Comment

Comment by Sharon Rose NW Ohio 5B on April 3, 2010 at 10:16pm

Hi Ken... I'm such a pain, I have some windows and gathering more. I can't wait to see how this comes out! :-D

Comment by Brenda Stewwart on October 4, 2009 at 8:20pm

Ken,
I would like to know more about the rain barrels for heating. Can you send a link or explain in detail how this is going. I will post a pic on my page of how my hubby built our first greenhouse.
Brenda

Comment by Sharon Rose NW Ohio 5B on September 22, 2009 at 11:36am

Hi Ken. I was wondering if you have an update on this project. If so I know I (and I'm sure others) would really like to hear and/ or see! :-D

Comment by Ken Ferguson z7B NC on July 2, 2009 at 2:16pm

Folks -

I don’t know about your yard, but I just took a break from the computer to check out my day lilyies, walked 30 feet thru 6” high grass and became a host to 3 ticks. They are REALLY bad here this year!

I have edited the main post abpve, eliminating those elements that no longer apply, and have added the new stuff. Will keep "updating" in that manner when I actually start swinging a hammer.
FYI... just saw a news article this week that said women swing a hammer better than men. I have yet to experience this. But then again.... I haven't seen everything in this world, yet.

Have a SAFE and FUN holiday!

Comment by Ken Ferguson z7B NC on June 30, 2009 at 5:14pm

Maggie -
I have the windows, but have been out of town for the better part of the week. Right now I have the grill running to fix dinner for the herd, but tomorrow, I will update the site with what I have collected and how I have to revise my plans.
Good re-use for stuff rather than taking it to a landfill.
Will try and make a real update WED.

Comment by Ken Ferguson z7B NC on June 19, 2009 at 4:20pm

Well, today is the day that I pickup my windows.
Doing a quick inventory of the “raw material,” I discover that a couple of large windows that are on the house now, were missing from the salvage pile.
Not being on site during the renovation, I asked my father-in-law, if some of the windows were “damaged” during the extraction. He told me that they just couldn’t get one of them out because the aluminum channel was heavily glued to the wooden frame.
Counting again, at least TWO of those big windows (that form the front wall of my plan) are missing in action, or they might just be considered collateral damage of the demolition.
My next challenge is to get all of the parts to NC, inventory what I actually have, and then rework the design to work with what I actually have.
There is a Habitat for Humanity thrift store in my in-law’s neighborhood. Went by there today and found a boat load of AL doors for less than $30. That will fill in that part of the project.
Next update, next week.
-f-

Comment by Ken Ferguson z7B NC on June 11, 2009 at 4:12pm

I apologize for not getting back with comments sooner.
At work (yes, I labor for a living) I have been spending some very long hours prepping for a major television commercial shoot this week. Tomorrow I'll be on location for at least 18 hours, so any follow-up to comments after THIS posting will not happen until the weekend.

GREENHOUSE UPDATE

My in-laws told me that 19 June is the day for the window removal from their house. "Please be sure to be here to get them out of our yard ASAP." Needless to say, it will probably take two truck loads to get the windows from their place to mine, so that Saturday will be shot.
Everyone that commented on the water barrels in the plan was correct... I want to use them as thermal mass that will radiate the stored heat in the evening. I have some old hippie solar energy books from the 70's that have been great references. I hope that the low angle of the sun in winter will hit all of the barrels pretty much head on. As far as summer, I hope that the depth of the building will be sufficient to keep the sunlight off the barrels, thus keeping the place from super-heating. I plan to take my mockup out into the sun in the next week or two to see how the building actually reacts under sun lit conditions. Rather than build a solar shade, it might just be easier to drain the barrels in summer. Heck, I’ll have plants that need watering!

I am also thinking about moving some windows.... so that I have the 3 small windows on the bottom of the structure on the EAST side (which is totally shaded by pine woods), which will act as a cool air intake, and then have the topmost windows open, creating a natural vertical draft, without a fan.
I would love to have some feedback from anyone with a smidgen of engineering skills, or that lacking, actual experience, or some just plain ole common sense.

FLOWER OF THE DAY

Glad I got this pic yesterday of this new addition to my garden... today the blossom is totally chewed up thanks to a Japanese beetle.

Enjoy and I will talk with you all later in the weekend.

Comment by Karen Henderson z5/Ohio on June 9, 2009 at 9:14pm

Wow! My dream is also to build a greenhouse or at least a potting shed out of recycled windows and doors. I saw one today in Berlin, Ohio, and it was great. Hubby and I studied it carefully and would like to build our own. Yours looks great and I am anxious to see pictures of it as a "work in progress". Very exciting news!

Comment by Eloise S. Zone 5 on June 9, 2009 at 5:17pm

Ken, The drawings are great. I am jealous. Maybe some day.. Keep us posted with results as u build it.. Thanks for sharing...

Comment by Caleb J. Creel Z8 TX on June 9, 2009 at 4:45pm

Are the rain barrels for thermoregulation purposes? To absorb and radiate excess heat?

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