How to cover a greenhouse with film. Reinforced film for greenhouses: how to choose, properties, application of the material. Rules for constructing film greenhouses

The climate in Russia is quite cool even in summer. Grow on own plot A rich harvest of vegetables is possible using arc greenhouses with covering material. This is about middle lane Russian Federation, Volga region, Central region and Northwestern central district. What should the arcs be made of for such a greenhouse, and what covering material should I use?

Positive traits

Shelters have a number of advantages that make their use simple and long-lasting. This is due to their portability, light weight and installation that anyone can handle. A greenhouse can be purchased as a ready-made kit or made independently, whether it has arcs or not. It is used both for growing heat-loving crops in regions with a temperate climate, and as a temporary shelter when planting seedlings in open ground.

Characteristic

A greenhouse under arcs with covering material can be purchased as a ready-made kit or assembled yourself. When deciding to create a design yourself, you should know a number of features. An arched greenhouse can have any height and width. The optimal width is a distance from 0.6 to 1.2 m. It is directly proportional to the height. Often the width and height are made the same - 1 m. Before installation, you should accurately determine the type of vegetables to be grown and their height, and the location of the structure. A greenhouse made of arcs looks like in the photo.

Important! The greenhouse can be dismountable or installed on a foundation, with a service life of several years.

Material used

The arcs under the greenhouse are not installed further than 1 m from each other. It is worth considering that the collapsible design has less strength. By reducing the distance between the arcs for a greenhouse in St. Petersburg, you can make it more stable and strong. The size of the arc for the planned greenhouse depends on the area of the room. When making arcs for a greenhouse with your own hands, you need to take into account the material used at home:

tree branches;
aluminum profile;
heating pipes;
hose and wire;
plastic or metal pipes.

The choice of material from which the arcs for the greenhouse will be made with their own hands remains with the owner.

When choosing tree branches, you should understand that such a greenhouse made of arcs with covering material will reliably last no more than a season. The branches are connected to each other and firmly fixed; they can be combined with a used hose. The bark is not removed from them. When choosing durable long branches the design can be obtained without an arched vault, rectangular.

Important! An aluminum profile will help create a durable and reliable structure that will last for many years.

The arches are secured with nuts or bolts. This frame is lightweight and easy to attach the covering material. The disadvantage may be the relatively high cost of the material.

It is easy to assemble a pipe frame using factory couplings and fastening systems designed for them. Bend may be a problem metal pipe for the purpose of use as arcs on a greenhouse, which are used to secure the covering material. For this you need to have special equipment. Using plastic blanks is much easier. They bend easily and give the frame the necessary strength. The main thing is to properly fasten them to the ground, using special stakes half a meter long, made of metal or wood. The pipe is placed on the resulting peg. If you try to drive plastic greenhouse arcs into the ground, they can be damaged or split. The larger the diameter of the pipe, the more reliable the structure will be. If there is a wooden box, the plastic pipe can be secured to the wood using a metal bracket.

The flexibility of plastic also has a negative effect on the strength of the structure. The plastic arc used for the greenhouse bends easily when pressed or handled carelessly. It is better to make the door using a wooden frame, since this part is most often used. To facilitate the operation of a prefabricated greenhouse on arcs with covering material, completely wooden box, to which plastic arcs for the greenhouse are attached. The use of a metal arc for a greenhouse in a PVC shell occurs in a similar way.

Important! Making a metal frame will be difficult.

The availability of welding equipment will be one of the main conditions. Difficulties will also arise when bending metal. It’s easier to cut it and, having secured it by welding, give it the required form, having received a metal arc for a greenhouse in a PVC shell.

Metal carcass often installed on a finished foundation, in which fasteners are left. You will need rods long enough to cover the entire length of the greenhouse, and short ones for making arcs. A greenhouse made from metal arcs with covering material will be the most durable and reliable.

Greenhouse material

Covering material for a tall greenhouse made of arcs must meet a number of requirements:

have light transmission;
protect from temperature changes;
differ in strength.

The choice is made between materials:

film coating (PVC or reinforced film);
non-woven material;
polycarbonate

Film covering for a greenhouse made from arcs with covering material varies in its characteristics and price. Regular PVC film is inexpensive. It lets in enough light and can withstand large temperature fluctuations. This material is harmless to environment, does not release toxins that settle in the soil. Its service life is no more than one year. The disadvantage of using a film coating will be the creation of condensation inside the greenhouse, preventing the penetration of moisture and fresh air. Reinforced film has greater strength, which ensures a longer service life. However, it transmits light 30% less than usual, and is also expensive. This makes it of little use for greenhouses.

