have to have probably 40 feet of pipe for each hoop. IMO, you are pushing the limits of this product for PVC. My new steel framed high tunnel in 30 by 48 and is only 13'6'' a the peak. The bows are almost 40 feet long. That is how I came up with the 40 foot length. If you want to make it out of PVC,then build a 5-8 foot tall side wall of 4 by 4's and 2 by 4's and then push you pipes into the ground and then also attach them to the 2 by 4 5 -8 feet in the air. Then do the same on each side. Here is a picture of my new high tunnel going over the smaller one. I am going to be moving the smaller one soon. Here is a picture of the framing that I am suggesting. The hoop is 20 feet, so yours would be twice a big. The width of this building is 18' 6". Good Luck. Here is a link that might be useful: PVC High tunnel with 34 foot hoops
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hex2006
15 years ago
Old car rims buried 2ft deep and backfilled are impossible to pull out.We use them as guy anchors on the beach to hold up radio masts :)
To fix the hoop to it you could use a sleeve tube through the hub center. Fit a long bolt through the tube below the rim to prevent it being pulled out.
thespirals
Original Author
15 years ago
now the problem is that the rebar is getting pushed all the way into the ground, and the pvc just slides right off...

hex, i'm not sure what a sleeve tube is, and how would you attach it to the pvc?
hex2006
15 years ago
If you only need a rebar diameter rod for the pvc just use some 1/2" threaded rod in one of the wheel rim bolt holes, a nyloc nut above and below would hold it in place.

I`d be tempted to drill matching holes in the base rail timbers so the rod can come up through it. Fit a nut recessed into the top of the timber rail to prevent any sideways movement in the rod and fit the pvc hoop over it.
Once everything is positioned correctly backfill the holes to lock it all in place.
rover72
15 years ago
The most secure method would be to use "earth anchors" - these are steel spikes 1 to 3 feet long with an inch or two of helical flange on the bottom used to screw each into the ground. Traditionally, they are used to tie down trailers or mobile homes. A good hardware store will have 'em, but you will still have to secure the eye on each (1-2" in diameter) to the bottom of the hoop set. Nylon zip ties, perchance?
jessicavanderhoff
15 years ago
I don't have a very clear mental image, and am no greenhouse engineer, but I do know from camping that there are special stakes for beach camping that are really long, pointy metal. I wonder if you could use these somehow (maybe using a large drill bit to drill a hole through your pipe near the end, sticking a stake through the hole, and hammering it into the ground?) Good luck :-)
barrie2m_(6a, central PA)
15 years ago
This may seem a little more costly than you want to do but I like to use baseboards (ground level 2x4" boards)to hold the PVC from twisting. Pipe clanps will then secure the arches and then you can anchor the base by more methods.

An angled steel bar attached to the baseboard could have concrete blocks set on it to hold the framework down at intervals and you can also somewhat secure your plastic/row cover by this method if you prefer not to fasten it. The baseboard allows for fastening a cover and even would permit the whole unit to be lifted and moved.

how to anchor pvc hoop house to sand?

Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

thespirals
Original Author

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how to anchor pvc hoop house to sand?

Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

thespiralsOriginal Author

Related Discussions

hex2006

thespiralsOriginal Author

hex2006

rover72

jessicavanderhoff

barrie2m_(6a, central PA)

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GET HELP

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thespirals
Original Author

thespirals
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