Bubble Wrap the Greenhouse for Insulation

Green tomato sauce? I have heard of fried green tomatoes, but never sauce.... hm,mmmm.... you use it the same as red tomato sauce?

It's like a pickle recipe , the lady put some onions in and also Green Food coloring , it was realy green.

I started a new thread. We can move over. Bubble Wrap the Greenhouse for Insulation - PART 2


http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1077853/

had to edit the link

This message was edited Feb 24, 2010 11:19 AM

bump, it is almost time to start thinking about getting ready for winter, thought this thread would be a good review.

I can't recall if I mentioned this earlier or not when I bubble-wrapped my GH last year, but I found binder clips to be priceless when I wrapped mine! Not only were they helpful in holding the BW in place while I was hanging/affixing it, but in some cases, it was easier to use the binder clips to attach the wrap than it was to tape it. I went to Staples and just bought a couple cheap packs of them in a couple sizes so I'd have some variety depending on what I'd need and where in some tight-fitting spots.

My daughter still laughs at me because one morning, I was sitting in my chair, still sleepy and taking my first sips of coffee. The idea of how to attach the wrap in a couple places had been working my brain over for a few days, and all of a sudden, it hit me. I sat up in my chair and yelled "BINDER CLIPS!' It's amazing what a cup of joe and a good night's sleep will do for ya! :-)

Thank you for the thoughts on this...I have two big boxes of bubble wrap (I also sell on ebay) just sitting in the garage.....and it's the time of year where I might be able to get clips cheap! Gonna have to give this a go!

I had great luck using packing tape.

Has anyone tried self stick Velcro ? I have a solar pool cover I was thinking of cutting to fit the outside of the greenhouse. I was going to lay it over the greenhouse and only cut the front and back to fit and secure it with long strips of velcro. I have heard that self stick Velcro dosen't do well in heat but it is winter so I thought I might give it a shot. I don't know if it would work for bubblewrap on the inside due to high humidity and heat.
Any thoughts on this ?

I have not used it for that, but I know that it doesn't stick really well if it gets too wet. Maybe put a small strip on your roof and give it a few days to see if it will stay.

Thank you for your reply !
I am not sure about the inside bubble wrap either. I was going to try the little "dots" of velcro.
On the outside with the solar pool cover, the problem is that it does sweat between the solar pool cover and the greenhouse. I didn't want to use tape because I don't want to mess up the pool cover---but I might have to. Hope it comes off easy LOL !

Here is an update for me. My cheapo amazon.com bubble wrap is still going strong. It has been almost a year and it still looks great and it never has fallen down.

95% of the bubble wrap is still clinging to the walls/ceiling with my original water tension installation. Only near to door do I have to re-apply water every 2-3 months or so. I attribute that to wind when to doors are open. Water tension is the way to go. No mess and I just pull it off if I want to. Here in New England we just went through the hottest summer on record and the bubble wrap help up just fine.

I am keeping my greenhouse at 55-60 degrees this winter. This late December very low sun angle and long cold nights has caused me to use a decent amount to propane.

I am overwintering my wife's hyacinth shrub and her lantana hanging basket. Both are in full bloom. I am harvesting radishes, leaf lettuce, and mixed greens. Carrots just sprouted. Kinda limited with so little sun. In mid January I will be starting greenhouse tomato and cukes. And in late February all my annuals.

I need a bigger greenhouse!

Don't we all?

Just put up the HF one that's 6 x 8 and already I need a bigger greenhouse...but for the moment..this'll do....just nice to go in when it's really cold outside!

After reading this thread and others, I decided to put bubble wrap in my GH. It has leaks, which I haven't been able to plug. Today, I bought a 12" x 75' roll from Home Depot and put it up, starting at the North end, along the top and East wall. I got about 5' done, then ran out of wrap. Thank goodness it's only $12 a roll!
Barb

I used the small bubble wrap cause that's what I had....I haven't regretted it yet!

I have pieces of the big and small up in the attic that I save to use when sending packages. I'm sure they'll come in handy for those small odd spots in the GH.
Barb

When putting the bubble wrap inside on the walls of greenhouse, do you put flat side or the bubbles next to the panels?

vicki

Bubbles to the panels.

Thanks!! Will put some up.

Vicki

Does it matter the color of the bubble wrap? I'm asking cause Wal-Mart has pink color on sale for $2.00 dollars on 12"x50".

I think clear is the best way to go. The coloured bubble wrap may block the sunlight too much. Same goes for bubble size, the bigger the better to allow maximum amount of light in.

I only leave the bubble wrap up for a few weeks in March when/if our temperatures are really cold. The plants really take off within days of removing the wrap.

I am now looking for alight-weight insulated tarp to put on the roof at night. That's where the majority of heat-loss is.

Red light spectrum is important for plant growth. Primarily responsible for blooming. Pink bubble wrap is every color but pink.

The question is will the pink bubble wrap reduce the red light getting into the greenhouse or will in allow red light in and then reflect it back?

HMMMMMMM

A physicist I am not

I don't see why you couldn't use the pink for the north side and around the bottoms of the walls.

I agree w/ Cathy. I would stick to clear large bubbles for the rest. You can get it at Lowe's and HD for a reasonable price. I think I paid 20 for a roll and it covered the roof, side walls, and south wall on my 6x8 gh. I used smaller bubbles for the rest.

Done! I finished bubble wrapping the GH today. I covered the ceiling and East wall, the two areas that were the most leaky. I noticed a difference in it's ability to retain heat even when I had only covered 2/3 of it. Now it's gonna really work!