I have recently stumbled upon this video series, and it seems to be the best looking DIY high tunnel/greenhouse I have come across. I plan on using this design with a few, very few, modifications. Would love to see a video of how the tunnels are doing now, several years later.
That's a good idea. Here is a response to someone on another video in the series. Sorry for the slow response. I've actually moved twice since producing the videos and I still use the design and materials. I have found that adding another PVC purlin halfway between the ridge and hip purlin on each side has helped a little bit with the snow. Still not designed for snow, but I get fewer partial collapses because the arches are more stable. Another thing I have done for end-to-end stability is run wires from the end of the ridge purlin down to the hip purlin on each side at about the sixth rib in. I run the wire over the middle purlin so I don't get high-lined by it as I'm working. I do this on each end. It's a little thing, but I think it has helped a lot with stability. I now work for University of Idaho Extension in Eastern Idaho and our winds here are every bit as bad as Carbon County in Utah, and usually for longer duration. This high tunnel still stands up to the winds very well and I tested it with a late spring snow storm without any collapse before I started sweeping off about 1" of fairly heavy snow. I do have to replace an elbow or arch rib due to stress breakage once in a while. I'm still very happy with the design and it is totally temporary so I don't have to mess with planning an zoning or building inspection. I set my garden up in blocks lined by the steel t-posts, so all I have to do is remove the purlins, then move the arches and endwalls over to the next block when I want to rotate my crops. Thanks for watching.
@@ronpatterson8751 Good information to know. I haven't yet started my build, but am still planning it. I'm in Tennessee, so not a lot of snow, but we do get high winds occasionally. You say this is a temporary structure. I was planning on leaving mine, possibly heating it for winter production, like a proper greenhouse. Do you think this high tunnel will work for that?
TY so much more making these videos, I'm in my back property about to start pounding T-posts... At 17.5' x 40' what size & thickness plastic do I need to get?
Using t-posts for side wall is a smart idea. I thought of same only to use cattle panel to form the hoop mostly to build hay storage or a goat shed. But that can only be 8' to 12' wide. I wonder wether there is a better way to mount the 20' pvc directly on the t-posts without the 45° elbow and the vertical pipe. It has to be also tightly anchored to the t-post itself instead of need additional work to keep the structure from being lifted by wind. I hope I figure that out. I wouldn't mind getting a larger diameter of the 20' pvc to achieve that. I am also thinking of metal pipe footings instead of t-posts if necessary. I am going to follow the end wall construction exactly the way you have done. This is a very inspiring video. Thanks a ton for posting.
I have a colleague in Emery County that drilled through the pvc and t-post. That works fine if you are not intending to move it as it would be very difficult to line up the drill holes accurately for each post. I did it that way one year, but the pins used to hold the pvc on the t-post just provided one more place for the plastic to snag and it was a real challenge to drill through the steel on the t-post. Since something is needed to keep the side curtain from billowing anyway, I think using it to also anchor the ribs down worked well for me. Thanks for watching.
Neither the re-bar nor the conduit will be strong enough to stand up to any wind. I've used the chain link fence posts (stronger than conduit) and they did not stand up to the wind very well, but they are just as, or more expensive that the steel t-posts. The design of the t-posts gives them better strength for the the wind and they anchor well into the ground. This is one area I would not scrimp, other than to get the lighter gauge t-posts so the 1.5" PVC will fit over them. Thanks for watching.
I show that in the side wall construction video. I have a stake driven into the ground and use tie-down twine attached to the hip purlin with an eye screw. This keeps the arches from lifting off the t-posts in a wind storm. thanks for watching.
17.5' wide using a 20 PVC for the arches after the bell end is removed. I did a series of 6 videos on constructing this high tunnel. You can find them on the USU Extension TH-cam channel, then search for "Patterson hoop house". These are rough and really need to be edited better, and I still need to do one on end wall construction. Thanks for watching.
The sides depends on the length of your t-posts. with 6' t-posts my sides are just under 5' tall. the height of the ridge also depends partly on the t-posts, but also on the width of the high tunnel. My high tunnels are 18' wide and almost 9' tall, but 17.5' fits the 45 degree elbows a bit better. So a 17.5' wide high tunnel will be a little taller. Thanks for watching.
The best width for this design is 17.5'. The arches are made with 20' PVC, after the bell end is removed. I did a series of 6 videos on constructing this high tunnel. You can find them on the USU Extension TH-cam channel, then search for "Patterson hoop house". These are rough and really need to be edited better, and I still need to do one on end wall construction. Thanks for watching.
It would have been useful if you could have shown and explained what a T-post actually is. I live in Bulgaria and have never seen nor heard of a T-Post before. Other than that instructional video, but you need to keep an eye for Sun and Shadow when filming.
Bulgarian Organic Smallholding ....a T post is what people use to fix snow fence in place it looks like a capital letter T when looked at from the top down
I really enjoyed and learned a lot on these hoop house videos. Thanks for the information and videos!
I have recently stumbled upon this video series, and it seems to be the best looking DIY high tunnel/greenhouse I have come across. I plan on using this design with a few, very few, modifications. Would love to see a video of how the tunnels are doing now, several years later.
