Greenhouse Coverings  Differences Discussed

You will find that when exploring the world of hobby greenhouses that there are many types of ‘coverings’ for a greenhouse. This covering on a greenhouse, is meant to absorb the heat of the sun, to allow certain sunrays into the greenhouse for plant growth, and to allow you to control the environment in the greenhouse in order to grow and raise thriving plants, flowers, and vegetables. The types of coverings that are most often used for greenhouses are glass, polycarbonate, and plastics. There are also greenhouse kits that are composed of film plastic and of acrylic, but the plastics often need replaced every few short years, and the acrylic can turn yellow which is not a pretty site in your yard. So let’s look at glass and polycarbonate differences more in detail.

When you have a glass greenhouse in your garden or in your yard, over just the period of ten years you will find that the glass is easily broken by hail, bumping the panes with a plant or a tool when the exterior is extremely cold, and when children or animals are running near the greenhouse.

Over the period of ten years a polycarbonate covering on your greenhouse will not break unless you cut it with a sharp object or if you have more than ten inches of snow on the top of the roof. Polycarbonate panels can absorb the hard hits from hail, and from many objects that are thrown at it. When you bump the polycarbonate panels in the middle of winter it is still very flexible and will not break.

Over the period of ten to twenty years, the glass on your greenhouse can yellow which can be unsightly.

Over the period of ten to twenty years, the polycarbonate panels that are treated with UV protection will not turn yellow. They will be the same clean color as the first day you received your greenhouse kit.

Both glass and polycarbonate panels that cover the hobby greenhouse do need washed a minimum of once a year to keep dirt off, to keep bacteria from thriving, and so that the amount of sunlight entering the greenhouse is not broken up because of dirt on the greenhouse.

This article was published by: Garden Moose.

Garden Moose is a feature contributor to Greenhouses.com a leading internet destination for gardening and greenhouse information and ideas.

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