Bruno Nardozi

I edited the previous message and posted the pictures there

I have some photos...

Photo 1 is the building site of the greenhouse
Photo 2 is also the building site but specifically the corner with least space and which is on the lower part of the ground
Photo 3 is a picture of the bottom of the window frame as it is now. I'm still painting them so I haven't started thinking how I'm going to secure the glass but as you can see there is no built-in support for it

Ok, using your ideas I changed the sketch and also added a door on the right. I'm not sure if the door will work like this but take a look please.

This is finally going! I'm excited about it and very very thankful to you.

The foundation site isn't completely done but I'll try to get some photos so you can see how it looks. There are two problems with the site: it's not completely flat and there are some branches that can pose a problem for the overhang but I think both of them can be solved. We'll get to that later.


1. Ok, now I understand It will be spaced from grade level so one less problem.


2. I think I didn't explain myself about this. The glass is still not in the frame. The guys did a wooden frame but they didn't put the glass in it which means that I'll have to do it. If you look at the sketch you'll see that I've made the frame and the window two different components, both of them with real dimensions. You can also see that the frame doesn't have a bottom part, which means that the glass doesn't have a place to rest in the frame. I'll pay a visit to the guys who made the frames and ask them their opinion on how should I secure the the glass.


3. About this I'm also going to ask the guys who made the frame but, to answer you, if I they make foam specifically for isolating windows I'm guessing that they make it waterproof.


You think 150mm x 150mm is enough? I'm sure those can be acquired easily.

And about your design, YES! How didn't I think about that? I guess it's part of the learning process :p I'll use your idea and create a new version of it with all the updates and post it maybe latter today or tomorrow

And another one...

I don't know if I'll be able to get poles of wood as big as those ones but it's just to give an idea of how I'm thinking to do.

I added a pole in the middle of the greenhouse for extra support. I would prefer not to have it there but I think it won't be a big problem.

An update just to see if I'm moving in the right direction.

Foundation I was thinking concrete. I already made a ditch on the ground with the area of the greenhouse. I still don't have the timber or the concrete but I can take care of that this week.

So, regarding the actual design, I have to:

1 Space the windows from grade level
2 Find a way to secure the glass in the frame
3 Seal the glass on the window frame
4 Include eaves
5 Include door
6 Add more structural strength

If there's something I'm forgetting let me know.

1 If you look at the last sketch I uploaded you'll see that there's a greenhouse on left side and one in the centre. The one on the left has the windows spaced from the grade. The bottom poles of the window frames are strong enough to support the weight of the window and if the wood boards that sit beneath the windows are secured to the foundation I think it can work as it is. But why does it have to be 450 mm from the grade? I understand that sitting directly on the foundation could create problems but, the way I see it, there's no need to make it go 450 mm apart. Wouldn't it be enough to use some wood beams and create a place for the windows to rest?

2 This is going to be tricky because between the bottom of the glass and the bottom of the frame I'll have maybe 10 or 20 mm. Anyway, like the guys that made the frame suggested, I think that I'll attach metal supports to the frame and let the glass sit on those. I know that when I do this I can't leave any metal sticking out on the bottom that would prevent rain from drain off.

3 Despite what they told me, I've found on the Internet a lot of products like silicon or foams that are used to seal the glass in the frames. Thinking about foam, wouldn't it be possible to put foam on the place where the glass is going to sit and then, before it dries, secure the glass in place? This would close all open space between the glass and it's frame making it air-tight. The excess foam can be cut off when it dries.

4, 5 and 6 are all connected some I'm just going to add some strong beams to the design and upload it to get your opinion on whether it's going in the right way or not.

I see two solutions here: address and solve the problems with the current design or rethink everything and start again.

Personally, I believe that I the problems can be solved but I would like to ear your opinion. I'm having a hard time understanding why does a small construction like this one needs so careful planing. I tough that the size would allow me to build it without going into to the details of construction.

Jay, about the grade, I'm confused because I see a lot of industrial greenhouses with the glass at grade level. This glass is at 90 degrees with the floor and mine isn't so I'm guessing that's the problem, right?

About the flashing, if you see the sketch you'll see that the glass is protected by the wood frame except on the bottom. The guys that made the frames told that if they framed the glass completely there would be water infiltration on the bottom. I asked them if it was ok to put silicon on the side of the glass, where it rests on the frame, but they said that I shouldn't do it. I don't understand why. In my mind it would only create an extra protection against the water...

I didn't include eaves in the sketch but, like we talked before, I was thinking about doing a "second roof" on top of the first one. It would be spaced to let air flow and bigger in order to prevent rain coming from the sides. This could use independent supports to avoid over-loading the weight of the structure.

I don't know how to use light straw in another way. Everything I've seen/read about it shows the light straw compressed between two wood boards. Being so, I might as well use this wood to double function and serve as skeleton for the structure.

About the budget, I already explained my situation. I don't have a fixed budget because I'm doing this as a volunteer on a farm and the farm owner is the one deciding what is reasonable to spend.
I still don't know when I'm leaving but I still have, at least, 3 more months here. Of course I want to finish it before because my main interest is not the building but what is going inside.

What do you mean with "off grade" and "well flashed"?

About the frame, I'm just trying to use the less wood possible. The back wall doesn't have poles or beams but it has 11 pieces of wood that will help support the roof weight. How do you suggest I should do to support the roof weight on the front wall (glass wall)?