New subscriber here. I've had the desire of building a home in a greenhouse for quite sometime now. There wasn't much "real" content back then. I've recently got the urge to look up what's new regarding the topic. That's how I found your channel. I'm really enjoying it it!. Milton, Ontario, Canada.
We have been looking to build a greenhouse in Minneapolis sometime beryl new, but the city requires more information. Thank you for the videos house. it is looking beautiful .❤❤❤
Michigander here, I subscribed a while back, but want to say I love seeing your videos. I found your channel because I have fantasized about having a home inside a greenhouse for a few years. I work from home, and would love to build a studio into the picture. Thank you for sharing your adventure!
Awesome! Thank you for subscribing. It would be great to be able to have a studio inside the greenhouse too. I lived in a few places in LP and think there are places in MI where this could work well but my recommendation is actually a walipini rather than a ground level greenhouse. With the frigid temps, especially with wind chill in MI, the walipini benefits from having more of the structure below ground/less exposure to the wind, plus the extra contact with the earth temperatures.
Been following you since the beginning of your build. Love your house and greenhouse - although the technology would probably overwhelm me.😂 Living among all the beautiful plants is surely heaven. Thank you for sharing. Happy planting!
Wonderful to see everything coming along. Interesting note about not being able to secure a construction loan cause of no examples, you’d think it exists but apparently not! Way to be marching to your own beet (pun intended, harvest looking nice.)
Hi Erik, Thank you for continuing to follow and comment! I did a lot of research on every greenhouse-enclosed home I could find in the world while I was designing mine and found in the US only 1 in Hawaii where they built walls inside a greenhouse with roll up sides and a 1 room shed (no bathroom) inside a hightunnel in Alaska. I could have gotten a construction loan for the house without the greenhouse but would not have been able to refi that into a mortgage with the greenhouse in place so would have ended up in the same place - having to pay off the contruction loan as a lump sum.
Hi! I’m from the FingerLakes region of upstate New York. I think your design is brilliant! Living in the north, this is an idea that I have entertained more than once. But we get really hot and humid summers here, so probably not the best fit for this area.
Welcome and thanks for joining! I used to visit a friend in Syracuse/Fayetteville area so I'm familiar with your hot muggy summers (but love the little ice cream places everywhere!) I think something like this could work in your area because the greenhouse will be engineered for the snow load and wind shear. The key to heat and humidity control will be going overboard with size, quantity, location, and length of air-to-ground tubes. And windows high up to exhaust the hot air.
Hi, I'm new here, watching from Siberia, climate zone similar to Alaska, thinking of building a greenhouse around red brick summer house or around wooden sauna
Welcome and thank you for joining. In more extreme colder climates I'd recommend a walpini instead of a ground-level greenhouse. Most of the concepts are the same except the walipini, being partially buried, provides more temperature buffer.
I've been a subscriber for more than a year and do appreciate being able to watch and learn as you do your project. I'm hoping to do a similar project in a few years as a retirement home. In my case, it would be Michigan so a different climate. One question. I noticed you said steel counters were the best decision you made for the kitchen. I'll look into doing something similar, but ask would you recommend them if the kitchen were in a sunny area? Cheers.
Hi Alan, thanks for following along and commenting! Steel countertops are probably not a good choice where they would get direct sun because of the blinding reflection. Works in my space because the window facing south is small and when the sun is passing that window it shines across the sink so not reflecting into view anywhere standing in the kitchen. Also the way the livingroom juts out it blocks the sun from shining directly into that window except in the morning. If, however, your kitchen windows face only east or north, and/or skylights are on a east or north-facing pitch, then they might be a good choice. UP or LP?
@@liveinagreenhouse Most likely the lower peninsula. Right now I don't have land, but looking in places near Grand Rapids where my parents are. Still considering lots of options. Holland, Charlevoix. Colorado, and Bend Oregon region as also still not excluded. Still many years away.
I still have family in Bay City, Tawas, and West Branch. Charlevoix is beautiful but that lake effect - wow. I was a ski bum for many years and skied Mt Batchelor many times in winter and summer and almost moved to Bend in the 1980s. A greenhouse enclosed home would work well in Bend due to light powdery snow and lots of sun in the winter. Winters inside the greenhouse would probably be more like in the videos from Sweden than mine where winters are often cloudy and/or raining so not much solar gain.
