Ahhhhh, I posted to the wrong thread. So it did not happen today? Please tell us all so that those of us that get our thrills VICARIOUSLY will get our daily fix. Where did the hang up occur? This handyman, is he any good?

1eyedJack and the Dawg

Jack,
well here goes....He arrived at 9:15 and we started immediately unpacking the boxes and sorting nuts bolts etc. he went right to putting together the base frame...And then started in on the wooden frame from 4x4's. He had to piece two of the 4x4's together to get the 10 and 12 foot lengths respectively, connecting them with metal bracket's to secure the 2 pieces together.....(and of course he had to make 45 degree cuts and screw/nail them together, Then the corner braces (using also the 4x4's)

Meanwhile, I realized that I did not have the stuff to put between the aluminum frame and wooden 4x4 base...so I had to go to Lowe's, by not it's lunch time, so while I was gone, he left to eat....Then he started digging the trenches to put the wooden base down into...

digging, leveling, more digging, leveling, then putting dirt back to level etc. (you get the drift) Now it's nearly 3pm...and he decided to wet the ground around the wooden frame to "sink" the soil and get it tightly packed in....So at this point I took over (no need to pay him to hold a garden hose) and we called it a day...5 hours of paid labor.....

I'm not unhappy with his work, I was out there with him nearly the entire time...he never stopped. You know looking at something always seems to look like it will only take a certain amount of time, and then actually doing it...MORE TIME...example putting together a bookshelf...seems easy enough right? very basic construction and relatively straight forward instructions...but it usually takes hours to do it...Never have figured that one out....

I think he's meticulous and he definetly seems to know what to do. So although I'd love to hear how anyone could do this in a day actually DID it...I'd have my serious doubts about how possible that is...I went into this MOST optomistic thinking it could be done...

Now the rest of the framing and the roof etc, might just fly by...I will be able to tell you Monday evening, after he's gone again :)

rjinga and Jack,
My fiance took last friday off from work. We spent three days non stop daylight to night just doing the electric and insulation (the north wall with board) insulating around the panels and taping all the panels. Than after work this week we spent four days three hours apiece doing the same. Today he spent another three hours and as of today the electric and insulating and screwing the panels down we are done shoooooo. oh and we modified the frame to everyones spec Thank goodness for this forum it would have gone down in the first snowfall probably Barb

I think the people posting that they did it an afternoon, (and didn't really know much about building anything) was a HF spy

Thanks Barb, I wish I had volunteers to help me, would sure make it cheaper...but it will be done and done right...(my DH came out this evening and said the following, note that if I had been closer in range to him, I would surely have popped him) "why are you putting up such a big structure and we are planning to move in a year or two"

I simply told him that even if we do move (which wont be in a year or two most likely) it would add value to the home :) Meanwhile I have 2 years...of wonderful space to use to do plant stuff...lucky me :)

I think HF is talking about the time to assemble the kit as you receive it, not to include the foundation or any thing else the owner decides to do. I had the foundation prepared beforehand and assembled the GH in my garage on a flat concrete floor as per instructions. Assembly time was less than 8 hrs. I had built two other GHs previously from scratch one had to give way to a garage the other one is still in use. John

p.s. the HFGH was the 6 x 8 model and I'm not a spy

John,
well I hope what you say is true...8 more hours is about all I can (or want to) afford to pay someone!!! And I meant that spy thing in the kindest of ways....(plus was it actually you that said that "it only took us an afternoon" to put it together? That's what I read somewhere, and it seemed to me that it was a female poster???

so maybe I should have said HF salesperson, rather than spy ;)

Hello rijinga, I didnÂt take the spy thing negatively, I was just adding my 2 cents worth. I have been a DIYer all my life and have all the necessary tools, retired and have all the necessary time. I learned many years ago, not to take the manufactures claims seriously. I just finished putting up an 8 X 8 ft rion with similar claims on required time and it took me more than 8hrs just to install the weather stripping. John

It took my husband and I around 4 days to get it up. My BIL is a contractor and he had looked my husband's plans over, and had him add this and that to the GH plans. So my husband had been to Lowe's/HD and had it all here when we started. We had also looked this fourm over and decided what we needed, and got a lot of clues as to the wierd "instructions". You do plan to anchor your GH down right?? - hurricane tie-downs??

Well I started on mine JAN 2006 still working on it.
Do you ever get done??????

