building a cold frame

14 years ago

I have a raised bed along the south wall of my house. I got to thinking a cold frame would be great to extend my season. Admittedly putting it on top of a raised bed may not work as well. Now I have a couple of ideas and was hoping to narrow down my options to what would actually work. This would be my first use of a cold frame or green house so no experience in what would actually work.

First thought was to just make a frame cover it in plastic and lean it against the house with plastic hanging over the ends. I figure it would be cheap easy and store out of the way during the summer. It wouldn't have a very good seal against the house though. The house is brick, so that would be a good heat sink I would think.

Next would be to make a box or boxes to that sit on the raised bed. I was thinking if I leave them open at the back I could still use the brick as a heat sink, but would not have the best sill around the back and sides. The other problem would be storage the rest of the summer. Small yard and not a lot of places to put boxes.

Finally just make the complete box to sit on my raised bed. don't have to worry about the back sill, but don't get the potential benefit of the brick heat sink. Would be nice that I don't have to worry about moisture against the house. It would cover a basement window blocking light though.

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Comments (2)

PRO
Steven Laurin & Company
14 years ago
Knowing that the most efficient cold frames utilize rigid glazing, a solid insulated structure, and heat retaining materials, I decided that it would be a chore to assemble + diassemble a cold frame each year - just for a few weeks use.

I chose to build a custom, free standing unit - which stays put all year. It's served us well for three years now. This decision was based mostly on my house's extensive back yard, situated north of the main house. Building a cold frame against the southern exposure brick veneer, which is the home's front facade, was never a consideration.

However, if the house's rear facade faced north, I would definitely have built a lean-to greenhouse against the rear facade

Consider a permanent, 3-sided installation, attached to the brick facade. I believe that the smaller scale of most cold frame designs (compared to the size of most typical greenhouses) would not pose significant moisture issues associated to your brick veneer. Therefore, attaching a three-sided fixed wooden frame with hinged, sloped glass sash panels, will serve your purposes most effectively.

There are so many details to consider once this decision is made, but with thoughtful planning, skillfully executed details, correct flashing to mortar-joint procedures, and good choices in building materials, you should be proud of the results achieved.
PRO
Steven Laurin & Company
14 years ago
Correction - of course I meant to state that if my home's rear facade faced SOUTH, I would attach a greenhouse directly to that facade.

Gardenweb should have a method of revising posts :-(
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