Currently, many summer residents and owners of private houses are increasingly installing greenhouses made of polycarbonate. This is due to the fact that polycarbonate has a relatively low price, a beautiful modern design and the ability to install various designs with your own hands. In addition, this material diffuses light quite well, is characterized by excellent thermal insulation properties, impact resistance and resistance to ultraviolet light.
On sale you can find arched kits designed specifically for making polycarbonate greenhouses with your own hands. When starting to design a greenhouse, you must remember that the plants inside such a structure should feel comfortable. One of the most important conditions for creating the correct temperature and humidity is ventilation of the greenhouse.
Ways to create ventilation
The ventilation system should be made in such a way that, if necessary, it was possible to block the access of air from the street or to ensure its flow into the greenhouse.
Such systems can be manufactured in various ways, each of which differs in its advantages and disadvantages.
Natural ventilation
The simplest and most common way is natural ventilation. It can be done with your own hands quite simply and quickly, without spending significant money. This design is a regular window, with which the air temperature inside the greenhouse is regulated.
So, with increasing air temperature inside the greenhouse, you can simultaneously open the door and the window, creating a draft, so that the air inside the greenhouse will begin to circulate. But, it should be noted that this method requires constant monitoring, because with a sharp increase in temperature and untimely reaction of the owner of the greenhouse, plants can die from the heat.
Installation of a window leaf. When starting to install a window with your own hands in a polycarbonate greenhouse, you should consider the size of the greenhouse. So, for a small greenhouse, one small window will be sufficient, and for a large one, several large window leaves may be required. At the same time, large, massive structures must be opened with gears, blocks or special handles. All these mechanisms are sold in specialized stores, so each owner can easily choose the design that is suitable specifically for his greenhouse. It should also be noted that the air vents can be opened and closed using hydraulic devices, but they are expensive, so many owners make such hydraulics with their own hands to save money.
Installing a window on a polycarbonate greenhouse with your own hands is quite simple. For this, ordinary canopies are used. One side of the canopy is attached with a screwdriver to the window leaf panel, and the second to the screed. In order for the window to be locked if necessary, a latch should be attached to one of its strips.
Fan system
You can make artificial ventilation with your own hands with the help of several fans, one of which should draw air from the street, and the other to take it out of the greenhouse.
It must be remembered that in order to create ventilation in the greenhouse, only those fans that are equipped with a shutter that closes after shutting down are suitable.
Ventilation with fans provides for the availability of electricity, so if the greenhouse is in the country, where there is no electric network, this method will not work. In addition, it should be noted that constantly operating fans will consume a lot of electricity.
To make an automatic fan with your own hands, you just need to connect it to the thermal relay. The principle of operation of this method is as follows: when the temperature rises to a certain value, the temperature relay switches on and the fan starts. Thanks to the fan, warm air begins to go outside, and fresh air enters the greenhouse through slots.
To increase the efficiency of the automatic fan, you can build a window at the other end of the greenhouse, which will open when the fan is turned on.
Plastic pipe
Ventilation can be organized using a sewer pipe made of plastic, dug into the ground so that one end of it is located at the right angle inside the greenhouse and the other goes outside. This method promotes air circulation due to temperature differences, while in cold weather the air in the greenhouse will not cool too quickly.
If the foundation of a polycarbonate greenhouse is made of concrete or brickwork, then the supply of the ventilation pipe should be taken care of even at the design stage.
Combined method
Often ventilation in greenhouses is combined. This method allows you to save electricity in the summer and use fans in the cold season.
Important! To ensure the correct circulation of air masses, the supply fan must be located at one end, and the exhaust fan at the other. Also, do not make ventilation holes near the heating elements.
Hydraulic system
This system is very convenient in operation and allows you to automatically open or close the window in the greenhouse without the fate of its owner. The hydraulic system can be purchased ready-made, or you can do it yourself with your own hands.
The principle of its operation is based on the method of communicating vessels. To organize such a system, two containers of various sizes will be required, one of which is mounted under the ceiling inside the greenhouse, and the other to the lever connected to the window leaf. The lever is designed to open or close the window. Water, which is located in a vessel located inside the greenhouse, with a significant increase in temperature, will begin to expand in volume, and excess liquid will flow through the tube into a second vessel attached to the lever. The mass of the second vessel will gradually increase, acting on the lever, and that, in turn, will gradually open the window. When the temperature decreases, the reverse process occurs and the window closes.
The advantage of this system is the lack of energy costs and ease of use. The disadvantage is that the window starts to open only when the air in the greenhouse is already too warm. Therefore, hydraulics are best used when growing plants that are not too afraid of high temperatures, or when the owner has the ability to control the temperature, if necessary by opening the doors and vents manually.
