allotment greenhouse replacement glazing?

wellused

Having acquired a free greenhouse for my allotment and spent time constructing a base and erecting the frame I have now discovered that there isn't enough glass to fully glaze the greenhouse. The question is should I buy the required number of panes of glass which will cost an estimated £40 or glaze the roof in polycarbonate sheeting for the cost of £70. I would prefer to use glass but as the the greenhouse is on an allotment and could be vandalised, although I don't think that this is a particular problem at the moment but the potential is always there all the same. I would bite the bullet and go for the safer option of polycarbonate but what is the best way of securing the flimsy 4mm thick sheets into the frame, will the glass glazing clips work just as well? Don't know what to do for the best does anyone have any advice?:o

forgotmyname

4mm is only flimsy when its in large sheets, Its quite stiff in 1ft squares or similar.

Use a solid board for the lower 2ft instead of glass? It will make little to no difference in the available light.

wellused

I was shocked when I found out how much polycarbonate sheets were but they were 10mm thick, however when I sourced 4mm thick ones specifically for greenhouse glass replacement the cost came down to a more bearable level (just)! I have trawled the Internet and found a company doing 4mm polycarbonate at a comparable price to glass including delivery so I have ordered some sheets from them. I just hope that I can fix it into the frames securely enough to stop it blowing out now. Thanks for the reply!:)

royg_2

I have a polycarbonate greenhouse and would recommend using a good thick silicone sealant around the edges in addition to clips.

My greenhouse is in an exposed position and have once lost the whole section of roof panels and then on the next big storm lost some of the replacements.

Since then I have gone overboard on the silicone and added a thin metal strip to the centre of each large panel. I used one of those door threshold metal strips cut to size. This gives the big panel greater rigidity and if it were to pop in a storm the lip on the actual frame should stop the panel flying away. In a very bad storm last January I lost roof tiles and the sides of the greenhouse popped out but 6 of 8 of the roof panels stayed in place. I have since added the strips to the side panels as well and so far have had no issues in last 14 months.

It is a bit of hassle to do right but worth it if you go for polycarbonate. I would probably recommend glass if a windy sight and no strong risk of vandalism.

If you do go for them I would recommend contact 700t lmn silicon which you can get a couple of tubes quite cheap on Internet.

royg_2

I should add that by lost I mean most have popped out as I recovered majority from my garden or neighbours as after initilal pop out (which can be quite dramatic with them flying into the air!) they tend to drag on ground and not go too far.

tim_n

You can make your own by popping down to your nearest glazing company and looking through their skips. They often chuck away single glazed (and old double glazed) units. They're more than happy for you to take it away. My double glazing company fell over themselves offering to load it into my car when I mentioned it and similarly offered a van to drive round and drop other panels off if I wanted them.

You'll need a glass cutter, suitable measuring tape and a straight metal edge to score along. And very decent gloves.

I ended up getting mine free from my neighbour however who had about 20 sitting down the back of his fence he'd forgotten were there!