We have the perfect home with the exception of one thing… It only has one window that gets remotely decent lighting. When I began my garden adventure I knew I would need a good space outdoors for starting seeds. Here in Arizona, zone 9b, we can grow year round so it is important to be able to start seeds early to maximize each growing season. With as much space as we have for growing we have to start tons of seeds every season.
I scoured amazon and eventually settled on a standard greenhouse kit that was in my budget. It is 15’ long by 7’ wide by 7’ tall (link below). It had 4 velcro windows on each side and a large zippered “door”. We were happy with the price tag that came in around $130 (They are about $150 now).
Almost immediately after putting it together I noticed that most of the windows wouldn’t seal properly due to a manufacturing defect in the placement of the velcro. Right away I reached out to the company about this problem. After some back and fourth they were ready to get rid of me and offered a refund for the entire purchase price! Our $150 investment was now FREE, even better!
As winter approached and I dreamed of getting my tomato seeds started. We had to find a way to keep the freezing temperatures out of the greenhouse. As a child growing up in the Midwest every winter we purchased kits made by 3M to seal our windows, maybe it would work. We had to at least give it a try. With the special sticky tape, the giant sheet of plastic cut to size, and my blow dryer in hand we sealed the windows from the inside, as best we could.
I’m not sure this was an application product development for 3M had in mind when creating this product. It worked well enough and although they weren’t perfectly airtight they kept the temperatures at night degrees warmer than before. We added a small space heater and that was good enough for us. By spring the moisture in the greenhouse had destroyed the seal on the tape and it was back to the drawing board.
The second winter we purchased plastic sheeting, normally used for painting, and paired it with a multipurpose construction adhesive. Again probably not the application they had in mind. This result was about as effective as the last and left a big mess. However, again, it did the job well enough to get us by until spring.
After the second winter and 2 brutally hot summers, the zipper on the door was all but useless. The windows were certainly not staying put after being rolled up all summer, we had that dried adhesive everywhere and we knew it was time for a mini-renovation. We needed a real door and a new cover.
I came up with a rough door design and B brought it to life, as always he really outdid himself. The door build required just a few 2x3s, a few 1x2s, a couple of pieces of hardware, and some screws, nuts, and bolts.
We decided to go with a burned wood technique using propane-powered by a flame thrower. We then gave it a rough sand to remove the excess soot and sealed it with teak oil. B really enjoyed having another use for his flame thrower and I adore the way the wood grain is accented by the darkness of the burn.
We attached the door frame 2x3s to the original metal frame using fence brackets. The brackets wrapped perfectly around the frame and lined up with the 2x3s. We did have to hammer and shape the brackets a little to get the sides aligned to a point where we were able to drill a hole and place a bolt through securing the new door frame.
We created the door itself using 1x2s. Carefully measure the door frame and allow for clearance. We secured the door to the frame using 3 hinges and attached our handle.
Then we stretched out and attached the large sheet of 6mm greenhouse film. (Link Below) To attach the film we used pipe clips (Link Below) that wrap around the frame to secure the plastic.
The front and back of the structure took a bit of finagling but after securing it, cutting away the excess, and stapling the plastic to the door frame we were left with the most glamorous, budget, DIY greenhouse I’ve ever laid eyes on. It is a huge step up from the standard green plastic it came with. Here is a little video of us winging it, as usual, and putting up the plastic. It was windy that day. Go figure.
While starting seeds in the cooler months is a great reason to have a greenhouse, we also enjoy having the option to move our more cold-sensitive, potted plants into it during the cooler months. Having a greenhouse allows us to safely overwinter many pepper and tomato plants without having to worry about running out before bed in the cold to cover them. I’m all for anything that helps support lazy gardening techniques!
Even if you don’t have space for a large greenhouse-like us I highly recommend checking out some smaller options. They even make them small enough for an apartment balcony!
Here is a link to the original greenhouse we purchased.