Nonwovens are becoming increasingly popular. One of them is spunbond. It lets just the right amount of heat into the greenhouse. To make the plant comfortable, preventing it from overheating or burning in too bright sun. The ability to pass water and air makes the atmosphere inside the greenhouse with covering material most favorable for growing, and even allows for watering from above. Spunbond is useful in preventing crop loss due to invading birds or insects. It does not deform, does not crack and will last for several seasons. However, it is not able to protect the crop from excess rain. Often there is a need to additionally cover the greenhouse on top with another material - moisture-proof. The fastening of such material is similar to the fastening of film.

Polycarbonate is often used as a covering material. It has a long service life. Its thermal insulation ability depends on the density of the material. It transmits light perfectly. A light weight and the design ensures ease of installation. However, the cost of such material is expensive.

Important! Over time, polycarbonate may crack when exposed to sun and water.

Film fastening methods

There are many ways to securely fasten the film. The easiest way is with a wooden greenhouse, to which it is nailed, having first been wrapped around a special plank in several layers. This will prevent damage to the material. The metal frame should be wrapped in white cloth or with pieces of old hoses, as it is exposed to temperatures and gets very hot. You can make holes in the metal and secure the film with self-tapping screws. The stretched film is strengthened with a cord or fishing line, which is attached in small increments from the inner and outside greenhouse Arcs from plastic pipes they simply cover it with film and secure it on top in several places with a cut pipe of slightly larger diameter. The main thing is to make the edges smooth so that they do not tear the film. There are special film clips on sale that will make it easier to attach the covering material to the greenhouse arcs.

When installing from polycarbonate, it is worth protecting the ends of the sheet special devices or self-adhesive tape. Do not forget about the condensate outlet holes that must be left.

Polycarbonate is attached to a metal frame using special screws or thermal washers. Their use will protect the shelter from air penetration through the attachment point. Considering that polycarbonate can expand when exposed to heat, it is not fastened very firmly, leaving room for movement. In places where the material comes into contact with the metal, the frame is wrapped with thermal film.

Only the user decides what type of covering material to choose. PVC film is the most budget option. Using glass and polycarbonate will be more expensive, but their service life is much longer. Non-woven fiber will ensure the maintenance of a favorable microclimate in the greenhouse. Its use will allow you to rarely visit the garden and is ideal for summer residents who visit the site occasionally. In addition, temporary shelters for seedlings are easier to make from film.

Ready-made greenhouse kits

There are a number of ready-made greenhouses with sewn-in arcs for mass production. The convenience of their acquisition lies in the ease of installation and availability detailed instructions. There is no need to search for components and connect them. The most popular models:

Dayas

It uses sewn-in covering material and arcs made of 0.20 cm thick polymer. The length of the arc for a greenhouse is from 4 to 6 m. Special legs serve as attachments to the ground of the structure. Appearance a greenhouse made of arches covered with covering material is shown in the photo.

Snowdrop

PVC arcs make the greenhouse quite durable. The length of the arc for shelter can reach 8 m. The finished kit contains both legs and clamping clips.

cucumber

has a galvanized profile structure. The kit includes PVC film, screws, nuts for fastening, fixing strips, cords for fixing the film. This greenhouse can be called the tallest among arc greenhouses using covering material.

Websites of companies producing greenhouses made of arcs with covering material give detailed information about assembling models, including a detailed video.

Except ready-made kits for a greenhouse, can be purchased individual elements. So, the arcs used for shelter can not be made by yourself, but can be taken as a set anywhere in the country.

There are no similar entries.

Until recently, gardeners were rarely concerned with the question of how to cover a greenhouse, because there were only two options - polyethylene or glass. With the expansion of the agricultural market, when new materials, still untested by long-term practice, appeared, the choice became more difficult. Which one has the proper strength and durability, holds heat well, and is quite inexpensive? And do the new products have any negative aspects that manufacturers are silent about, but a vegetable grower should definitely know?

The yield depends on the quality of the covering material

Film and glass coverings of greenhouses do not give up their positions. The reason for this is relatively low cost(glass, of course, is not cheap, but many farms have a supply of it) and a decent number of advantages. However, before you cover the greenhouse with the usual material, make sure you know what varieties of it appeared in Lately, and whether their characteristics meet your agronomic goals.

Glass greenhouse - archaic or modern

A glass greenhouse structure is a classic. Due to the high light transmittance of the material, the crops grown receive enough sun rays necessary for their full development. Glass does not fade over time, is easy to clean and wash, and damaged elements are easily replaced with new ones, so you can purchase used material without compromising the functionality of the greenhouse.

