Building a floor for my greenhouse.

Mount Vernon, NY

Hello All,

I would like to build a proper floor for my greenhouse. It is an 8x12 Grandio Ascent that I have built directly into the earth and currently only has topsoil as a floor. It has a steel foundation with 12 concrete footers buried in the ground. The best way to visualize this is for me to post the instructions. Here is the link:

https://grandiogreenhouses.com/manuals/Anchors/L-BOLT_Anchor_feb_2016.pdf

Here are also some photos of the interior and exterior of the base (Sorry it is dark):
The photo with the ruler is the exterior side of the base. The other photo is the interior side.

I would like to add a floor that is aesthetic, has good drainage, is stable (my benches keep sinking into the ground and become tilted), and pleasant to walk on (even barefoot). I also want something that would minimize dust as the topsoil becomes very dusty on hot days and gets sucked into my space heater. It also tends to erode and leave gaps between the base and the ground. Ideally, I would also like something that keeps weeds out.

I have thought about using brick pavers but was told I would need to build a retaining wall under the metal base which would be difficult as the anchors are in the way. My budget is $600 max. What is my best choice of floor?

Thumbnail by Orchidny Thumbnail by Orchidny
Powder Springs, GA(Zone 7b)

At my last house I bought a 14x18 greenhouse that took several weekends to erect. The spot I put it in had a slope so we had to dig into the earth on one corner and the opposing corner build up a berm of gravel to get it leveled. After erecting it, I ordered five tons of gravel and wheelbarrowed it from the driveway uphill to the greenhouse. I was short a couple of tons though so I used concrete pavers I poured a year or two earlier (buried under the gravel). The gravel provided great drainage but also allowed termites to come in and start eating my wooden shelves (lessons learned).

My son-in-law helped me shovel and wheelbarrow all the gravel. My dad was in the greenhouse raking each load out to level it.

I sure miss my old GH but if I ever do it again, I will get a much larger one as I grew out of space in 3 years.

Thumbnail by hcmcdole Thumbnail by hcmcdole Thumbnail by hcmcdole Thumbnail by hcmcdole
Springfield, OH(Zone 5b)

Orchidny, I wonder if you could put in a floating deck with a pressure treated lumber frame and composite decking on top. Depending on sales etc you could probably build one for that cost and size. it would drain and be good on the feet and loot good and support your shelves

Mount Vernon, NY

I was thinking about using pea gravel as a base for pavers or tiles but how do I stop it from eroding and leaving a gap between the base and the ground. As you can see, I already have this problem in the first photo. In some places, there is now a 1 inch gap between the base and the ground. Especially with excavating enough for 3 inches of gravel, how do I keep it from just pouring out of the bottom of the base? I can’t really have spaces as I want to keep the cold out in the winter.

I can’t really put bricks because there are so many metal footers extending into the ground the block them from being pushed in.

Cleveland,GA/Atlanta, GA(Zone 7b)

Typically course sand, known as builder's sand, is used to create a level surface for brick or pavers. You would have to line the foundation with rubber edging (maybe strips of pond liner?) to retain the sand. It is leveled by hosing. Spaces between brick/pavers can either be graveled or sanded. Sand base and fill will give you a very stable floor. My experience is gravel is uncomfortable to work on. I've seen two by edging used to retain walkways with roofing felt under benches to lower floor surfacing costs and then walkways made with sand and brick/pavers.

On a different note, friends have a large commercial orchid house. They support their benches with water filled barrels which do a fantastic job of stabilizing temperatures.

Charleston, SC

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This message was edited Sep 14, 2020 6:15 AM

Lewisville, MN(Zone 4a)

I have 4 large hoophouses, 5230 sq ft & a large greenhouse.
2019 we put a ground cover fabric in the greenhouse. Loved it. Water can go through it & weeds don't grow under it.
Last year we did all the hoophouses. Just burn a hole where you want a plant.
I never tried barefoot, but I bet it would work.
Picture is laying the ground cover and planting tomatoes, spring of 2020.
Link to ground cover;
https://www.amazon.com/TUFFIOM-Landscape-UV-Resistance-Material-Greenhouse/dp/B084VNXB4K/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=ground+cover+fabric+3x300&qid=1605133284&sr=8-2

Thumbnail by CountryGardens
London, United Kingdom

The best thing about concrete houses is that they look good and last a long time. They’re also super easy to build, so you can save a lot of money by doing it yourself. Most of the time, you don’t need any special tools or skills. You just need things like a hammer and some nails, and you’ll be ready to go. The guys from there will come with a house plan and also a well-done design for you. In 2019 they built me a substantial house, and I am delighted with it.

This message was edited Sep 23, 2021 6:48 AM

Beverly Hills, CA

It's very cool that you decided to lay a floor in your greenhouse. I wish I had the same desire as you to change something in my life. I've been wanting to repair my greenhouse for almost three years now, but every time I either don't have enough free time or money for this. Okay, I'll probably come back to your question about which floor is better to choose for a greenhouse. In fact, it all depends on you, the floor can be made from literally anything. Usually the floor in greenhouses is made of brick, so that it is more convenient to walk on top of the brick, you can lay a layer of rubber material. You can also make a wooden floor, but it will be more expensive. Perhaps for laying the floor you will also need to slightly repair the greenhouse, which can help you with repairing the walls or roof of the greenhouse. I'm not sure though.

This message was edited Oct 25, 2021 4:15 AM

Lewisville, MN(Zone 4a)

Five greenhouses/hoophouses. Four of them, plants are in the ground.
Planted in the burned holes. Only an occasional weed in the hole.
Pulled those weeds as I went through pruning and tying tomatoes.

Thumbnail by CountryGardens
Brooklyn, NY

Recently I also wanted to reconstruct a floor on my greenhouse and I started to search on the Internet. Unfortunately my mom help me to find the device where I managed to order permeable paver by that link https://mygardenzone.com/best-permeable-pavers/ and I think that’s one what I needed. By the way I hope this source will help you to resolve such issue now.




This message was edited Feb 9, 2022 12:37 PM

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