Topic: homemade cold frame

[aquilegia]

Would a sheet of thickish, sturdy plastic (the thickness of glass in a window) be substantial enough to keep the frost out of a homemade cold frame?

It'll have wooden sides lined with either old carpet or thick cardboard. I could put more card/carpet on it over night if that'll help.

I don't want to kill my babies!

[kenkew]

My cold frames are 4mm plastic. Not all that sturdy but they are double insulated. Seems fine so far. (At last I got back on site!)

[tim]

We use 10mm twinwall a lot - very rigid, and would more easily take the weight of heavy covering. Don't know about its insulating properties, but would have thought it was good.
Presumably your frame is in your garden, so that you can take the covering off at dawn?? If not,a translucent cover like fleece might be safer?
Don't quote me!! = Tim

[The gardener]

This is one of my cold frames. The glazing beads are 'salvaged' from an old greenhouse.

The beauty of this is I can remove the glass in the summer as shown, then put it back again in the winter.

[tim]

psssst! - what about frost?? = Tim

[campanula]

you can get sheets of polystyrene from a builders merchant for about a fiver for an 8 x 4 foot sheet - this is brilliantfor lining a frame and, as a bonus, it is alsowhitefor extra reflection of light. Well worth it!

[aquilegia]

Ah but Campanula, that doesn't fit with my remit of all the components of the coldframe being recycled (and free).

Lid - sheet of plastic from rubbishy cheap picture frame that has warped.
wooden sides - old decking panels.
lining - carpet - found in loft, cardboard boxes - from when we moved.

I'm far too environmentally friendly (read as cheap) for my own good! ;D

[derf]

Hi, I'm new at this and have been after a cold frame but they are expensive. I've got some wood left over from a loft conversion and my next door have had their windows replaced. I've had a look at your picture, I'll be asking hubby to get his tools out this week end and construct something similar!

Do you think that a window will be enough to keep the frost off, what about insulation?  A lot to think about this lotti business isn't it? But I'm hooked what can I say!

[Ceri]

re: polystyrene - might be worth begging at big electrical stores - my upright fridge freezer came wrapped in thin polystyrene sheets - presumably they throw away the sheets when they take them off display models?

[The gardener]

Hi Derf,

You ask Do you think that a window will be enough to keep the frost off, what about insulation?

The answer is not really, that is not fully!

However keep an ear open for the weather forecast and if hard frosts are forecast keep some fleece handy to throw over your plants until the frosts pass.

This will help.