Can I Convert My Closed-In Patio (heated) to Greenhouse?...

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Author Message   Imcrafts  My Favorite Photo My Weather My Garden Posted on Monday, September 29, 2003 - 01:19 pm EST :    OK, this is the story. I have a patio that we closed in a few years ago. It is aluminum enclosed with windows on two walls and a (storm) door on the same two walls. We made a mistake when we had 2 doors put in, but it is too late now (too drafty). Anyway, we also installed a heater (wall furnace) that we actually did use last year and was able to make it "livable" even at Christmas when we had our dinner on the patio. However, come January it got really too cold and my heating bill was too high, so we closed up the patio and turned off the heater for the remainder of the winter. NOW..this is my thought. Maybe I could use the patio as a greenhouse (not for our living purposes) and we wouldn't have to keep it AS WARM??? What temp do you need to keep your greenhouse for your plants? Not sure it is feasible with aluminum enclosure or not, but thought I'd check into it.} Claire MI zone 5b   Jak3  My Weather Posted on Wednesday, October 01, 2003 - 01:45 pm EST :    My greenhouse is aluminum framed with single paned glass. We have a heater that is preset to 7 C. But by about mid November, we shut the whole thing down for the winter and don't heat at all. I keep only perennials in there for the period November to March. By March the sun warms it during the day and depending on what I have happening at that time, I might use the heater to make sure the temperature goes no lower than 7 degrees C at night. It is, in effect, a three season greenhouse. I am thrilled to have it at all, but if I were doing it again, I would try for a four season - this would mean insulation, double glazing, and some form of economical heat. Julie; Merrickville, Ontario, Canada, Zone 4   Eltel  Posted on Sunday, December 21, 2003 - 08:04 am EST :    If you dont need it as living space, then sure you can convert it. Your major problems are the drafts - most tender/tropical plants turn their toes up if given a cold winter draft, and the cost of heating the conservatory. Easiest way to avoid drafts would be to temporarily double glaze the conservatory. Try what I do for my main tropical greenhouse. I use bubble wrap polythene (you can get it in rolls about 54" wide) which I attach to the aluminium frame with special clips. It goes up around October or November and comes down again in March or April. I keep the greenhouse at around 70F throughout the winter months with a gas heater (thats British gas - not petrol !!) and my bill for heating it is very affordable. Hope that helps El Tel Eltel   Samjones  Posted on Tuesday, June 20, 2006 - 05:53 am EST :    You could try www.doubleglazingontheweb.com? We wanted to add a conservatory to our garden and wanted to be able to price it ourselves. We found a really useful website for conservatories, replacement windows and doors. They had clear instructions and prices online and the prices were very good so we opted to buy from them. It was an excellent product and was delivered on time. Try them at http://www.doubleglazingontheweb.co.uk Samjones - Dorset, Zone "?"   Terryk  My Weather My Garden My Time Posted on Tuesday, June 20, 2006 - 06:22 am EST :    I am not an expert here, but I think you would have to opt for perennials/bulbs which grow in cooler temperatures so you don't spend a fortune heating it. I know for one that I have cyclamen growing in an unheated room off my basement (we have a forum on cyclamen and it will be seed sowing time soon, if you are interested in researching these plants). I also grow hellebores in this room too. The temperatures can be between upper 30F-50F in winter and they grow because they actually bloom at that point in the garden. My one challenge is watering, so I think it would be yours too. At the moment, I water one tray at a time so it is a major project. Terryk - NY, Zone "6"   Ambianceadd  Posted on Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 11:18 am EST :    Yes, you can convert your patio to a greenhouse. However, I'd suggest you contact an expert to ensure that you don't have the same problems with heating. Go to www.ambianceadditions.com for some ideas... Also, the issues with heating your room may be related to the glass you used in the windows, as well as poor insulation. For example, single paned glass is highly inefficient and offers little protection from harmful UV rays. Ambianceadd - CA, Zone "?"   Prettylady  My Weather My Garden My Time Posted on Friday, December 14, 2007 - 12:11 pm EST :    Claire I'm in the process of turning my patio into another greenhouse... Ran out of room ... It entailed lots of work and ran into quite an extra expense... The bad weather hit before I was able to finish it...so I still have lots of sanding, painting, the windows aren't finished out...It now has 6 windows and 4 tube lights, 2 track lights...with 75 watt grow lights in them... Peggy Prettylady - KY, Zone "6-7"

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