Holy Cow! it's hot in my greenhouse

It's 108 today in there and got to 110 yesterday, and I have a big commercial type fan in the front, It's in the full sun, but there's no sun in the greenhouse, just indirect light, from the two layers of plastic on the greenhouse, It shades out alot of the direct sun, making it super nice for the brugmansias in the summer heat. They seem to swealter in the heat and the leaves turn yellow , so I put them all back into the greenhouse and their doing great now, even though the temps are hotter in there than outside. Go figure.

Do you have the fan blowing out ? Also you need a opening to let air in on the oppisite end. This should be the same size as your fan capacity. (Hint, if there is a wind created by the intake, the opening is to small. It will still be almost impossible to keep it cooler.
Our house we keep perennials in, we take part of the sides off for the summer. Then we do not need a fan. We have wind here most days.
Bernie

HI Bernie,

I have a huge door on both ends, and a fan hanging in the top of the door, bringing air in, but no fan at the other end pushing it out. guess I need to do that. I also have 3 huge windows on each side of the greenhouse that stay open all day. got plenty of opportunity for wind to come in, but I know the fan blowing out would help alot too, have to talk to my dh see if he'll part with his other work fan LOL, I stole his first one, he had to go get another,

kathy

Goood Luuuck! Dotti

KathyAnn, since your greenhouse is out in full sun, you might want to check here:

http://www.mortonproducts.com/page.cfm/1512

to get some shade cloth. I intend to order some, when I have extra money, to cover my atrium and my three patios. It's just so hot here in the summer. So even with fans and windows, we need shade to really reduce the temps.

NancyAnn

i take everything out of my greenhouse this time of year.....i have 2 pieces of shade cloth...one on each end, the middle is where the cacti and others are at in the winter......it gets so hot in there this time of year and im behind in getting things out...but i got the whole day tomorrow to go play...my son laughs when he asked me what i was gonna do and i told him 'im gonna go play'...he said where?...i said out in the dirt....lol

thats my time!!!

cindy

Well,l to be honest, my plants seem to do alot better in side the greenhouse than out in the pure sun, there is shade in the greenhouse with the two layers of plastic, the inside plastic doesn't let in the direct sunlight, and the plants seem to do marvelous iside during the heat, I just can't stand to work, sometims the scale gets out of control in the heat though. and the white flies too. but I keep it under control for th emost part.

I'm pretty much done buying fo rthat greenhouse, so I doubt i'll be buying any shade cloth for it.

KathyAnn, do you ahve a snowbank brug in teh greenhouse? and if so how is it doing?..Ive heard that this variety seems to like being in teh greenhouse al summer and even spreads out abit which mine seems to just stay a palm tree outside in the garden...Judy

mine's in the ground in front of my house, in the part shade, still a palm tree thing too . i'll have to take apic of it today if I can think of it. I doubt it will ever y before winter, should have just left it in the pot in the greenhouse then.

In a pot in the greenhouse would have been perfect..I was talking to a person who grows brugs for companies..she does the testing..she told me that they shouldnt have released that variety before it was tested more..its too picky..she said one guy grew his up on a roof in a greenhouse..hot and filtered sun did the trick..a newbie type brug grower put hers in her mini greenhouse all summer..it grew to a nice full plant but with out weather not lasting real long hers just set a bud before she had to bring it in...the bud feel off..Im getting real discusted with mine and not sure what I will do with it...Judy

Back to the shade cloth issue. A nice temporary fix would be to get some large old sheets. (solid colored..all the same preferable) It wouldn't last for several seasons but possibly take care of the problem until you can save for an official one?

There is no sun in my greenhouse. It's got some indirect light, kind of like being in a lighted room, but the inside layer of plastic, is the cheap kind, and isn't clear, and keeps out most of the sun. I think shade cloth would make it darker in the greenhouse, but I don't want it darker, I just didn't know what to do about the extreme heat in there. husband is going to put another fan blowing out on the other end. This should help some.

Kathy_ann

I hope so :)

kathy...it's always very difficult to cool a ghouse in the summer. (Even with 2 large exhaust fans, five louvers at the opposite end, AND shadecloth it is easily over 100 degrees in mine.)

