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, beautiful modern design and the ability to install various structures with your own hands. In addition, this material scatters light well enough, is characterized by excellent thermal insulation properties, impact resistance and immunity to ultraviolet light.
On sale you can find arched kits designed specifically for the manufacture of polycarbonate greenhouses with your own hands. When starting to design a greenhouse, it must be remembered that the plants inside such a structure should feel comfortable. One of the most important conditions for creating the correct temperature and humidity is the ventilation of the greenhouse.
Methods for creating ventilation
The ventilation system must be made in such a way that, if necessary, it is possible to block the air from the street or ensure its flow into the greenhouse.
Such systems can be manufactured in a variety of ways, each with its own 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 conventional window, with the help of which the air temperature inside the greenhouse is regulated.
So, when the air temperature inside the greenhouse rises, you can open the door and the window at the same time, creating a draft, due to which the air inside the greenhouse will begin to circulate. But, it should be noted that this method requires constant monitoring, since with a sharp increase in temperature and an untimely reaction of the owner of the greenhouse, the plants may die from the heat.
Installation of a window. When starting to install a window leaf with your own hands in a polycarbonate greenhouse, you should take into account the size of the greenhouse. So, for a small greenhouse, one small window will be enough, and for a large one, several large windows may be required. In this case, large, massive structures must be opened using gears, blocks or special handles. All these mechanisms are sold in specialized stores, so each owner can easily choose the design that suits his greenhouse. It should also be noted that the vents can be opened and closed using hydraulic devices, but they are expensive, so many owners, in order to save money, make such hydraulics with their own hands.
It is quite simple to install a window leaf on a polycarbonate greenhouse with your own hands. For this, conventional awnings are used. One side of the canopy is attached with a screwdriver to the vents strip, and the other to the screed. So that the window can be locked, if necessary, a latch should be attached to one of its slats.
Fan system
You can make artificial ventilation with your own hands using several fans, one of which should draw in air from the street, and the other should take it out of the greenhouse.
It must be remembered that to create ventilation in the greenhouse, only those fans are suitable that are equipped with a shutter that closes after shutdown.
Ventilation with fans requires electricity, therefore, if the greenhouse is located in a country house where there is no electrical network, this method will not work. In addition, it should be noted that constantly running fans will consume a lot of electricity.
To make an automatic fan with your own hands, you just need to connect it to a thermal relay. The principle of operation of this method is as follows: when the temperature rises to a certain value, the temperature relay turns on and the fan starts. Thanks to the operation of the fan, warm air begins to flow out into the street, and fresh air enters the greenhouse through the cracks.
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 plastic sewer pipe dug into the ground in such a way that one end is located inside the greenhouse at a right angle, 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 down 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 at the design stage of the structure.
Combined method
Ventilation in greenhouses is often combined. This method allows you to save electricity in the summer and use the fans during 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 heating elements.
Hydraulic system
This system is very easy to use and allows you to automatically open or close the vents 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 different sizes will be required, one of which is attached to the ceiling inside the greenhouse, and the other to a lever connected to the window. The lever is designed to open or close the window. With a significant increase in temperature, the water that is in the vessel located inside the greenhouse will begin to expand in volume, and the excess liquid will flow through the tube into the second vessel attached to the lever. The mass of the second vessel will gradually increase by acting on the lever, which, in turn, will smoothly open the window. When the temperature drops, the opposite process takes place and the window closes.
The advantage of this system is the absence of electricity consumption and ease of use. The disadvantage is that the window begins 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, opening doors and vents manually.