That's a good idea. Here is a response to someone on another video in the series.
Sorry for the slow response. I've actually moved twice since producing the videos and I still use the design and materials. I have found that adding another PVC purlin halfway between the ridge and hip purlin on each side has helped a little bit with the snow. Still not designed for snow, but I get fewer partial collapses because the arches are more stable. Another thing I have done for end-to-end stability is run wires from the end of the ridge purlin down to the hip purlin on each side at about the sixth rib in. I run the wire over the middle purlin so I don't get high-lined by it as I'm working. I do this on each end. It's a little thing, but I think it has helped a lot with stability. I now work for University of Idaho Extension in Eastern Idaho and our winds here are every bit as bad as Carbon County in Utah, and usually for longer duration. This high tunnel still stands up to the winds very well and I tested it with a late spring snow storm without any collapse before I started sweeping off about 1" of fairly heavy snow. I do have to replace an elbow or arch rib due to stress breakage once in a while. I'm still very happy with the design and it is totally temporary so I don't have to mess with planning an zoning or building inspection. I set my garden up in blocks lined by the steel t-posts, so all I have to do is remove the purlins, then move the arches and endwalls over to the next block when I want to rotate my crops. Thanks for watching.
@@ronpatterson8751 Good information to know. I haven't yet started my build, but am still planning it. I'm in Tennessee, so not a lot of snow, but we do get high winds occasionally. You say this is a temporary structure. I was planning on leaving mine, possibly heating it for winter production, like a proper greenhouse. Do you think this high tunnel will work for that?
this is awesome!
TY so much more making these videos, I'm in my back property about to start pounding T-posts... At 17.5' x 40' what size & thickness plastic do I need to get?
Using t-posts for side wall is a smart idea. I thought of same only to use cattle panel to form the hoop mostly to build hay storage or a goat shed. But that can only be 8' to 12' wide.
I wonder wether there is a better way to mount the 20' pvc directly on the t-posts without the 45° elbow and the vertical pipe. It has to be also tightly anchored to the t-post itself instead of need additional work to keep the structure from being lifted by wind. I hope I figure that out. I wouldn't mind getting a larger diameter of the 20' pvc to achieve that. I am also thinking of metal pipe footings instead of t-posts if necessary.
I am going to follow the end wall construction exactly the way you have done.
This is a very inspiring video. Thanks a ton for posting.
I have a colleague in Emery County that drilled through the pvc and t-post. That works fine if you are not intending to move it as it would be very difficult to line up the drill holes accurately for each post. I did it that way one year, but the pins used to hold the pvc on the t-post just provided one more place for the plastic to snag and it was a real challenge to drill through the steel on the t-post. Since something is needed to keep the side curtain from billowing anyway, I think using it to also anchor the ribs down worked well for me. Thanks for watching.
What length are the T-Post’s?
those t posts are specialized for fencing and very expensive. Could 5/8 re-bar work or some electrical conduit to bring down that high cost?
Neither the re-bar nor the conduit will be strong enough to stand up to any wind. I've used the chain link fence posts (stronger than conduit) and they did not stand up to the wind very well, but they are just as, or more expensive that the steel t-posts. The design of the t-posts gives them better strength for the the wind and they anchor well into the ground. This is one area I would not scrimp, other than to get the lighter gauge t-posts so the 1.5" PVC will fit over them. Thanks for watching.
How do you secure the 18" piece of PVC to the T post
I show that in the side wall construction video. I have a stake driven into the ground and use tie-down twine attached to the hip purlin with an eye screw. This keeps the arches from lifting off the t-posts in a wind storm. thanks for watching.
How wide is it?
17.5' wide using a 20 PVC for the arches after the bell end is removed.
I did a series of 6 videos on constructing this high tunnel. You can
find them on the USU Extension TH-cam channel, then search for
"Patterson hoop house". These are rough and really need to be edited
better, and I still need to do one on end wall construction.
Thanks for watching.
whats the height of the sides? center?
The sides depends on the length of your t-posts. with 6' t-posts my sides are just under 5' tall. the height of the ridge also depends partly on the t-posts, but also on the width of the high tunnel. My high tunnels are 18' wide and almost 9' tall, but 17.5' fits the 45 degree elbows a bit better. So a 17.5' wide high tunnel will be a little taller. Thanks for watching.
I should’ve been more patient, you answered the size of tpost, and measurements you are doing. Thank you.
How wide is it#!!!!!!!
how long are the arches?????
The best width for this design is 17.5'. The arches are made with 20' PVC, after the bell end is removed.
I did a series of 6 videos on constructing this high tunnel. You can find them on the USU Extension TH-cam channel, then search for "Patterson hoop house". These are rough and really need to be edited better, and I still need to do one on end wall construction.
Thanks for watching.
It would have been useful if you could have shown and explained what a T-post actually is. I live in Bulgaria and have never seen nor heard of a T-Post before. Other than that instructional video, but you need to keep an eye for Sun and Shadow when filming.
Bulgarian Organic Smallholding ....a T post is what people use to fix snow fence in place
it looks like a capital letter T when looked at from the top down
Thank you for your helpful input. Sometimes the background is more important than the shadows, but your point is well taken. Thanks for watching.