Aquaponics Greenhouse

Leslie Carl
Leslie Carl Posts: 255 ✭✭✭✭
edited November 2020 in Building Projects

We are in the process of building an aquaponics greenhouse in North Carolina near Charlotte. By the end of this year we should complete Phase 1 which involves building the prep area for the greenhouse. For the first while, this area will also double as a production area for our test gardens and small crops, while we work on adding the larger main greenhouse section adjoining this one. Then we will move all the production into the larger area.

I'm including a photo of our progress. The outer parts of the structure are in place along with windows, window openers, doors, screening and we will next be putting in the flooring and covering it in greenhouse plastic. After that we will finish the interior and add all of the equipment. The more it comes together, the more exciting it gets!


Comments

  • EarlKelly
    EarlKelly Posts: 230 ✭✭✭

    Very impressed. Keep us posted on your headway. Would love to see more pictures. Should be a great investment to your home food supply.👍️

  • Leslie Carl
    Leslie Carl Posts: 255 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2019

    Finally! We had a day off when it didn't rain, so we managed to get the plastic cover over the prep room/greenhouse! We were hoping to get the floor in first but with the weather closing in, the cover became more important. Still some final touch up to do but here's some pics.

    We're so excited to get to start working on the interior!

  • SuperC
    SuperC Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭

    Oh my goodness! This DIY is stellar! Congrats on starting, and for keeping us here updated using photos.

  • EarlKelly
    EarlKelly Posts: 230 ✭✭✭

    Looking fantastic! Can hardly wait to see the finished product. I’m envious .

  • Leslie Carl
    Leslie Carl Posts: 255 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2019

    Thanks for the support @EarlKelly and @teachercaryn! I guess I should've started from the beginning and put up some pics of what it looked like when we started back in 2017. There was a lot of work done to get us to this point.

    So here's a shot of the land before we started clearing it. This is from the front corner looking back diagonally across the area we marked off. The little post you see sticking up to the right a little, is the front east corner of the actual greenhouse. The prep shed would be out of view, to the right.

    Yeah, it was covered with trees! We spent the last half of the summer just clearing the trees and excavating the plot. Here's a few small pics of that process.

    The last pic is of our friend Rob running the excavator. We are leasing the land from him. He's been helping us all the way through. Great guy! We couldn't have done it without him!

    I didn't get any pics of the big excavator we hired to do most of the leveling, but this is what it looked like afterward. This whole area was covered with trees when we started! I think we dug out 60 or more trees! Not that I'm proud of that. It was just a BIG job for the 3 of us! My husband and I did over half of them by ourselves.

    The prep shed we are working on now is in the middle where you can see we've started putting in footings at this point.

    Here's a closer view from the back side.

    The area to the right of the shed is where the first actual greenhouse will be built. It'll be 72 ft. long and 36 ft. wide. The second greenhouse will be on the other side of the shed and we plan to make it 100 ft. long. This is where we had to stop for the year due to the cold, wet winter closing in.

    We had to take a break in 2018 due to lack of funds, but started back up in 2019 and by the middle of March, we had the foundation in for the prep shed.

    The rain slowed us down a bit but by the middle of June we got the framing done and raised the walls.

    Then we added the siding, roof, door & window framing and screening, automatic roof vents, and paint. Which brings us to where we are at the beginning of this post and the image there.

    Whew! What a process! :) But it's all coming together. More fun stuff ahead! It's great to be making progress again!

  • EarlKelly
    EarlKelly Posts: 230 ✭✭✭

    Unbelievable amount of work you’ve accomplished. Thanks for the picture update. Like you anxious to see the final product and start producing. Enjoyed looking at the pictures. You and your family should be extremely proud. Can’t wait to see more. Thanks again.

  • ines871
    ines871 Posts: 1,283 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Wonderful ! Surely you are understandably proud & happy with all your progress... - Amazing what all can be done when there's at least 1 man, or more doing the hard labot, tho obviously you are an essential 🙂 part of the Team. Happy for you! 🤗

  • Leslie Carl
    Leslie Carl Posts: 255 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2019

    @rainbow True, the men did most of the hard labor and I didn't drive any nails, but I did help with raising the sides and getting the plastic on. Also, with cleaning up all the trees we cut down (that was fairly hard labor, lugging big branches and pieces of trunk into piles) and I helped with the surveying for getting the plot level. You don't see me in the pictures because I'm the photographer. 😊 I will be more involved with finishing the inside and the operations afterward.

    The one part I didn't like was that we ran into some kind of hornets nests a few times, while taking the trees out and each time, we got stung 8 or more times. Man, those things hurt like crazy! Luckily, I had some of my homemade plantain ointment available. It took the sting away and they healed up a lot faster than normal. Our friend Rob is allergic to bee stings, so he was especially grateful for the plantain. It does a good job!

  • silvertipgrizz
    silvertipgrizz Posts: 1,990 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Leslie Carl Great pictures of your progress. Beautiful land too.

    I can't wait to see your finished project. Lots of hard work..you have lots to be proud of.

    Don't forget to watch for nails laying in wait for someone's foot.😯

  • SuperC
    SuperC Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭

    Oh my! So much labor. Great for you three to work most diligently and break when necessary. Back at it and here we await the next photo in thrilling excitement for your progress. @Leslie Carl