In addition, glass is durable, resistant to temperature changes, abrasives and chemical components of fertilizers. Another undoubted advantage This covering material is that it does not need to be removed for the winter, which means a lot of effort is saved both in autumn and winter. If the greenhouse is planned to be heated, then glass surface, having low thermal conductivity, will actively prevent heat loss.

However, it is quite easy to dissuade enthusiasts about the infallibility of a glass greenhouse: its disadvantages are quite capable of outweighing its advantages.

In particular, light transmittance can be detrimental - in southern regions plants in such structures suffer from an excess of light and must be protected by artificial shading. Glass is heavy, so its installation requires creating a heavy foundation and frame.

Strip foundation for a glass greenhouse

The fragility of glass is another reason for its limited use. If vandals are walking around your area, sooner or later the glass greenhouse will become the object of their close attention. Absolutely inflexible glass dictates the shape of the structure; for example, it is impossible to build an arched greenhouse from it.

In summary, if you do not have a sufficient supply of glass at home and have to buy it, then glazing the greenhouse is not the best choice.

Film – an old friend with new habits

Cheap and practical polyethylene is barely enough for one season of use, which does not suit all summer residents. Its rapid wear is due to exposure to ultraviolet radiation and temperature changes, especially frequent in early spring. Therefore, ordinary film is bought only because of the price, but covering material, improved by one or more modifiers, has recently been increasing in popularity due to its quality factor.

Adding light-stabilizing additives to the polymer mass increases the service life of the shelter from 2 seasons to 3 years, during which the elasticity and frost resistance of the film are maintained. However, all this time it must be protected from contact with chromium and sulfur contained in some pesticides, since they destroy UV stabilizers. Thus, a greenhouse made of PET film with UV protection is optimal for growing organic vegetables.

Anti-condensation films successfully combat another disadvantage of polyethylene - increased formation of moisture on the surface. Experienced gardeners They know how quickly excessive humidity and condensation drops lead to plant rot and disease. You can combat this in different ways, but the least labor-intensive option is to use a film with antifog.

Antistatic agents in the film prevent the loss of its elasticity due to the accumulation of dust on the surface. Such contamination risks the fact that dust particles cause the appearance of microcracks, which, in turn, open access to UV rays. Therefore, antistatic films last longer than usual and are also a long-term option.

The reinforced material is distinguished by a cellular frame made of polymer fibers, which take on the main load during operation. Among the new products that have appeared relatively recently, we should note multilayer film, usually consisting of three layers with different additives. This technology is used to create universal material with a complex important properties. More high price it is compensated by trouble-free installation and long service life.

Covering materials for greenhouse farming in recent years

When deciding what is the best way to cover a greenhouse, one cannot help but pay attention to the know-how actively offered by manufacturers - agrotextiles and polycarbonate. Reviews about these materials are very contradictory, but almost everyone agrees - with proper quality, strict adherence to installation and operation technology, they remain suitable for maintaining greenhouse conditions for a long time.

Is spunbond suitable for covering a greenhouse?

Non-woven fabric made of extruded polymer fibers, called spunbond based on its production technology, is ideal for covering greenhouses. Despite the fact that white agro-fabric is opaque, due to its porous structure it transmits sunlight well and, unlike other materials, does not disturb air exchange. Thanks to this, the plants receive enough fresh air even when the ventilation vents are closed.

Spunbond in a greenhouse lasts only 1 year

Spunbond also copes with the main task, namely protecting early crops from the cold. However, pay attention to the density of the material: 42 g/m2 will be enough to provide protection from frost up to 55 degrees, while agrotextiles with a density of 60 g/m2 can cover even a year-round greenhouse. In hot weather, it is also indispensable, since it relieves the vegetable grower of worries about additional shading of the structure.

What are the disadvantages of agrofibre?

There are quite a few of them:

some owners complain about the high cost for them - about 2 times more than films;
poor wind resistance - carefully consider the system of attaching the material to the frame so that it does not become disheveled during a storm;
water permeability - this feature of the material in the rainy season turns into its disadvantage.

If these nuances are taken into account, spunbond does not cause any complaints when operating a greenhouse for 4–5 seasons.

Polycarbonate - a revolution in greenhouse farming

A fundamentally new covering material made of transparent plastic called polycarbonate. Its variety is cellular polycarbonate, characterized by high thermal insulation properties: a sheet with a thickness of 6 mm is comparable in thermal conductivity to a double-glazed window. The service life of this coating promised by the manufacturers is also impressive – 20 years.