Although you don't "have sun" in your ghouse it is still going to trap the heat from the sun in there. Shadecloth would help but I sure understand not wanting that added expense. At this point it would simply be better to reverse the fan you have in there.

In other words, it sounds like you are "pushing air in" and outside air (which is already very hot) is adding to the already hot air in your g-house. If you turn the fan around so it is pulling the ghouse air OUT then that will help.

You'll still need openings at the opposite end and, yes, it will still be pulling in outside hot air but what will happen is the airs (both outside air and ghouse air) will blend, be in motion (passing thru the ghouse) and contribute to dropping the air temp as it passes thru. (It will also help to reduce disease problems as well as certain insect problems.)

Hope this offers a bit of encouragement to you. I know you love that g-house!!

Shoe.



This message was edited Jul 7, 2005 12:43 PM

Hey, that's exactly what my dh said to do, but I wouldn't listen, Sooo, I guess i'll listen now and do that. thanks shoe. it's been super nice the past few days and I haven't even run the fan, but I'll need to turn it on today, will turn it around before I do.

thanks again

kathy

Kathy,

Keep in mind too that warm air rises, so the top of the greenhouse will be warmer than the bottom, I can sure feel the difference in mine just going up on a ladder. That means that if your exhaust fan is high on one end and your intake is low on the other, you will most likely get better air movement and cooling effect.

Mary

Hum, I didn't know that, thanks.

I grew up in West Texas, where humidity is very low. We had evaporative cooling. I now live in Central Texas, where humidity is higher. But trying to lower the temps in my greenhouse, we put shadecloth on the top, ran a misting hose with an emitter every four feet across the middle, and opened a window in the far end. Now the exhaust fan, which blows into the garage, pulls in outside air, cooled by the mist, and drops the temp at least 10 degrees. I have the mist set on very low. Even succulents are doing fine. In a less humid climate, it would work even better. My plants are happier, and I can work in there during the day. It did not cost a lot, but we already had most of the components.

Patricia

That sounds like a nice set up patricia. I did get the two fans hooked up, and it did drop the temperature down l0 degrees. I'mso use to working out there in the heat. I just carry my sweat rag with me. LOL.

My greenhouse/potting shed has been 120 degrees most days this past month. Thats only because thats how high the themometer goes!
My son has bought an exhaust fan that will go on the roof on the shed side and will be operated automatically when it gets too hot. The GH is 10X12. Is this going to work? I have filtered shades which have been kept pulled down, but the plants can't seem to stand up to this heat. I've had to pull them all outdoors in filtered shade. This was my first year in trying to grow plants in the gh. Doesn't look too promising at this point!

Howdy Chocolate! Er, umm, I meant, DORIS.....(sorry)

It's always harder to cool a g-house than to heat it. Depending on what size exhaust fan ya'll got will determine what happens. Also, remember, if it's 120 inside and upper nineties or so outside it's still gonna stay hot in there. The sun on the windows will increase the temp; glad you have shades, that should help.

I have to move plants outside in the summer months. The ones I leave inside are under a misting/sprinkler system and it needs to be turned on once a day (at least).

Hope this helps.
Behave yourself!

Friend Shoe.

Hi Shoe! (wiping the chocolate that has melted off my face), that is interesting. This is the smallest they have for roof mounting. There are two ventilators at each end and two below the windows near the floor. We have been having weather in the 90s, so I guess it wasn't the GH fault then that it got so hot! It was most interesting in the spring when I cooked 8 trays of seedlings. It is good to know it will be easier to heat than to cool! thanks for the advice, I need all I can get til I find out how to get this gh useful!

(As least you know NOT to hide your chocolate in there, eh?)

In another month or so I bet you'll be enjoying that g-house environment again. It's only a few months when they are nearly unbearably hot.

No no no, I wouldn't go near that place with a piece of chocolate in my hand! I was at my Osco (American drug stores) this morning. They had a portable greenhouse, it pops open, regular price $149. 00 for $49.00! Big enough for a person to go inside! Boy was I tempted. They only had 2 left. But after wrestling with myself, I decided one oven is enough! Could probably go into the bakery or pizza business with the one I have!!

Geez wish I lived closer that would be kind of nice but I bet then I would have to worry on how to heat it, how to cool it....not enough room for everything...yada yada..Judy