my propagation unit

well it has happened !! up and operational and ready to receive my batches on cactus seed that have been patiently waiting , unlike their owner who has been champing at the bit to have it completed. temp is set to max of 25.5 degrees heat mat has 70 - 75mm sand over the liner . the heat mat is between the polystyrene and the liner( both from a recycled water bed)

first is of the unit opened up.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3275/2749615338_0d35a57c96_b.jpg
second is of the side view with the insulation .

this next picture is where the unit will live.

I missed one pic in the upload of the heat mat laying in the base.

here it is and the notation that places the unit as the place where it will sit is incorrect its too late , Im going to bed..

Did your build up your frame? You have given me some ideas now.

My wife will not be happy, LOL!!

thats great gracie - I have a hot water bed heater like yours. I have been meaning to do something similar for a while

Lookin' good Gracie. Looks damn good actually! Please let us know about your results. I reckon that should work very well.

Thats very cool Gracie.......and let me be the first to say Its bloody huge !! How many thousands of seeds are you planning on growing. I would have one like that if only I had the space.

thanks for the comments guys!
Hubby made it up for me as a birthday present. I've done a trial run with black russian tomato seeds and pricked them out this afternoon. I;ve a few cuttings in there currently and each day I get a few more done. have chrysanthemums on the go at present and then on the wekend I'll start up my cactus seeds. So far so good, temp and humidily wise .
we are on 2 and a half acres so space not so much of an issue for us. still cost a bit to get the polyhouse done though. lots of preparation of the site before we could erect the frame and cover it. that bit only cost $150.00 and a couple of days to dismantle it.then benches for inside and now one door has been finished with 3 others still as temporary rollup doors.
was glad to get the propagator done though. time and money never seem to happen together do they. lol

Hey Lois that is looking great, good luck with the sowing of your seeds.

Tell your other half he did a good job

How much did the poly house actually cost I have acres as well I like the idea! Cost would be the contributing factor!

That's fantastic, what a great job ya hubby has done. Will look forward to seeing the new babies.

in answer to Freeman's question regarding cost of the polyhouse.
we placed a free ad in a budget classifieds booklet for a hoop framed polyhouse
we had a reply from a lady who had purchased a former commercial plant growers property. the polyhouses were in a state of disrepair and the new owner wanted them gone. each one was 6 metres by 15.2 metres with a max height of 3.6. there was the polycover and a shade cover as well as the ground cover mat available we went up there one day to have a look and took the trailer, tools and our lunchbox. managed to dismantle most of the structure and wrap up the covering, a huge area when it was out on the ground.
we were able to park almost next to the framework which was handy for loading .next day we went up early to get the job done. I worked on another area to lift the ground cover matting from under about 10 cm depth of crushed gravel to get about three runs to cover the area of the floor we intended to erect. ( about 9 mtres of length.) yes!! that s a lot lof gravel..
on the way out we were offered a few cactus that the lady didnt want and some were pretty big, esp a purple pad opuntia which we loaded on top of the loaded up trailer.

total Price of igloo polyhouse $150.00

then we had site preparation which included removal of tree stumps. 360.00
we had a couple of dumps of fill for free.
concrete to set the frame work 120.00
crushed concrete for base. and then 6mm screenings to go over the weedmat. cost about $65 ea by memory. labour to spread came free.
timber to do edges at ground level $12.00 EA for 3.6m lengths X 9 of.
pipes were refitted with protective tape to avoid the contact between poly and the metal before the framework went up ( from Redpath ) cant remember the cost there.and we also rubbed down and cleaned each piece of pipe before we fitted it together.
most of the work was done by hubby and myself with a friend helping with the concrete job to get it done in time. this was happening in July so days were short but we worked till dark each day. Hubby pulled the cover on by himself and tacked it to hold the cover until we could fit it tightly and secure the sides permanenty. helps to get a still day!
I had no shelves for a fair while but then we got metal bed bases $5.00 ea and water pipe for legs . ea bed had a clip fitted to slot the next one into and the tops were made from second hand decking timbers. recycle yard. picked over and cut to take home with a hand saw . (we didnt plan that bit. ) it was hot and we wern't prepared for such a great haul of timber.
Inside of the polyhouse there are single bed width shelves and the middle has double bed bases with a single bench at one end ( ex cold room catering shelves like Coles have for home delivery, again about $5.00 ea ) we had 2 of them so the other one is just inside the doors at one end and the propagator is located under that shelf. I have smaller propagation units ( unheated, on top)
The doors (2 at each end ) are still being made i. 1 has just been completed otherwise they are temporary and I roll them up as required and have a bamboo blind for shade when the summer is full on.
We plan to put an opening in the frond and end in the section about the doors so we can prop it open in the summer for air circulation and it will have an insect screen to keep the bugs out.
I have put a water barrel under the shelves to store rain water in as we have major water restrictions where we are. As I get more of these I'll slot them underneath too. I have 1 open topped barrel at each end that I top up either with the hose or with rain water as I can collect it. presently I dip into them for watering but hope to get a powered immersible pump for this summer.
last summer I watered a lot from the bottom by setting the trays into kitty litter trays , they are a great size for the plant trays. get them from the local recycle yard too!!! lol
This winter I had a frost protection fabric that I suspended at just over head height and down the sides. a couple of runs across the back and front ends. big difference to how cold the overnight temps got to. and it caught the condensation drips too. got the full roll of 180 metres X 1520mm wide for 100 dollars . only minor losses from chills this winter.
Hope tis is helpful. there are plenty of hoop polyhouses out there its just tracking them down that is the hard part.

ohh , and the water bed heater came from www.freecycle.org

Lois did you know that by keeping the drums of water under your benches actually helps to keep the igloo warmer in winter. A lot of growers do this....... I was advised to do it with my mat but never actually got around to it

JEALOUS! I wish i had room to build something like that - my garden is already to full - i'd have to knock down the shed and use the footprint of that... but then where would i store all my other stuff? grin... One day... For now, takeaway containers in a cupbord with fluoros will have to do

very good idea