Which Greenhouse should I buy?

[Russell Young]

Aloha from Maui!

I'm new, very new to Aquaponics and this forum.

It's also 12:53 am Hawaiian time and I'm going back and forth between 2 Greenhouse kits we're interested in buying. (I can't build anything, but I sure can put together or deconstruct others designs and ideas...lol)

Here's the first one:

A 9x16 redwood framed greenhouse, 4 mm double walled polycarbonate. 34" dutch door,

5150 BTU heater, thermostat, 16" fan, automatic mist system, solar fabric, 2 lower automatic shutters included. 6' sidewalls, 7' 8" center height.

Con - There are no roof vents (and we're in Maui...75 - 85 degrees almost everyday) Only a tiny sliding vent over the door and on the back wall near the peak of the roof.

The second one is:

A 8 x 16 redwood framed greenhouse, 4.5 mm double walled polycarbonate. 39" wheelchair accessible dutch door. 5' 8" sidewalls, 10' center height.

a 4 x 4 Trex wood composite base, 2 solar operated roof vents. 2 solar operated base vents

I like all the extras that come with the first one.  And it is a little less than the second one.  But I feel like I need the solar vents to help keep the interior cooler here on the island.  Anyone have any suggestions, thoughts, or experiences?  Are the solar operated vents as important as I think they are?

Mahalo for any help,

Russell

[TCLynx]

How big is the price difference?

I would think the 10' center height and the automatic vents would be worth while if you decide you need a greenhouse.  Do you really need a greenhouse?  Or just something to collect the rain off of to keep it from pouring into your system un-managed?

[Russell Young]

Aloha TCLynx,

The difference in price is almost a thousand dollars.  Here's a true story of "Knowing the price of something, but not knowing its value."

Many years ago, we lived in cool, temperate Northern California.  My parents and one of my brothers each bought new cars.  They did not get the air conditioning option to save $800.  Well, after several miserable vacation road trips, they paid more to get after market kits installed. Which never look or work as well as a factory installed unit.

Thanks for pointing out the extra headroom of the 10' height.  That might be important down the road if we go vertical gardening.  I was too focused on temp control.

I don't know if we "need" a greenhouse more than we "want" one. We live in rural UpCountry in Maui. There are ranches and farms around us.  We also have invasive deer that have foraged on our property, plus other assorted critters.  In addition, I read on another Hawaii forum that there is a tropical fruit fly here that will sting the emerging young fruit or vegetable and ruin it.  Haven't checked it out to see if that's true.

We are very excited about Aquaponics. I've always had Aquariums but hate to garden...a Saturday chore as a kid.  And my wife loves to garden.  This is something we can both do together and we want it be to be more fun than work.

We will be collecting rain.  Water conservation is good.

Russell

[TCLynx]

A greenhouse or some sort of thing you can attach bird or deer netting to to keep the deer out would be good then.  but a home greenhouse is really unlikely to keep pests like fruit flies out since you would need heavily filtered ventilation and an airlock to enter/exit through and positive pressure etc to really keep the small pests out.  Seems to me that greenhouses are farm more effective at keeping the beneficial insects out and providing a safe haven for the pests.  That is just my experience with a cheap little home built cold frame here in Florida.  During most of the year I removed the sides and I actually have done better with growing through winter now that I've given up the greenhouse all together.

I now just use a cheap little harbor freight greenhouse for starting seeds.  And in that one I replaced the walls with hardware cloth instead of the plastic,  I just use the roof to keep the rain from pummeling the seedlings and the hardware cloth to keep rodents from eating the seedlings or digging through the seed starting media looking for worms.  Also squirrels seem to have a strange fetish for wet peat pellets.  But anyway, I'm not using it as a greenhouse really.

[Russell Young]

TCLynx,
Mahalo for sharing your thoughts and experiences. It's always helpful to learn from others willing to share.
I understand about the bugs, and realize we won't be able to keep a bug free zone. But having a greenhouse would keep more bugs out than not having one. We live in the tropics so yes, we have lots of bugs! But we also have lots of geckos, Anoles, skinks, lizards, birds and Jackson Chameleons. We are going to "recruit" some Jackson's for greenhouse pest patrol. Hopefully they won't eat too many of the beneficial bugs. If we can find Ladybugs we will use them first.

Russell

[TCLynx]

I'm actually in the sub tropics so in winter many people feel greenhouses are a must around here but I must say it tended to get too hot during the day and would still get chilly at night which really put the plants for a loop.  Do make sure you have really good ventilation to keep the heat and humidity from really messing with your plants.  I found that not having the greenhouse interfering with air flow helped against disease and pests and that my pest problems, while still being present, they have not been nearly as bad out in the open.  There are many pest problems that seem to be far worse inside greenhouses than out.

[Russell Young]

Ah, very good point. You are correct in that when we have the trades really blowing, the insects; especially the winged ones disappear.
Both greenhouses have Dutch doors and we can leave the upper one open for more air circulation plus there will be a 16" fan inside to help move air. Go figure, we'll have them indoors, but have to replicate it as being outdoors.

Russell