Need GH DIY bench ideas

pcs2008

14 years ago

Hi - I am in the process of building a Buildeazy greenhouse (http://www.buildeazy.com/greenhouse.html) and am looking for ideas on various DIY benches. Any ideas and/or links to bench designs would be greatly appreciated!!

p.s. Construction is going good so far. A slight delay due to poor weather conditions...:>(

Pete

SC

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (4)

agardenstateof_mind
14 years ago
PCS, I was lucky enough to find a small manufacturer and retailer/installer of fences in the area that sells their "seconds" for a very good price. A 3' high x 8' long section of picket fence of white cedar makes a nice, rot resistant bench that looks very much like the nice benches that Steve shows in his photos. We cut off the pickets above and below the cross-bars, attached the fence section to legs of treated lumber, and it was done. Four years old and they're still looking great.
backyardgrown
14 years ago
Plastic (vinyl) lattice is nice too. Non rotting and I've been using a piece for a bench top for about 5 years with no problems. I got it at Lowe's for about $8 and it measures 2'x8'. I think you can get it in 4'x8' too. My entire bench is made of PVC pipe and joints with a lattice top.

I have a really small greenhouse, so I use this as extra space over my taller plants. Most of my seedling trays are on plastic shelving on the other side of the "aisle."
Related Discussions
please post pics of your diy low budget ghs
Q
Comments (16)
I don't think my greenhouse counts as a "low budget" one as I used new materials, mostly. It is 24' by 14' and is built from pressure treated pine. The knee wall is 1/2 inch pressure treated ply and the north wall is solid and so is half of the north roof.the walls are 6ft high on a base of cement blocks. The frame, including the plywood cost $700. I still have three 4ft by 8ft sheets of ply left over. They are my "benches" They would have been the covering for the other half of the north wall but I couldn't get them up there!. It used to be covered in cheapo construction poly but last fall I bought proper poly. What you see is it covered in a double layer of Tuflight IV. Notice the front, south side and the patched up poly. That is because I have not really decided how to cover the front yet. Those patches are scrap poly covering torn vinyl panels. Total cost for a 24' by 14' using pressure treated and a double layer of 4 year greenhouse poly? Around $1000 Time taken to get this far? 4 years. Other bthings to note, do you like the stucco effect on the front? Notice how the stucco sort of is pealed back on the left side? The "stucco" is old carpet........ P.S http://www.stormlakeonline.com/user3316/Picture_0009.jpg tells you I should spend more time cleaning up the yard and painting the house than I do messing around with a greenhouse! :( Here is a link that might be useful:
...See More
Finally - Pics of the new GH
Q
Comments (11)
Albert, I'm assuming you received my response to your e-mail about the twin wall, right? The square footage is easy - 126 sq ft roughly 9x14 The cost? I honestly can't tell you for sure. I could guess but it would only be an idea. The greenhouse was one of several projects happening in the back yard at the same time and it received attention in bits and pieces as the other projects proceeded. Things like the steel stakes, rebar, some of the cement blocks, the concrete, mortar etc was drawn from the same supplies as that for the retainer wall, etc. My pure guess would be at least $4000 dollars in materials, with redwood frame, 10mm twinwall, Sundance aluminum trim parts, block wall, steel, stucco. The brick in the floor came from a re-use of an old patio we removed years ago. Add labor and well...you can imagine. We (my dw and I) have wanted a gh for years and years. The decision to build one was driven more by "now is the time" and less by "what will it cost". No one should assume that I ever did a cost/benefit analysis on the concept, or like Nathan, had the clear objective to build in the most material and energy-wise manner. Notice that our house is a 1920's "cottage" look, small house. We would not have put up a "modern design" metal frame green house even if it had been given to us....that was just our personal taste. Something as basic as the decision to build a high knee wall came as much from "I liked the look" (plantbabies, note the similarity to the gh on the cover of one of those books I sent?) as the reality that the location was not ideal and a solid wall would block no significant winter sun anyway. So there ya have it.
...See More
Looking for ideas for the layout of my GH (inside/out)
Q
Comments (29)
If you are worried about critters install chicken wire barried around foundation about 8" deep. The top edge of the wire should be covered by the floor. I would lay down weed barrier first, no matter what the floor covering. No weeds! If you are worried about too much heat in the summer the best and cheapest bet is to make your poly easily removable. The less poly the more air circulation. Without knowing how your structure is configured I can't tell you if seasonal poly removal will be easy for you or not. It does beat paying fot electricity for fans. The panels can be replaced with framed screens. Pretty easty to make yourself to size.
...See More
Changing seasonal GH for winter use
Q
Comments (2)
hitexplanter, ""start veggie and herb from seed throughout the November.-March"" The answer to that one is easy! Build another greenhouse. Hoop houses are easy and cheap to construct, use 1/2in pipe and fittings. Don't cement any of the joints so you can take it down again. Use cheap construction plastic. Make your benches from 4x8ft sheets of plywood on top of trashcans filled with water. You only need a small greenhouse to start 1000's of seedlings. A 11ft by 9ft hoophouse with 2 benches can start 9216 seedlings in standard 288 plug trays. When you need to transplant then of course you need more room, so add another 11x9 hoophouse. By March you need even more room so then you put all those plants in your existing structure. I start seeds, then expand like that as and when they need more space. That way I am not heating a big greenhouse when there is not a lot in it. Just a thought... Oh by the way, I forgot to mention I build the flimsy hoophouses that would never survive outdoors in my greenhouse. (The picture is from the fall when I was shrinking my greenhouse space as the weather got colder. Opposite to the above I know, but the expanding and contracting of the heated area thingy still applies) Here is a link that might be useful:
...See More
steve_in_los_osos
14 years ago
I, too, used 1" PVC and fittings to make my benches (for a PVC greenhouse!). By using combinations of plumbing fittings and the more specialized ones for building projects, I was able to design for my small greenhouse in a way that (hopefully) uses the space well.

My original plan was to use nursery flats as the "bench" top material (good air circulation, no corrosion, no rot, etc.) but am now leaning to getting the "egg crate" white plastic for fluorescent light fixtures (if it's not too expensive. Some of my flats look kind of unhappy with heavy pots on them, even with a middle brace running down the length of the bench and the 16-17" square means there is often wasted space when packing in the plants (the whole greenhouse is only 6' x 6', with one side taken up by three large container plants).
ljpother
14 years ago
I used water as a heat sink last year and this year I bought a large (130 litre) storage container. I'm going to use it as a low bench for starts, and the tomato plants I want to keep in the greenhouse over the summer.

Need GH DIY bench ideas

Comments (4)

agardenstateof_mind

backyardgrown

Related Discussions

steve_in_los_osos

ljpother

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US