Watch Craigslist for used ones. I bought this big one for $500, but I did have to take it down. Wasn't very hard to do.

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Or build it yourself, I have three of these. They cost about $550-$600 to build ( 3 years ago)

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I built these movable ones for a little over $700 two years ago.

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Finally for under $200, you could do this.

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There are several at Costco that may meet your needs at a good price...

Here is a link that might be useful: costco greenhouses

Maybe not give up on that bent frame just yet. See if there are any places around you that customize jeeps, etc. Some guys have tube benders, weld, etc to make custom roll cages and parts. Good luck.

My 10x12 Harbor Freight has been up for four years. I'm still very happy with it, but I'm an advocate of doing some inexpensive modifications for strength during the build. The kit when built per the manual generally will not stand up to wind, which leads to some of the posts you find about poor Harbor Freight quality. We built a simple foundation to anchor the frame, stiffened the frame with inexpensive EMT tubing from the box store, and also attached the panels with screws into the frame (only one or two per panel, not difficult.) We also ordered extra panel clips from Harbor Freight. Our greenhouse has withstood very strong winds with no problems for four years. It remains stuffed with cacti and succulents 365 days a year.

I can't find info on who makes the Grow N Up greenhouse, although it does seem to be for sale on quite a few websites. I suspect it's fairly new so finding user reviews may be difficult. I did find a few reviews, but they were so short and silly I frankly suspect they're salted in by the vendor ("I love it, it's fun...")

I think a lot of the value of these kits comes down to the quality of the twinwall poly panels. The Grow N Up is listed as having a 7 year warranty on the twinwall polycarbonate panels, which is encouraging. Of course, a warranty is only as good as the company behind it, and the Grow N Up remains a bit of a mystery in that regard. You might contact some of the Grow N Up vendors and ask specific questions about the panel warranty: what exactly is the warranty against (holes? yellowing? cracks?) and who would be replacing the panels for you...the vendor? Or, the manufacturer (and, who is that?) Maybe it’s someone you could contact, for more complete info.

One thing that worries me is there is no mention of UV protection on the Grow N Up polycarbonate panels. I worry because this has turned out to be my main disappointment with the Harbor Freight.

There is some controversy about Harbor Freight’s description of their panels as “UV coated.” If you buy quality (10 year warranty) UV coated panels from a greenhouse supply company, they come with the coated side marked, so you can position it to face the outside. Harbor Freight’s panels can go in either way, which makes some of us think there is no true coating.

In May of 2008 I started noticing posts here about Harbor Freight panels deteriorating, especially in sun-intense parts of the country, and sure enough, my own panels started to yellow about a year after purchase. Last weekend I replaced all of my roof panels, because they were almost useless (yellow, brittle, and peppered with ¼” holes every inch or two.) My roof panels lasted four years, under heavy 60% Aluminet shadecloth.

Please note, your climate may be much kinder to the Harbor Freight panels than mine is. Some Harbor Freight owners who post here have not experienced the panel deterioration problems that those of us in the sunny southwest have.

Because of the very low HF price, I ended up replacing with more Harbor Freight panels. The HF panels cost me $135 for 12 roof panels, including shipping. Good quality, real UV protected 4mm twinwall polycarbonate from Farmtek (10 year warranty) would have cost me about $435 with shipping. So, I basically kicked the can down the road for another three years or so, and went the cheaper route. I will place a second order soon, to replace yellowed and damaged wall panels (the roof needed immediate help.)

It took about a week for the panels to arrive, although I did have a little Harbor Freight adventure with incorrect tracking numbers and (apparently) lost orders. You can’t beat their prices, though. There was no crating or expensive freight fee. The shipping for twelve panels was only $12.99 by Fedex Ground!

As far as gauging the hassle factor for panel replacement, it took us about 6 hours to replace the roof panels, but that was because I also like to apply weatherstripping around all the panel edges, and I had to scrape all the old weatherstripping off first. Weatherstripping is not part of the kit, but I think it helps give me a much better seal against the aluminum frame, and hopefully helps keep my winter heating costs lower.

My greenhouse frame is still sturdy and I expect it will serve me well for years to come. That is, as long as a curious black bear doesn’t come along…!!!!!

It’s really hard to tell what quality the twinwall poly panels are in the Grow N Up. But, if they will truly honor that 7 year panel warranty, then the panels may be a better value (for some of us) than the Harbor Freight panels.

The Harbor Freight poly panels are 4mm. Grow N Up lists 6mm, so thicker, and better to reduce heat loss during the winter.

