Learn about what type of garden kits you will need to use for your greenhouse...
Any number of Greenhouse Kits is available from as little as 145. These may be purchased on the Internet and delivery in the UK normally takes less than two weeks. A typical kit for a small greenhouse measuring 4ft x 6ft x 6ft high would comprise of a galvanized steel frame with semi-rigid panels. These would be pre-cut to size and UV treated. Roofs have translucent panels, which give shade in summer and insulation in winter.
The kits come complete with hinged door and sliding windows. Needless to say, full assembly instructions are included. These kits are fairly basic, and you can expect to add a little extra for such things as louvres, staging, vents, automatic openers etc. A prefabricated steel base is normally available as an extra, eliminating the need to lay expensive concrete foundations. The latter, of course, would be a preferable choice if the structure were to be of a permanent nature.
At the other end of the scale there are many kits available for the larger greenhouse, and these can go up to as much as 6000 - probably a little impractical for the average sized garden, but available none-the-less. A kit for a 12ft x 10ft greenhouse will probably cost you a little over 2000, and could be constructed out of Cedar wood with toughened glass panels, gutters and down pipes, and automatic roof vent openers. Many of these top of the range kits include delivery and free installation.
Kits come in a large variety of designs, by far the most popular being the traditional pitched roof greenhouse. Becoming more and more popular on both sides of the Atlantic are geodesic domes. The size of these domes ranges from 12ft up to more than 50ft in diameter and, though arguably the most energy efficient, they are more expensive than the traditional shape, starting off at more than 3000.
The choice of materials for your kit is very important. Frames can be of metal or wood - a cedarwood greenhouse looks good in a any garden and offers better heat retention - it smells better too! Careful attention should be given to the type of glass used - standard horticultural glass splinters very badly when broken, whereas toughened glass will disintegrate into many small granules and is several times stronger than horticultural glass - far safer if there are young children in the household.