My new hot box, hot house, greenhouse, cold frame

[Aussie-Garden]

G'day everyone.

I'm not sure what to actually call this project, as it's based on a cold frame, but it's way bigger than the ones I usually see.

As always, I was on a small budget, so all the wood and Colorbond are scraps and  left overs from other projects and these dictated the size of the frame, as I pretty much went with measurements based on the items I had.

My wife  did purchase elbows and end caps for the poly pipe that I had already, a metal door handle, bungee straps, 3 hinges and saddle clips from Bunnings. I love click and collect!

I have no experience in making things like this and I didn't have a plan, so I just went with what I had and it kind of evolved as I went along. I did look online for ideas beforehand.

If I've done this right, the photos should have captions.

The drums are insides of old washing machines. I am experimenting and seeing if I can grow sweet potatoes and potatoes in this environment as it gets colder here.

EDIT - I forgot to mention that I only have to remove a few screws at the front and front plastic panel folds back so I can remove the big tubs and put them back whenever I want.

[MitchellMc]

Hi @Aussie-Garden.

What a fantastic project! How extremely resourceful of you to be working with what you have and no doubt you now have a very functional hothouse as the result.

I look forward to seeing how the sweet potatoes go and what sized crop you get from them.

Thank you very much for sharing, I'm sure it will provide some great inspiration to fellow community members.

Mitchell

[redracer01]

Excellent build! Good use of materials! Looking forward to a good harvest of taters!

[grouse]

Love it! Really inspiring, thanks, especially the creative use of old materials. I need to rig up a cheap cold frame myself and I have some of these things lying around. 

I've got an old fish tank inverted over one strawberry plant and the strawberries are getting HUGE and JUICY. Kids really excited. The rest of the strawberry plants (and other vegies) just chilling outside - not so much. 

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Workshop community @grouse.

It's fantastic to have you join us! Let me mention @Aussie-Garden so they are alerted to your kind feedback, as i'm sure they will excited you've taken inspiration from their project.

We look forward to seeing your cold frame project come together and I trust you'll receive loads of other inspiration from our members for projects around your home and garden. If you ever need advice or have something to share with the community please let us know.

Mitchell

[Aussie-Garden]

Thanks for the kind words @grouse.

I've never made anything like this before, so I am pretty happy with the result.

Do share your build with us when you get one going and definitely mention any improvements that can be made.

Just a small update on this build...

• Got some weather strip from Bunnings and lined the lid and the top of the frame it sits on for a better seal.
• I have scraps of material pushed into the gaps of the Colorbond as that wave effect goes down the timber frame. I plan to get expanding foam from Bunnings to fill those gaps.
• The green growth of the spuds is almost touching the lid now and looking very healthy. Happy with this as we just had 9 nights of -1 to 3 degree weather with frosts most nights.  The young capsicum and Jalapeno are looking good too, considering the frosts and cold outside.

[Aussie-Garden]

2 year update...

In this build, I used the heavy duty, clear builders plastic.

I knew at the time that it is not rated for greenhouses and used it as it kept my budget down, by not using a UV protected greenhouse plastic, which was more costly.

The builders plastic lasted a good 18 months, but did start to go brittle in some areas and tore in the wind eventually.

Now, I am here in the middle of May again and I have UV protected Greenhouse plastic coming in the mail.

The micro climate in this thing is fantastic when covered in clear plastic and in some days, I have to put a brick in the opening and prop it open, as it can actually get too hot on a sunny day.

It can get to -3 here with some harsh frosts and I have had great success with potatoes, sweet potatoes, capsicums, chilis and various cuttings and young plants stored in here over the coldest months.