@@liveinagreenhouse Interesting. I'm not familiar with the city names. RE: Winters in Michigan. Holland has a lot of greenhouses in the area. I didn't have the time to stop and ask questions but did have a chance to talk to a few people who have built in the area. The impression I get is the building code inspectors are less likely to approve anything that isn't a "traditional build" the closer you get to that city. Another building option styles I'm looking at are barn-dominiums, which have been built in the next country over. If I could combine the POSTFRAME building style with a greenhouse that would be ideal. But it seems a lot will depend on the local building inspectors.
I wonder if an HRV would serve as an acceptable alternative to air return tubes. The benefit is that it won't flood, or mould, and it will filter the air. It will however require power for the fan. I just subscribed, really enjoy what your are doing here. Thanks!
You're right! There's a firm in Europe that has done most of the greenhouse-enclosed or greenhouse-attached buildings in Europe but for the US I had to figure out much of this myself. Lot of time and lot of risk. Which is why I do these videos and longer articles on my blog.
Welcome! Australia probably is too hot although maybe instead of a greenhouse you did a walipini with air to ground tubes that provide enough airflow to cool the incoming air and exhaust the hot air. There's a YT video about a guy in Nebraska (I think) who runs hundreds of feet of air tubes into his walipini that he grows citrus during the winter. Summers in Nebraska can be very hot so I assume those tubes also provide sufficient cooling in the summer to not cook everything inside.
If you had the option of installing an opaque and lightly insulated roof, would that help control the excessive heat and cold? I'm considering a similar project but with a YALA glamping tent, keeping the polycarbonate high walls but solid ceiling. It would be darker but the experiment would be that there would be sufficient ambient light from the walls. Also considering an aquatron septic system instead of a drain field. Love the project! How high are those sidewalls?
I don't know what the effect would be of having an opaque and insulated roof. Most of the year the sun is low enough to shine through the side walls so it should be enough light and heat except during the height of summer. However, for heat and humidity control, the ridge vents are open pretty much 7x24 from mid-spring to late fall. So that's a pretty large gap along the entire length of the greenhouse. Your glamping tent may not have that issue. How do plan to vent heat and humidity with a solid/tent roof? Yeah, I wish I had a different septic system but it was installed by the previous owners and it would have cost too much time and money to dig it up and install a different system. Sidewalls are 12'
@liveinagreenhouse I saw a few videos about piping air underground but I may just install conventional greenhouse fans on the north sidewall to pull warm air out. Maybe for winter get a roll up insulated blanket for the walls that I can drop at night and roll up in the morning. The continuously open vents in the summer are normal but my controversial theory is maybe it works too well for letting in light and make the walls taller by a couple feet and roof insulated. I'm a year of saving to start the project but I've got the land. Keep up the updates!
New subscriber here. I've had the desire of building a home in a greenhouse for quite sometime now. There wasn't much "real" content back then. I've recently got the urge to look up what's new regarding the topic. That's how I found your channel. I'm really enjoying it it!. Milton, Ontario, Canada.
Thanks! Welcome aboard!
Copy & paste Milton's comment for me. But from Illinois, USA.
We have been looking to build a greenhouse in Minneapolis sometime beryl new, but the city requires more information. Thank you for the videos house. it is looking beautiful .❤❤❤
Michigander here, I subscribed a while back, but want to say I love seeing your videos. I found your channel because I have fantasized about having a home inside a greenhouse for a few years. I work from home, and would love to build a studio into the picture. Thank you for sharing your adventure!
Awesome! Thank you for subscribing. It would be great to be able to have a studio inside the greenhouse too. I lived in a few places in LP and think there are places in MI where this could work well but my recommendation is actually a walipini rather than a ground level greenhouse. With the frigid temps, especially with wind chill in MI, the walipini benefits from having more of the structure below ground/less exposure to the wind, plus the extra contact with the earth temperatures.
Been following you since the beginning of your build. Love your house and greenhouse - although the technology would probably overwhelm me.😂 Living among all the beautiful plants is surely heaven. Thank you for sharing. Happy planting!
Thank you, Lynne. I appreciate your support!
Subscribed in Vermont.
Great dedication to your project!
What a lovely way to live.
Thanks and welcome! Love Vermont both summer and winter.
I'm in Central Oregon. New sub here.
Oregon is a beautiful place. I’m glad you found this video.
Wonderful to see everything coming along. Interesting note about not being able to secure a construction loan cause of no examples, you’d think it exists but apparently not! Way to be marching to your own beet (pun intended, harvest looking nice.)
Hi Erik, Thank you for continuing to follow and comment!
