I've never read the book, but I have a similar set-up over my raised beds right now. I used 3/4" irrigation tubing (about $12 for 100' at Home Depot here) and used 1" copper pipe hangers (I think that's what they're called, maybe straps? U-shaped things ...) that I also got at HD. Make sure you check the prices on different packs. I think the one we got had 12 and was less than $2. We also cut off about 1" pieces of the tubing, cut the side and use them for clips to hold the row cover. I'd be careful about using them on plastic though, may poke holes in it. The tubing does have quite a bit of sway in the wind with the row covers, but while covered in plastic to the ground, it's been stable. I noticed a huge improvement in the temps of the beds when I covered them with blankets under the plastic. It was 29 or so the other night, with the blankets nothing went below maybe 35? I go out in the morning and remove blankets, and sometimes plastic so the plants get more sunshine, and wrap it all back up mid-afternoon, before the chill comes back (I am in zone 5). They heat up fast in the morning. They get up to the high 80's - low 90's pretty quickly (I'd say by 10 or 11 am). That's with 50's outside I'm using a 6 mil plastic. It likely won't survive a long time in the sun, but I had it, so that's what I'm using.

Tammy - first things first, lettuces, yes, you can grow them in a coldframe now. I have done this for years, no problem. As for tomatoes, I am trying them this year in a coldframe. I plan to start them indoors around feb 1, and then transplant them into the coldframe around Mar 15, much earlier than my recommended safe day of May 1 (note, I am just east of you in zone 7A (N. VA) so you may want to adjust your schedule accordingly. As for how the coldframe works, in daytime, its essentially a mini-greenhouse. As the sun streams in, I can achieve anywhere between 20-25 degrees over the outside temperature. This is fine now, but come late mar, early april as we sometimes reach 70+ degrees, the issue then is too much heat. In years past, I literally cooked my tender greens by neglecting to uncover them on warm days. Thus, as potterhead notes, its not a bad idea to get an automatic vent opener (it operates as temps cause a cylendar to expand and lift the lid). My bigger concern now is nightime temps as I dont want it to get too much below 50 degrees at night and potentially stunt production. In lieu of christmas lights, I am using an adjustable spotlight, facing the ground with a 150 watt bulb on a timer. I dont know if this will work, but thusfar, I am able to achieve about 10 degrees over the nighttime temps, possibly more. That said, the 150 watt light seems awfully hot - im almost afraid to use it for fear it will set some mulch on fire! Any event, these are my plans. But again as far as lettuce goes, go for it - just be sure to somehow vent it if necessary.

I'd do as graywings suggests and check out the heating system. I live in Canada in climate zone 3 and my house is never cold unless I turn the thermostat way down when I go away. I'd also put a nice thick area rug on the tile floor. Tile floors and cold climates don't go together in the winter IMO unless one has in floor heating. Your entry space may always feel cooler than the upper living areas tho as the thermostat is likely on the LR level and heat rises so the temperature will always be lower at the entry level. I've lived in houses with a similar style and unless you have more than one thermostat that's just the way it is. If you have the option of running the fan constantly it may move the warm air around and be warmer in the entry but, of course, that will eventually wear out that fan. I use that option occasionally when I use my wood stove which more than adequately heats the upper floors but heat doesn't sink so my basement areas are cold unless I use the whole house fan. IMO curtains won't help altho I've heard of people making drapes from quilts or blankets (which can look quite nice) to keep a room warmer in the winter. However IMO all that does is block air circulation to the windows and cause moisture build up which leads to mold. Not what I'd want. Your entry will be nice and bright with all those windows and since you really only pass thru that area and don't actually 'live' in it I recommend doing the minor fixes and ignoring the cool. Enjoy your new home and don't expect perfection. I've lived in many houses and even the ones we planned and had built were never completely without small flaws. It's kind of like life - can be enjoyable but it's rarely perfect.

The amount of UV rays penetrating the window is dependent on the insulated glass unit used. Some IGUs incorporate glass such as Cardinal LoĒ³-366 that block nearly all UV rays. If you want to block UV without shades, you can install window film. I have a window with a drywall return (drywall surrounds the window in the way metal surrounds yours). I installed Bali cellular blinds. Bali supports up to three blinds installed on one headrail. This means that you could have one blind each over the two operable lites and a third blind over the fixed lite but have only one headrail that would extend the total width of the window. If the Bali blinds had a basic cords, the "stacks" (the height of the shades when they are fully open) would be minimized and as much of the glass as possible wwould be visible. I would suspect that the stacks would be shorter than the height of your window frame (i.e., no glass would be covered). You can ask the seller for the height of the stacks. Yes, you would have to attach the shade to the return with screws.