Wednesday, November 21, 2012

We built a Greenhouse...

on the wettest day for weeks!

Probably not the most sensible day to build it, but I was overly keen!
Two of our lovely friends, Simon and Alison, came over bright and early to help. And when I say help, I really mean do lots and lots! They are incredibly handy people and know what they're doing. Without them it would have probably taken Lloyd and I about 2 days!
So we can't really thank them enough for coming over and working all day in the pouring rain.

I mean, you can see from the photos how miserable it was!

Anyway we got started by unpacking everything and laying it all out. There were a million and one bits, but every single one was there, perfectly numbered and labelled. The instructions were totally brilliant as well, even telling you when to stop and have a cup of tea!

These are the 'bits' all set out pretty much in the order we needed them.

And the 'glass'. Oh and see all the tool boxes etc? Well turns out all we used were three spanners and two screwdrivers!


 Lloyd and Simon putting the base together, while Alison and I dug the holes that the legs would be cemented into.

Base complete and being carried over to the place where we wanted to put it.

Next we laid out the front wall and then screwed it all together and put the glass in. (6mm insulating polycarbonate - I'll call it glass for ease!)

 At this stage it wasn't looking that big and I was getting worried that I'd bought one that was going to be too small.


ta'dah! Finished front wall. (and thank goodness for a 3m wide deck!)


By this time it was really peeing down. Simon being the only sensible one with a waterproof jacket on. We were determined to get this far before we stopped for lunch. It was a late lunch!

But totally worth it! Lots of lovely antipasti, some smoked marlin pate, numerous cheeses and mum made a  meringue cake! We'd earned it.

Then it was back to work. We thought we'd pretty much got all the hard stuff out of the way, but it seemed to take an age to get the base attached to the house part. Then it was just the opening windows and sliding door to be put in  place.

Pick up your house and walk...

It took us around 6 hours to make it but it's brilliant! And big!
If anyone on NZ is interested I got it from here WINTERGARDENZ and they were perfect to deal with. It arrived really quickly after I ordered it, was packaged beautifully, labelled amazingly and every single bit fit perfectly.
I can't recommend them highly enough if anyone is looking for a greenhouse.

Here's the workers, looking rather like drowned rats. But it was a job really well done.
Now I just need to get the inside organised, with edging, a potting table and lots of lovely new soil to build up the planting area a bit. I also want a couple of concrete slabs in the path area as these will conduct a bit of heat. THEN I can get planting! Once the inside is done I'll post more pics.

Oh forgot - we haven't put in the rubber window seals yet as we wanted it to dry out for a few days. 

24 comments:

  1. It looks great! As does your lunch :)

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  2. Well worth it - and thank goodness for good friends who are happy to help!

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    1. I know, I don't really think we could have done it half as well without them. They're so lovely.

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  3. Lovely greenhouse, thanks for sharing - it's good to know how easy (or not!) it is to construct things that come in bits! You will no doubt find it really wonderful for all those seedlings etc. Do they say what sort of winds it will hold up in? (we are in a high wind zone).
    Cheers Bridget

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    1. Oh I'm not sire about the wind issue. We're pretty sheltered here for the most part. Im sure if you emailed them they could tell you. It's so brilliant!!!

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  4. awesome! think of the tomato potential :-)

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    1. I know!! Im hoping for all year round tomatoes!

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  5. Oh wow that greenhouse is just like the one I mentioned before, it looks really terrific, you are going to have such a lot of fun in there Laura ! Well done to all the builders ! Your lunch looks amazing & brilliant photos as usual ! Now a mention to Lloyd in particular, Congratulations on your Half Marathon, what a splendid achievement :o), also you must not write another book...... too many late nights from Cricket By Candelight, it is really great, SO interesting & lots of humour too, having emigrated from the UK to Australia in 1974 it rang many bells !!! I hope you sell loads of books, you are a GREAT writer, any plans for the next one ? !!!!!!!

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    1. Sorry about the late posting - it's actually not blogger, it's me. I don't get to post the comments every day cos I just have too much to do, so I usually post a few at a time when I've got a bit of spare time then I can reply to everyone! Does that even make sense??!!!! :)

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  6. Wow! What a fantastic greenhouse! You certainly know who your true friends are when they work their butts off in the pouring rain for you. Thank goodness for your Mum and her cake to help keep you going foro the afternoon.

    xx Susan

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    1. Oh I know! and mum did so well - she was tea lady for the day!

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  7. I understand your desire to get it up straight away. I did the same but attempted to do it alone (it was just a metal shell with a plastic cover - how are could it be?). My husband came down when I was 70% along and pointed out my mistakes, but luckily stayed on to fix them for me. But it was SO exciting to get a potting table in there and get cracking. We've got all sorts of things popping up from seeds I'd saved from last year, which is even more exciting. All that to look forward to!

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    1. Oh I had a couple of them! they work pretty well though.
      I can't wait to get started planting inside, but have a fair bit of work to do!

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  8. Sorry about two similar messages, the Marathon one took three days to download to you !!! I thought it was lost somewhere. xx

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  9. Awesome!! A greenhouse would be such a boon to the gardening! How great you've such good friends to help you tackle the job in the rain! I can't wait to see it full of growing things!

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    1. I know we're very lucky! I can't wait to get started with the inside now - got my edging yesterday, but tbh I need a rest before I start on the next bit - it's been very full on for the last 2 weeks!

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  10. It looks brilliant!!

    Poor wet workers, but it will all be worth it when your friends come round for tomato feasts in the not too distant future ....... and lunch looked delicious too!

    Sue xx

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    1. I've promised them early or late or all year tomatoes - depending on how they grow!!

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  11. wow congratulations, isn't it amazing how much gets done when a few extra people chip in! just had a lovely catch up on your blog, been out of the loop for a while... Your macaroons look sensational, well done! and i really loved the alpaca pictures they always make me laugh, especially the newly clipped ones lol x

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    1. hiya!
      well the macarons have turned into the bane of my life - the humidity has gone mad here and they are all a total disaster - well ok they still taste nice, but they are far from being very good :)
      xxx

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  12. I have always dreamed of having a green house. Really enjoyed your pictures of the construction of yours. Now I am off to check out the link on where you got it from. Happy gardening.

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    1. Sue, it is brilliant! The grass is dying back now and I have my edging and weedmat sorted - just waiting to get some topsoil to fill the bed area and I'll be good to go!!!

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I love it when you leave me comments, it lets me know there are folk out there reading my ramblings! Thank you, I appreciate them loads and loads
Laura x