Alex: $700, roughly, including shipping, misting system, exhast fan, thermostat (for the fan) and 70% shadecloth. I modified the plans slightly. Instead of buying treated wood and building a foundation, I drove a dozen 4' pieces of rebar into the ground a couple feet and then put all of the outside posts on those rebar posts. Then, I drove short pieces of smaller PVC to stabilize the legs on the inside. I also modified the plans for the shelves, so that they are more open. The plans originally called for just planks the length of the GH, but I decided to construct shelves that come up short, so I can keep taller plants at the west end. Also, the open wire shelving will allow me to grow lower light plants on a second shelf below what will ultimately be a primarily cattleya-centric main collection. I can hang mounted plants from the wire I attached to the west wall, as well, with the extra foot or so of space at the end of the benches. Incidentally, I bought the kit from a company called The Little Greenhouse. I'm sure a google search will bring it up. Lellie: The testimonials on the website talk about GH's surviving tropical storms and hurricanes. Maybe look into it... Ifrasier: Yes, having had a couple greenhouses in the past, I definitely know the value of having the GH now, as opposed to running out of space to stash plants, when it's cold and having to cobble a barely sufficient system together. -Cj

I live in central NY, they say its zone 5, but its really 4. I have a glass 8 by 12 foot gh. I don't use it in the winter as it is free standing and would cost too much to heat. I do use it to grow up my seedlings. I put them in around April 8th, and have to heat it at night for about 2 weeks, until it warms up enough. I then put those plants outside, and put my orchids in it. When I heat it those first few weeks in April, I go through a 20 lb. propane tank every 3 days or so. After that, it mostly stays just on the pilot light and that seems to be enough for another few days. At that point, I turn it off during the day. I also have two, 50 gal. water barrels for solar heat and another couple of 30 gal. containers. It has a cement paver floor that helps hold some heat. My goal is to move it and attach it to the house. Then I would just get a 100 gal. propane tank for heat and keep my orchids in it all the time. I would have to raise it up 3 feet to match a door to the house, so I would gain even more room. Sterling

Sheri: The Aluminet stretches in one direction only, so when you order it, make sure you have the fabric cut to stretch in the direction it will hang from top to bottom. When the sales rep from IGC (where I ordered mine) told me the vents would open under the fabric, I was a bit doubious, but she was right. The key is to mount the fabric without stretching it tightly. My husband was concerned that the corners of the vent windows might punch holes in the aluminet fabric and wrapped rags around them. So far, even with the vents opened full and pulling the fabric, no holes, but I'm looking for a more elegant solution. Fat, self adheseive foam bumpers come to mind. But I didn't suggest that you use the aluminet AS a screen, only that when it's draped over the ROOF vents, it serves as one, which I found ironic, because we made screens for the roof vents, that will soon serve as storm panels for winter, as we can use them to hold bubble wrap in place under the vents. For your intake vents, use standard screening material, in a frame. To screen the powered intake vents on my GH, we used white vinyl house trim materials to create a box frame, 5- 1/2" deep, to allow the vents to open out, then just made screens using the screen channels, corners & spline sold in any home center. The box is made of 1 x 6 vinyl trim board, (actually 3/4 X 5- 1/2) so the edge facing out is wide enough to accomodate the screen frame, that is mounted to the box face with screws. To give a surface to mount the box to the GH, we used vinyl brickmould. The box sits inside brickmould, attached with small screws. The brickmould was fitted tightly around and to the fan frame, sealed with silicone. Once we fiddled the design, they were pretty easy to make and give me the ability to both remove the screens for cleaning, and in late fall, when we seal up the GH for winter, we can seal the vents by placing insulation in the boxes, then use the screens to hold it in place. My inspiration was shadowboxes, which, when you look at them, are no more than a picture frame with a second frame inside of it that projects out, with another frame on it's face, to hold the glass. From the craft shop to the GH. LOL!

You are all suggesting things regarding the roof panels that I have been struggling with. Sliding door panels, if I can get them from one of my window-guys, would definitely be the most cost effective -- since they'd be free. The 'dangerous broken glass' aspect of putting them on the roof is definitely a consideration. We don't get hail storms here like they do in some parts of the country, so the material's resistance to hail damage is lower on my list of priorities. The BH&G greenhouse plan uses the twin-wall polycarb. That's also a contender . . . but I'd rather have some sort of glass so I can look at the sky. Wyndyacre, the idea of renovating and living in an old school is so cool. How much of the old school stuff was still in the building when you bought it? We don't have a web site . . . yet. Like you, I would love to do it one day -- soon, I hope. I'm not dedicated enough to document things in a blog -- tried it briefly, and I discovered it's just not my thing. I have hundreds (maybe thousands) of photos of the place and all the projects at various stages of completion. If it's not too off topic, here's a few for you: A good view of the front of the house -- built in 1848.: What it looked like in 1954, before the previous owners removed the dormer and the original gingerbread trim: This is the view to the rear of the property. I plan to put the greenhouse in the area at the lower right -- approximately in line with the other two buildings. The cedar tree will be limbed up a bit, and I think it will make a great backdrop for the new building. (I think this photo brings us back on topic.) zengeos, if you go to a salvage yard for windows, you have to actually pay for them. Contact some replacement window companies in your area and ask them if they'll save some of the ones they remove for you. That's where a lot of mine have come from. In fact, the ones I plan to use for the south wall of my greenhouse are brand new -- the contractor measured the openings wrong and the windows were the wrong size . . . so they gave them to me instead of throwing them out. Sliding glass door panels are throw-away items. You're probably not going to find them anywhere sold as salvage. To use them on a roof, you would have to do like installing a skylight and use flashing around them before you put on the shingles. I know it's a greenhouse and a little leak shouldn't be a big deal . . . but I'd rather try to avoid leaks if I can. I volunteered with Christmas in April (now 'Rebuilding Together') for many years, and I have seen the carnage that a little leak can create in a wood structure. I'm having so much fun scheming this project. I know my husband loves the idea of my emptying the outbuildings of my salvaged treasures and using them for something worthwhile. I'm very thankful I could use wyndyacre's photos of her greenhouse to show him approximately what I'm trying to do. I know, by my descriptions alone, that he was probably picturing something that looked like it belonged on 'Sanford and Son'. Connie