Sorry I don'g livd closer or I would have come down to help. I work cheap i.e. food and a place to sleep. LOL

1eyedJack and the Dawg

Rjinga,

We were not smart in putting insulation down around the base when we built ours. We are zone 4. I read john's post somewhere regarding floor insulation. So I am outside today digging up pea gravel around the base and placing pink insulation board around the base. I dont know if you want to do this but I figured i might mention it before you put your frame up. Goodluck look forward to your progress. My back hurts whine Barb

I don't doubt you can assemble it in one day, but it would take a good understanding of how it goes together first.

I had to stop and start on mine many times, and didn't work on it for 3 or 4 months.

I can't say how much time it took me. but somethings went faster then others.

Adding the braces and building the foundation took the longest, as I had to cut and drill and bolts thing together.

Rjinga,
I don't think that you need worry about ground insulation in your location. I seriously doubt that the ground freezes there in GA. where you are. I do not plan to use any here in zone 7, upcountry SC.

1eyedJack and the Dawg

We were quite slow by choice, but we both agree that we would be MUCH faster on the next one now that we understand the components and how to do the extra bracing.

The only time we really pushed ourselves was adding the panels, because I had a concern that a partially enclosed structure might be at risk for strong winds. We were not able to install all the panels in one day, but that was because I was applying weatherstripping to all four sides of the frame opening (and screwing each panel) as we went. We left the east and west ends open overnight, and finished up the next morning.

Our ground was nearly level so that saved time on the foundation...but spending time on getting a good, firm, level foundation is a smart thing to do! You won't regret it.

hi got mine in oct 06 its still not up now no one will help me had three people try and they complained it was to hard that the directions were not clear enough for them to get it up the sides are up and the fondation is done but thats it so it sways in the wind. the guy next door said take it in for scrap metal that really made me feel good about my CHRISTMAS gift 0( not. but maybe one day it will get finished i say 0) still looking at it and trying to figure it out.

Mygardengirl,

Are local high school has a greenhouse. Maybe you could contact your local high school and see if they would construct as a classroom project. It would be good for the kids to learn. Maybe contact a local gardening club to help you. How about your church group. Just some ideas wish we were close. Barb

Here is a link for some help, maybe. They may recommend a contractor or better yet someone in your area that would volunteer some help who has some experience with the HFGH. They may recommend a garden club in your area that could provide some help.
Good luck, John

Here is a link that might be useful: Georgia Perimeter College

Mygardengirl,
Where are you located? I don't think that you want to leave the frame up without support. If that soft aluminum twists you are going to have major problems.

1eyedJack and the Dawg

It took me and my wife a week to do ours. Counting the floor work and getting the base square and screwing the panels and making rafters from 1/2 emt. I still have to put a exhaust fan and heater in it plus lay some electric out to it.

I only have a bench on one side. Water is probably within 8 ft of it but the elec is about 110ft away. Just have a 12/2 electric cord run to it right now and winter is coming .

We just got ours erected but not finished inside, Mudhouse has a very good blog of how it goes together, we could not have done the doors without her. There is a lot of information as to how to erect and reinforce the thing for wild weather, which we can all get at time, i think I will love this thing, the neighbors are already asking about the winter tomatoes.

Ok, sorry, we've been at it 2 weeks, but being old farts, we did little spurts at a time and not every day. Also had to wait to get help raising the roof, yeah, we assembled on the ground, it worked but a little scarey getting it up, DH fell off a ladder, he's bruised but ok.

Mygardengirl,

Come on....don't give up. I had NO clue what I was doing. I work in an office and the only things I've constructed were a few arbors, birdhouses and fences for my gardens (thank goodness plants grow up these structures. he he). I wanted my greenhouse so badly that I cowboyed up and just kept trying different things until I was able to get things to work. I seen some excellent websites showing step by step on how to put up some of these greenhouses. Print them off, make yourself some notes or highlight key points and go for it.

Did I make mistakes along the way....heck yes, but with time and diligence they were corrected. I really learned a lot by trial and error. I now have the outside completed and am fumbling my way through the inside work. It looks as though I may be doing that all winter. ha ha.

I even read up on how to put in electricity, wired everything and had a neighbor check my work. He helped me wire my heater and now I am plugging away with different tasks. You can do it. Set your mind to it and go for it.

Tj