Arched polycarbonate greenhouse

The positive properties of polycarbonate are not limited to this. Among the advantages reported not by theorists, but by practitioners, the following should be mentioned:

flexibility - polycarbonate sheets are suitable for the construction of greenhouses of any shape;
strength - the structure, properly reinforced with stiffening ribs, can withstand hail, gusts of wind and snow pressure;
fire safety - polycarbonate is fire-resistant, therefore it is indispensable when installing heated greenhouses.

Is there even a drop of tar in this ointment?

Yes, and unfortunately, a few. The most significant disadvantage is the high price of polycarbonate material. Only a self-confident garden owner, who expects a significant return in the form of a bountiful harvest for his own consumption or sale, can afford a greenhouse completely covered with it.

It is better to entrust the installation of a polycarbonate greenhouse to specialists. It is very difficult for a beginner to assemble it on his own, since there are many technological nuances on which the durability of the entire structure directly depends. Often, negative feedback about such greenhouses is left by those who have faced the depressing consequences of improper assembly.

Scheme for installing polycarbonate on a greenhouse

Surface care cannot be called easy either. polycarbonate greenhouse: Cleaning should be done with the utmost care, using soft cloths and neutral chemicals. Use is strictly prohibited household chemicals containing abrasives, chlorine, aldehydes, salts, alkalis. When removing snow and ice, do not use sharp objects, otherwise the UV protective layer will be damaged.

What material can be considered ideal

When choosing what is best to make a greenhouse from, you don’t want to make a mistake, but if you draw the appropriate conclusions, a perfect covering material does not yet exist. It is recommended to determine it individually for each case, based on the specific task set for the construction of the greenhouse, climatic features terrain, types of crops grown, their quantity, volume and sensitivity to environmental conditions.

So, it is better for a beginning summer resident to make his first greenhouse from the most affordable materials.

Fans of vegetable growing with experience can already play with combinations various options: For example, top part The greenhouse, which serves as the roof, is made of polycarbonate, the side walls are made of polyethylene, and the end walls are made of spunbond. This technology, with proper sealing of the joints, will ensure strength, wind resistance and constant ventilation of the structure.

Example of combining materials

If you have already decided what is the best way to cover the greenhouse, it would be useful to get acquainted with the leading manufacturers of the selected material. Often sellers cannot competently clarify how one and another option differs, so also understand the labeling. By the way, the quality of its application can also tell you a lot. By choosing with diligence, you can count on a greenhouse that meets all your requirements.

Fixing greenhouse film

The easiest and cheapest way is to make a greenhouse or greenhouse with a film coating, which is what many summer residents do every spring. The main task in this case is to securely attach the film to the greenhouse.
How to do this, depending on the frame material, we will tell you in this article.

Film is not the most durable and wear-resistant material. Regular polyethylene film only lasts for one season of use, as it tears easily and stretches under the influence high temperature and is destroyed by ultraviolet rays.
But her low price allows you to put up with this shortcoming.

For reference. There are also more durable modern film materials on sale that can last 5-6 years, but it is advisable to remove them for the winter.

Wooden frame

You don’t have to cut or unroll the purchased film, but use it in two layers. As a rule, it is a sleeve one and a half meters wide, which is cut along one side and a fabric 3 meters wide is obtained.
If you do not do this, then you can thread a strong cord along the edges of the sleeve using a wooden peg and secure its ends on opposite sides of the frame, pulling it well. The next one is tightly attached with an overlap of 15 cm on the previous one.

Note. This method of attaching the film to the greenhouse doubles the consumption of the coating, but also increases its service life.

The easiest way to attach the film to a frame made of reinforcement is with special paper clips.

Frame made of plastic pipes

Plastic does not heat up as much as metal and has smooth surface, so a frame made from it does not need additional protection from heating. If you are building a shelter from ready-made plastic arcs sold in stores, then they usually come with special clips for attaching the greenhouse film, pressing it to the frame.

If you use regular plastic pipes, you can make the clamps yourself from scraps of the same pipe or a slightly larger diameter. To do this, a tube 8-10 cm long is sawed along the wall lengthwise and pulled apart.
To avoid damaging the blade during fastening, the edges of the cut are treated with sandpaper or melted over a fire.

Advice. Exactly the same clamp for strengthening the greenhouse film can be made for a frame made of thin metal pipes.

Conclusion

If you have your own ideas and practical advice, how and with what to fix the film on a greenhouse, we and our other readers will be happy to listen to them and discuss them.

The main task for fastening the film is simple - secure it so that it does not blow away in the wind. But increasingly, summer residents are interested in “safe” methods of fastening, without the need to pierce the film with nails.
The article will describe 5 ways to attach the film to a greenhouse without having to pierce the film.

