Cement floor green house???

[Gary350]

I don't understand green houses like this. Glass windows that don't open, no fans, no vents, no cooling system, no heat system, no water, no soil, cement floor, no lights, no electricity.

[Ruffsta]

So, why would you invest in such a thing? There is better alternatives than that one... or if you already have it.. You can modify it at will..

cement floors tho.. so you don't have weeds and vols and all that coming up from underneath.. easy to clean and maintain. I personally do not like having grass or bare yard underneath.. too much of a hassle.

fans, heating, lighting and all that is on you.. how you want it to look, feel and work.. people who build these do not think ahead.. they just think in the moment of having a greenhouse without any thought process and then kick themselves in the ass later when the lightbulb turns on..

As far as I am concerned.. I would do a cement floor. again easy to maintain and clean up... via broom, mop or leaf blower.. probably the only reasonable thing in that greenhouse that you showed.

[Vanisle_BC]

Read about Eliot Coleman's work with cold greenhouses. [edit:] someone else's "thinking ahead" does not mean they should want what you want. Haha, just think of this as a walk-in cold frame. Gary, where did you find it?

[applestar]

Well you know, a small structure with glass-looking walls and WE immediately think greenhouse for growing plants, but this could be an outdoor hot tub/jacuzzi gazebo or a sauna hut.

Maybe there’s going to be a pool to jump into to cool off.

I had always thought greenhouses had have hardscape floor — at least paved with bricks etc… my early experience with greenhouses were always botanical gardens and public access sales part of plant nurseries.

And those maybe traditional conservatory-types always stress absolute cleanliness and ability to sterilize everything.

It was only through gardening forums that I became aware you COULD plant directly in bare ground inside greenhouses and hoophouses… and to me that made so much more sense since container gardening has not always been easy for me, whereas if I rely on mother nature, I didn’t have to control everything.

[Gary350]

This could be a good Green House to grow vegetable in 10 gallon pots in winter. It needs heat to about 50°f at night and a vent fan for cooling during the day when the sun heats the GH to 80°f. It needs water. I could grow, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, potatoes, leeks, celery, maybe tomatoes, but it will be more work than a garden in real soil where mother nature does most of the work. Maybe GH is not finished yet.

TN lady that posted the picture said, she has always wanted a green house. Her husband retired 2 month ago and built this for her. She is probably in zone 7a or 7b. 7b is higher elevation it gets colder with more snow. 35 miles east of us is 7b elevation 1500' and higher all the way to the east TN border 6 hr drive to Bristol. There are several places 6000' elevation in east TN. I wonder if there is zone 7c and 7d and 7e?

[Vanisle_BC]

A cement floor is a bad idea. It would too easily crack & break up. You need concrete (that's cement, sand and a graded aggregate) with embedded steel reinforcing, to do it properly. Packed earth would hold up better than plain cement.

[Vanisle_BC]

Is it the woman or is it her husband who "do not think ahead.. just think in the moment of having a greenhouse without any thought process and then kick themselves in the ass later when the lightbulb turns on." Which of them kicks the other in the ass, I wonder?

[edit & hint:] If you open the door you have ventilation.

[imafan26]

It is a home made greenhouse and not a kit, so it is a beginner model. They may not have researched all the parts that was needed, like fans and windows for ventilation, being close to a water source, electricity to run the fans and lights. Roof vents, and roof shading in case it gets too hot. I don't think the concrete floor is a bad idea, it keeps the weeds down.

To me what makes less sense is a glass house in the tropics. Why?