Glass Panels Ideas

[CluckyJay]

I have 8 tempered glass panels that are 5' and some odd inches tall by 2 1/2 feet wide.

I want to use one for a solar dehydrator.

What kind of greenhouse or small atrium could I make with the rest of the glass?

I want to optimize the light in some way. I could use fiberglass panels on the roof if I need to. The rest of the structure would be built out of wood. This will be a permanent fixture in my yard so I want to make it nice, as cheaply as possible.

Any ideas?

 

[Imp]

Cold frames?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_frame

Imp

 

[TouchO'Lass]

Wow, I've been trying to rustle up some old windows for a greenhouse project. kewl find!

They sound like they'd make a great GH! Are they just the glass panels or already framed in some way? Do you have access to power tools, such as a table saw and chop saw?

A friend gave me some old mobile home storm windows that just had a small aluminum track around them to use on my coop. I took a 2x4 and ran about a 1/2" deep groove down the centers of the 2" edges the length of the board. Then I ripped the board down the middle of the 4" width to make 16' of framing material. I cut 45's at the corners, glued and screwed the ends and clamped it till it dried, then siliconed the pane around the groove: Nicely framed secure window pane that I can hinge and hang.

I would do the same with each of your panels, then frame in to accommodate each with the majority of the windows facing your best sun direction and according to how big you want your GH. For example, you could make an approx 10x10 by framing a 2 or 3 ft kneewall, turn two panels on their long side and end to end, frame them in, stack two more above them, then frame a top sill, roof with the clear corrugated. That would give you enough for two full glass walls. If you want something smaller, say 6x6, you could have windows on almost all four walls, turn one upright for the fourth wall and place the door beside it.

Hinge all the windows for a little or as much ventilation as you want.

I did a quick sketch of the 6x6 idea and scanned it, but I can't figure out how to get an adobe file to post.

I could email it if you're interested...

Amazing what a little sleep will do! Here's the rough (REALLY rough) sketch.

 

[CluckyJay]

They are actually shower stall doors! They are framed in some sort of metal. My neighbor sold them to me for FIVE DOLLARS for the lot!!! They are so sweet!

I didn't think about a cold frame. Coldframes are just too awesome and if I did it with loose glass, I could reuse the panels easily for another project. Hmm. Maybe use straw hay bales as the sides? I was thinking about a greenhouse so I can start all my veggies during the winter and get a jump start on growing. I am using a deep mulch method on the garden and I want to set out plants next year. The bare ground for seeds just invite weeds, LOL. Lazy gardener here! I think I want to stick with a building so I can grow my soldier flies year-round too. Looks like I need to find more glass, huh'? LOL

Thanks for the greenhouse draft! I wonder how hard it would be to make the front of my greenhouse appear rounded? Hubby isn't thrilled with the idea of having to make that many cuts but--imagibe how pretty! Hehe, that's what I told him. LOL

 

[TouchO'Lass]

Quote:
Awesome! I would think they're really thick tempered glass having been shower doors! Great deal...

Hmmm, rounded huh?

Okay, picture a 6 sided building, with three sides being mostly glass, one side a door and the remaining two sides solid. Each side could be almost 6' wide and pretty much like the sketch, but you'd only have glass for 3 full sides and the door side. Kind of gazebo like...

The cuts for the side framing would mostly be 30 deg (360 deg divided by 6 angles=60 degs then 2 cuts per angle). When it comes to the roof it gets a lot more complicated and beyond my experience, but there are a bunch of woodworking sites out there that have that info, like Ron Hazelton's site, Woodworkers.com, Free plans, etc...
Wow. I really like that rounded idea for a greenhouse...

I need to get my coop done and go find some windows to start my GH because I have NOTHING else to do!!

Good luck, and you KNOW you must post pics when you're done!

 

[CluckyJay]

Thanks!

I will totally post when its finished. I hope we can get it done this year. My hubby just got the news that he passed his GED--that means he can hopefully get a better job!

Its gonna be fun taking those paychecks, haha.

I was thinking that I would need to make the front glass and the other sides solid. And then I was like--well, just add more ventilation and make a nice tropical aviary. So that means I will use it now as a greenhouse and later I will landscape it and breed some sort of tropical birds for sale.

I will also breed tropical fish, I think. I have a couple breeds I'm looking into. My goal is to make extra money so we can pay the mortgage off quicker.