Lath (option for a wooden frame).

In this method you can use wooden slats(glazing beads for windows are not recommended) with nails or self-tapping screws, or even better, packing tape secured with staples from a construction stapler.

As an option, cut a ribbon from old linoleum or any other strong material.

For many, this is the worst way to cover a greenhouse - because you have to damage the film. Such film does not last long, a couple of seasons at most. It’s fine if you nail down cheap film, but nailing down durable, expensive film for a couple of seasons is stupid, especially if there are safer ways.

Although reinforced greenhouse film is not afraid of breakouts from nails.

Lath nailed at the ends

If in the first method the film is attached to the frame of the greenhouse both on the sides and to the roof rafters, in this method the film is attached only to the ends of the greenhouse. How exactly is shown in the photo below.
If the film is not reinforced, then it very often breaks on nails (from the wind). This method reduces damage to the film and the chance that the wind will tear the film.

Clamps, clips (option for frames made of PVC pipes, fittings)

How to attach film to a greenhouse made of plastic pipes? You can secure the film to the greenhouse using special clips. Such clamps can be found in the store, their price is not too expensive.

But if you couldn’t buy clamps, you can make them yourself from the same plastic pipes. The process is not particularly complicated. To do this, you need to cut the tubes and cut off the side part of them. To attach the film to pvc pipe You'll have to experiment a little with the size of the cutout in the clip. It is better to grind down the edges of the clips, otherwise they may tear the film. An example of such a PVC greenhouse with snaps is described here.
Any material is placed under the metal clips that will prevent metal overheated in the sun from spoiling the film.
Some originals secure the film using paper clips. If the frame allows it, then why not.

Film fixation system for greenhouse

This fixation system consists of 2 parts - a PVC clip (resistant to UV radiation) and a galvanized (aluminum) profile. I think the principle of its operation is clear - the PPC snaps into the profile along with the film, without any damage to the material. The system is mounted on roofs, side walls and ends.

Another option is double clips for attaching the film to an aluminum profile.
Of all the methods of attaching film to a greenhouse, this is the simplest in terms of installation and dismantling of the film.

Net

Most safe way attaching the film to the greenhouse. First, the greenhouse needs to be covered with a film, and a mesh on top of it; the mesh itself is tied to the body.
In this case, the film is not damaged in any way, but there is one drawback - you will have to tighten the film more often, especially after rain and if there is no additional fastening.

Rope, harness, elastic cord

Almost the same as in the case of greenhouse mesh, but instead of it a polypropylene cord or elastic band is used. Moreover, you need to tie the greenhouse in the form of a Z (between two parallel cords - one diagonally).

Eyelets and elastic cord

It’s a rather specific method, so I’ll describe it briefly. Eyelets are a hole in the film reinforced with a metal or plastic ring. It is not suitable for ordinary film, only for strong film and preferably with the addition of a cuff that will prevent the eyelet from breaking through the material.

If you have your own interesting examples attaching the film to the greenhouse - share with them in the comments.

Lath (option for a wooden frame).

In this method, you can use wooden slats (glazing beads for windows are not recommended) with nails or self-tapping screws, or even better, packing tape secured with staples from a construction stapler.

As an option, cut a ribbon from old linoleum or any other strong material.

Although reinforced greenhouse film is not afraid of breakouts from nails.

Lath nailed at the ends

Clamps, clips (option for frames made of PVC pipes, fittings)

How to attach film to a greenhouse made of plastic pipes? You can secure the film to the greenhouse using special clips. Such clamps can be found in the store, their price is not too expensive.

But if you couldn’t buy clamps, you can make them yourself from the same plastic pipes. The process is not particularly complicated. To do this, you need to cut the tubes and cut off the side part of them. To attach the film to the PVC pipe, you will have to experiment a little with the size of the cutout in the clamp. It is better to grind down the edges of the clips, otherwise they may tear the film. An example of such a PVC greenhouse with snaps is described here.
Any material is placed under the metal clips that will prevent metal overheated in the sun from spoiling the film.
Some originals secure the film using paper clips. If the frame allows it, then why not.

Film fixation system for greenhouse

Net

The safest way to attach the film to the greenhouse. First, the greenhouse needs to be covered with a film, and a mesh on top of it; the mesh itself is tied to the body.
In this case, the film is not damaged in any way, but there is one drawback - you will have to tighten the film more often, especially after rain and if there is no additional fastening.

Rope, harness, elastic cord

Eyelets and elastic cord

If you have your own interesting examples of attaching film to a greenhouse, share them with them in the comments.