Sorry this got so long; I thought some of this info might help with your decision. Here's a link to my blog about building our Harbor Freight, so you can take a look at the modifications I mentioned. Most of them came from other helpful posters here in this forum. (You might even be able to modify some of the ideas here to use on the Grow N Up, if you purchase it and find it needs strengthening.)
Building our Harbor Freight 10x12 Greenhouse

Sorry for the character errors in the above post, I forgot it doesn't work well to compose in Word and copy and paste into this forum!

Ditto what mudhouse says about the Harbor Freight GH. We have had ours for two years. We are in zone 5 and dont heat ours over the winter. We use ours mainly March- June to put hosta seedlings in that have been started in the house over the winter.
Reinforcements do need to be done, sure worth the time and effort. Wouldnt have any other GH.

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Hi, Thanks for all the helpful information. The Grow N Up house is made by EarthCare. The fact that they don't advertise uv protection is a little concerning, However, I know that there is a problem with the HFGH so I guess I'm more worried about that.

One plus is the 6 mm double wall panels in the walls and roof. I also like the fact that there are two vents even in the 6X8.

I also am considering A Natures Premium (NP) greenhouse also sold under the EarthCare brand. The NP greenhuse only has 4 mm thick double wall panels but that is basicly stabdard in lower end greenhouses. The 7 year warranty on the panels for the NP house specificaly state that it is a warranty against discoloration of the panels.

I emailed one of the stores that sells the Grow N up greenhouse and I'll post the answers to my questions when I hear back.

Do you think that Krylon UV spray would work on the greenhouse?

http://www.misterart.com/crafts/decorative-painting/sealers-and-finishers/krylon-spray-uv-resistant-clear.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Nature Premium Greenhouse

I heard back from the store I contacted (they say they are also the manufacture) and they told me that all the panels on the Grow N up greenhouse are coated with a uv protective coating.

The company beind the Earthcare brand is Segura Trading. I don't know if anyone has heard of it.

Thanks for the EarthCare info, I found their website. I'm guessing this is a fairly new company. I sent them an email requesting information about the UV protection of their panels, I'm curious too.

I agree the 6mm is an advantage over Harbor Freight's 4mm. I really like the 7 year panel warranty, if they truly back it up. Since yellowing was the first sign of trouble with my panels (at about one year out, and long before any holes started developing) I'd be happy to find someone that would replace panels that discolored before 7 years.

The Krylon UV product is interesting, I didn't come across that several years ago, when several of us here were looking for ideas. Although it's intended for artwork, I'm wondering if it might be at least somewhat beneficial (although it might take a lot of spray cans...?) I did find one review on that site that says: "Not a great product if you plan to have print / banner exposed to temperatures below 30 degrees. Product coating ghosts or gains a chalky appearance." So I'd definately test a small area and expose it to weather, before applying it widely.

The main problem with using any UV product (for uses other than intended) is it would probably be a very long time before any of us knows if it worked, or if there might be unseen adverse affects down the road. Makes it so hard to know how wise it is to invest the time/money!

I would love it if Harbor Freight eventually improved the quality of their panels because of competition from similar greenhouse manufacturers. When I ordered my roof panels, I asked the salesperson if they thought any panel improvements had been made since I bought my greenhouse four years ago, and they said no.

I tried to unmuddle these folks, mainly because a warranty is only as good as the company offering it. They have at least five different websites (after that, I stopped looking.) Kinda confusing to have so many different sites, some with different phone numbers, but they are obviously working on building an internet presence with websites and blogs (mostly non-helpful copy written for internet search engine benefits, nothing wrong with that.)

My guess is the EarthCare greenhouses have to be at least partially manufactured outside of the US because of the low cost, which still makes me wonder about the panel quality (based on my experience with the Harbor Freight Chinese-made panels.) Here is what I've turned up, in case it helps other folks too.

This website has the following: "EarthCare Greenhouses is a family owned wholesale and retail company based out of Youngsville, Louisiana, United States. The company is owned by (family names.) Currently, the company employs 4 full time employees and 3 part time employees, most are from the United States, but there are employees living in the Philippines and Romania. Their product line is carried exclusively by EarthCare, within the United States of America. The greenhouses are extremely unique and are built with many features not found in traditional greenhouses, found in the United States. Before the year 2011, EarthCare products were only available and sold at retail pricing, but in January of 2011 the company began accepting wholesale applications for verified U.S. businesses."

