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Essentials of a Solar Greenhouse
from: Lawn and Garden MagicPlant productioncan be a very productive hobby and/or livelihood. Producting high-valued crops can be a very fulfilling and prductive way to earn a living as well as a good way to contribute to the environment. One of the best ways to participate in this endeavor is to get yourself a solar greenhouse. Read on to learn the basics of what solar greenhouses are all about.
What Is a Solar Greenhouse?
The purpose of a greenhouse is to collect solar energy whenever the sun shining high in the sky. However, a solar greenhouse also serves a more specific purpose. It does a lot more than collect solar energy. It can also store heat that can be used during nighttime, cloudy days or the cold, winter season. It provides enought heat for plants to grow at any time of the day or night and even during cold seasons that wouldn't normally be conducive for growth of any kind.
Solar greenhouses are available in many choices that will suit the needs of any hobbiest or professional grower.
They can stand alone, which is ideal for big production greenhouses used for commercial production. These are able to produce ornamentals or vegetables and come in two primary designs, the shed type and the Quonset type.
The shed-type has a long axis running from the east to the west. Its south-facing wall is glazed to collect the maximum amount of the energy from the sun and its north-facing wall is insulated to avoid heat loss. These features are what contrast a solar greenhouse from the ordinary ones.
The Quonset type is a low-cost greenhouse that can sometimes looks much like an underground pit. It has a Quonset-shaped frame and looks like a tunnel and has a layer or two of plastic film. This can save as much as 40% of the heating fuel.
This type can also be simply attached to other greenhouses, which is ideal for backyard use. The attached solar greenhouses are structures that form a room protruding from a house. This is a idea space for transplants or herbs.
Passive or Active
Solar greenhouses have two type of classifications -- either a passive solar greenhouse or an active one. Each one uses different resources, but in the long run serve the same purpose.
The Passive Solar Greenhouse
In areas where the colder season tends to endure longer, there may be a need to resort to passive solar greenhouse that use gas or electric heating systems. This is the only way to protect plants from getting too much cold.
This is ideal for growers because it allows much productivity despite the weather conditions. The use of heating systems for greenhouses, in order to be cost-effective, are best utilized wher there are high-value crops to be produced.
The Active Solar Greenhouse
The active solar greenhouse makes use of supplemental energy. It transfers the solar heated air from the storage area to the other parts of the greenhouse.
Designing a Solar Greenhouse
There are those who claim that managing and maintaining an regular greenhouse isn't any different than using a solar greenhouse. However, there are a number of ways significant differences.
Solar greenhouses, unlike the ordinary ones, have oriented glazing to get the utmost solar heat, even during the winter season. Its materials are designed to minimize loss of heat, and so it.uses heat storing materials. It also has insulation, which is especially useful when there is no sunlight. The solar greenhouse also depends heavily on natural ventilation for cooling during the summer moths.
Solar Heat Storage
This is the one main feature when designing a solar greenhouse. In order to remain warm, even during cool nights, there must be a sufficient amount of solar heat stored. One common method used to store this energy is to put rocks or concrete where they can directly receive the sunlight to absorb the heat.
inder block walls at the north side of a greenhouse are also used for heat storage. Dark-colored ceramic floorings can be used as well to store the heat. Any wall or flooring not used for heat absorption is supposed to be of a light color and shoule be designed to reflect the heat and light and distribute it to the plants.
Management of a greenhouse will also go a long way in determining the amount of heat stored. A greenhouse that is full of plants and structures can store heat much easier than an empty one. Composts can also complement heat storage goals as they help produce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Furthermore, the microorganisms in the compost also contribute to the increase in plant production.
Some rely on any structure that resembles a greenhouse to accommodate their plants. However, to be efficient and cost-effective, aim for the optimum setting in your solar greenhouse.
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