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+--- Thread: Cold frame (/showthread.php?tid=326)
Cold frame - Admin - 07-07-2020
I have been thinking about building a cold frame over the plots but as always, comming up with conflicting advice.
My questions are
1 wood or glass sides
2 Angle of top
3 shade, semi shade or full sun
4 optimum size
Any advice welcomed
RE: Cold frame - Veggie - 07-07-2020
I picked up a metal framed one with missing "glazing" which I replaced with twinwall poly stuff left over from a GH.
Put it on top of an old plastic garden table which, by chance, slopes to the west.
Seems to work OK and the seedlings are safe from crawling beasties.
I realise this is no help to you but its the extent of my knowledge of coldframes.
RE: Cold frame - Bren - 07-07-2020
I don’t really have space to set aside for one, in the past I’ve used an old tin bath with a piece of corrugated plastic on top. Since then I’ve bought a couple of hard plastic cloches with vents that are handy for hardening of seedlings or covering crops from a late or early frost.
When they’re not needed they easy stack so don’t take up much space.
If I had space I’d go for wooden sided to give more protection, with angled top in full sun then id have the option to shade if i needed it.
RE: Cold frame - Vinny - 08-07-2020
I inherited eight raised beds and a large pile of double glazed windows when I took on my plot. With no way to get rid of these I have tried to utilise them on the plot.
Four of the raised beds are of a size that can be covered by a single glass unit. The soil in the raised beds is about 6 inches below the top edge.
Early and late season these can be used as flat topped cold frames. I even started my sweetcorn direct with the glazing unit covering bed. This worked tremendously well so I will deffo be keeping these units.
The ones I have spare are utilised by standing them vertically around my runner bean canes to keep the wind from battering them.
I would just utilise an existing bed and add glass when required Greenleaves, then your cold frame can be moved around the plot.
RE: Cold frame - Veggie - 08-07-2020
I acquired a number of secondary glazing windows which could be leant against each other to make a ^ shaped cloche. To stop them sliding apart we cut notches into some lengths of wood to place under the glass, at right angles to it. In other words, 2 notches in each plank, that both panes would drop into to make the triangle. They were the clipped together at the top with some giant "bulldog" style clips made from pieces of bent metal.
It worked well as a cloche/cold frame and could be dismantled and moved easily. The downside was the glass panes were heavy as they came from large windows.
If I did it again I'd use smaller windows or polycarb panels.