On www.ourcrazydeals.com" they list a wide range of greenhouses. This site's About Us page says: "Our Crazy Deals is a part of the family owned company Segura Trading LLC, the company was founded, in 2000, with a mission to provide high quality products and services to our customers. We sell a full line of Outdoor Hobby Greenhouses of every brand, style, and price range, also a wide selection of Compost Gardening Equipment, Hydroponics Growing Systems, (etc etc.) The majority of the products we sell are stored in our main warehouse, in pictures below, located in Youngsville, LA United States. Orders usually ship out within 1-2 business days and can be expected to be received in 1-2 weeks of purchase."

From www.bestgardengifts.com": "The EarthCare brand is our custom line of greenhouses and green products that are manufactured in Louisiana or China. You will not be able to find this brand on non-affiliated websites. We handle all warranties in house."

On www.minigreenhousekits.com they list a range of greenhouses for sale. This site does have a sorta quirky "Who Are We" statement:
"Mini Greenhouse Kits is a family owned wholesale and retail manufacturing and distribution company, that strives to bring environmentally friendly products, to consumers at the lowest possible prices. Our goal is to promote the maximum amount of green living influence possible, within the United States of America. Throughout, the history of the company, we have documented, displayed, and researched the natural effects that simple everyday pro-active activities can accumulate, which has resulted in a number of truly remarkable statistics and data. Companies, like us, are far and few between, and the last line of defense, against natural disaster on a global scale."

From USA Greenhouses for Sale Store: "The U.S.A. Greenhouses for Sale Store was founded on January 1st, 2011 by Segura Trading LLC. Segura Trading is a family owned company, founded in 2000, that manufacturers and distributes professional greenhouse gardening tools and supplies in the United States, at both a wholesale and retail level."

From www.earthcaregreenhouses.com: EarthCareGreenhouses.com is owned and operated by Segura Trading LLC, a family owned company established in 2004. The company is based out of Lafayette, LA with our headquarters in Youngsville, LA. We are the sole manufacturer of the EarthCare lines, which includes every product for sale on this website."

This is the website I emailed yesterday, asking for info about their UV coating, and they haven't answered me yet. Since this website deals only with the Earthcare greenhouses you're interested in, this is the one I'd call.

The Twitter Page for Segura Trading: "Lafayette, Louisiana; Segura Trading is a family owned company that manufacturers gardening equipment and sell on Amazon, Ebay, Buy.com, and many more places around the web."

The Facebook page for OurCrazyDeals.com:
"Since 2002, Our Crazy Deals has been providing gardeners across the United States with the best gardening tools and accessories, and at the best price. The company has 2 warehouses in which products are stored and shipped out everyday."

ourcrazydeals is also a huge eBay seller, with overall feedback that's quite good (that's encouraging!) I found one comment about a Grow N Up greenhouse from a recent buyer: "Instruction were only pictures, no descriptions, made construction very vague."

Personally, I'd call, and have a detailed conversation about the Grow N Up greenhouse. I'd ask specifically about the panel warranty (the biggest appeal, to me.) If they are the manufacturer, they could tell you how long it's been for sale, and if they have had to replace panels under the warranty. You could ask how the panels are installed on the greenhouse frame (a known weakness of the Harbor Freight kit, although easily remedied.) Do the panels attach with clips? Insert into grooves in the frame? Do the panels have a UV coating on one side, clearly marked so that side faces out for installation? (If they say no to this, beware, since Harbor Freight ducks this question too, and this was my first clue that the panel quality was gonna be a problem.)

If I had to buy another greenhouse I'd probably buy a Harbor Freight, since it's a known quantity. I like the PDF file on their website to the entire construction manual, so you can really see exactly how the thing goes together, before you buy it. But, the Grow N Up might be a good value too, if you're willing to take a chance on a greenhouse that doesn't seem to have an active community of owners posting about it on the internet (at this time.) Maybe you can have a good exchange with them.

This GardenWeb thread from last month mentioned the name EarthCare in the title, but didn't seem to turn up any EarthCare owners: Any experience with Earthcare greenhouse?

If you do order the Grow N Up, I hope you'll post back with your experiences.

I emailed the folks at our crazy deals and got a prompt response. The Grow N Up Greenhouse came on the market in April of this year. The 7 year warranty protects against discoloration of the panels or any other manufacturing defects.

The only reviews I've found are all on sites associated with Segura Trading and of course are all very positive. I'm worried that this greenhouse is not proven but The HFGH worries me becuase it seems to have been proven to be of less than desirable quality. Idealy I would get something like the Riga Onion but I don't have $4,000 to shell out so I have to settle for a cheaper lower quality greenhouse. Whatever Greenhouse I decide on i will post my experience with it here.