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Building a polycarbonate greenhouse is a great way not only to provide yourself with a crop in the warm season, but also a way to grow crops in the winter. It is only necessary to choose which heating is best suited for construction. A universal option for any premises – heating with water. The advantages, calculation schemes and do-it-yourself installation of a water heating system in a polycarbonate-coated greenhouse will be discussed in this article.
Advantages
In winter, it is necessary to provide plants planted in a greenhouse with stable air heating and moderate humidity. There are several types of heating systems that will do a good job with this function in a building with a polycarbonate coating: gas, air, electric, infrared, biofuel. However, each of them has a number of disadvantages and difficulties in operation, in comparison with water heating.
Water heating stably maintains the required air and soil temperature, while moisturizing the air, which will benefit any garden crop in a polycarbonate building. Despite the fact that it may seem unnecessarily expensive to assemble water heating, during operation this option pays for itself completely. Heating with water works on any combustible material: wood, peat, garbage, biofuel, gasoline.
It should be taken into account that the system of pipes and boilers is safer than electrical cables, which can be damaged, or gas heating, which is associated with the risk of explosion or fire. Moreover, making such heating is much easier with your own hands.
The specificity of polycarbonate, as a coating for a greenhouse, is that in winter it does not tend to collect condensate on the walls. Consequently, the moisture formed in the air will return to the ground, naturally moistening it in winter. Thus, water heating, which is easy to do with your own hands, is one of the most profitable options for using in a greenhouse.
Video “Greenhouse water heating”
How to make water heating in a greenhouse with your own hands is described in the video.
Water system calculation
To make the right water heating with your own hands, you should carry out a basic calculation of the required number of pipes, boilers, as well as the power of the system. Based on the total area of the room, air temperature and outdoor temperature (average).
The water heating mechanism itself is created from a heating boiler, several pipes, two radiators, an expansion tank and a chimney. Depending on the means at your disposal, you can install a gas or electric boiler, or install a stove for kindling with peat, wood. A more ergonomic and cost-effective option is a gas boiler.
Universal pipe laying scheme – two working circuits. The first is in the soil and consists of pipes with water. The water temperature in this circuit is 30-40°C, the main purpose is to heat the roots of plants. The second circuit is used directly for air heating. In a polycarbonate greenhouse, you can install a thermostat so that the desired temperature is maintained automatically.
To install radiators with your own hands, you need to decide on the material from which they are made: cast iron, bimetal, aluminum. The expansion tank can be made with your own hands from a sheet of metal, or you can purchase it ready-made.
The chimney, as the final stage of the heating system in a polycarbonate greenhouse, can be made of brick if you do not want to complicate the process. Another option is metal or asbestos-cement. Here you should rely only on your ability to build the right ventilation system with your own hands.
Installation
Since in winter the plants should already be in a polycarbonate greenhouse, the heating should already be working. Therefore, installation should be done in the fall in order to have time to test and calibrate the system.
We recommend placing the heating boiler in the dressing room of the greenhouse so that it does not take up space in the room itself, but at the same time it has free access. A separate foundation of asbestos-cement or steel is provided for the boiler. When choosing a material, one should rely on its characteristics of fire resistance and fire hazard. The expansion tank is located at the highest point of the room, next to the heating boiler. Install an air shut-off valve and pressure gauge for safety reasons. Also leave a place for the chimney outlet, make sure that all joints are hermetically sealed. This will prevent smoke in the dressing room, as well as the loss of system performance.
The next step is the ventilation system, which is especially necessary in winter, even in a polycarbonate greenhouse.
If you chose plastic pipes, then do not connect them directly to the pipes of the heating boiler, first connect metal pipes to it, and then plastic pipes to them. Do-it-yourself pipe installation is quite simple. The first circuit is laid in the ground not less than 40 cm, but not more than 60 cm deep. They should be laid at a distance of 30 cm. After laying the pipes, radiators should be installed.
Keep in mind that during the heating process, water will rise into the expansion tank and only from there it will spread through pipes to all corners of the room. Therefore, pipes should be installed at a slope.
As you can see, it’s not so difficult to create water-based heating in a polycarbonate building with your own hands, while the result in the form of a rich harvest will pay off all your hard work.
Video “Greenhouse heating”
How to make heating in your greenhouse is described in detail in this video.