I did a lot of research on every greenhouse-enclosed home I could find in the world while I was designing mine and found in the US only 1 in Hawaii where they built walls inside a greenhouse with roll up sides and a 1 room shed (no bathroom) inside a hightunnel in Alaska. I could have gotten a construction loan for the house without the greenhouse but would not have been able to refi that into a mortgage with the greenhouse in place so would have ended up in the same place - having to pay off the contruction loan as a lump sum.
I'm a new subscriber. My husband and I live in Rainier, WA.
Thanks for subbing!
Fantastic video ❤
Thanks for the visit and kind words
Hi! I’m from the FingerLakes region of upstate New York. I think your design is brilliant! Living in the north, this is an idea that I have entertained more than once. But we get really hot and humid summers here, so probably not the best fit for this area.
Welcome and thanks for joining! I used to visit a friend in Syracuse/Fayetteville area so I'm familiar with your hot muggy summers (but love the little ice cream places everywhere!) I think something like this could work in your area because the greenhouse will be engineered for the snow load and wind shear. The key to heat and humidity control will be going overboard with size, quantity, location, and length of air-to-ground tubes. And windows high up to exhaust the hot air.
Hi, I'm new here, watching from Siberia, climate zone similar to Alaska, thinking of building a greenhouse around red brick summer house or around wooden sauna
Welcome and thank you for joining. In more extreme colder climates I'd recommend a walpini instead of a ground-level greenhouse. Most of the concepts are the same except the walipini, being partially buried, provides more temperature buffer.
I've been a subscriber for more than a year and do appreciate being able to watch and learn as you do your project. I'm hoping to do a similar project in a few years as a retirement home. In my case, it would be Michigan so a different climate.
One question. I noticed you said steel counters were the best decision you made for the kitchen. I'll look into doing something similar, but ask would you recommend them if the kitchen were in a sunny area?
Cheers.
Hi Alan, thanks for following along and commenting! Steel countertops are probably not a good choice where they would get direct sun because of the blinding reflection. Works in my space because the window facing south is small and when the sun is passing that window it shines across the sink so not reflecting into view anywhere standing in the kitchen. Also the way the livingroom juts out it blocks the sun from shining directly into that window except in the morning. If, however, your kitchen windows face only east or north, and/or skylights are on a east or north-facing pitch, then they might be a good choice.
UP or LP?
@@liveinagreenhouse Most likely the lower peninsula. Right now I don't have land, but looking in places near Grand Rapids where my parents are. Still considering lots of options. Holland, Charlevoix. Colorado, and Bend Oregon region as also still not excluded. Still many years away.
I still have family in Bay City, Tawas, and West Branch. Charlevoix is beautiful but that lake effect - wow. I was a ski bum for many years and skied Mt Batchelor many times in winter and summer and almost moved to Bend in the 1980s. A greenhouse enclosed home would work well in Bend due to light powdery snow and lots of sun in the winter. Winters inside the greenhouse would probably be more like in the videos from Sweden than mine where winters are often cloudy and/or raining so not much solar gain.
@@liveinagreenhouse Interesting. I'm not familiar with the city names. RE: Winters in Michigan.
Holland has a lot of greenhouses in the area. I didn't have the time to stop and ask questions but did have a chance to talk to a few people who have built in the area. The impression I get is the building code inspectors are less likely to approve anything that isn't a "traditional build" the closer you get to that city. Another building option styles I'm looking at are barn-dominiums, which have been built in the next country over. If I could combine the POSTFRAME building style with a greenhouse that would be ideal. But it seems a lot will depend on the local building inspectors.
I wonder if an HRV would serve as an acceptable alternative to air return tubes. The benefit is that it won't flood, or mould, and it will filter the air. It will however require power for the fan.
I just subscribed, really enjoy what your are doing here. Thanks!
Thank you! What is an HRV? I'd like to look into it
@@liveinagreenhouse pleasure! It’s a heat recovery ventilator.
Ive been strongly considering the same thing. There is surprisingly little content exploring this topic.
You're right! There's a firm in Europe that has done most of the greenhouse-enclosed or greenhouse-attached buildings in Europe but for the US I had to figure out much of this myself. Lot of time and lot of risk. Which is why I do these videos and longer articles on my blog.
New subscriber from Australia. Interested in living in a greenhouse construction and was surfing on UA-cam. Australia may be too hot!!
Welcome! Australia probably is too hot although maybe instead of a greenhouse you did a walipini with air to ground tubes that provide enough airflow to cool the incoming air and exhaust the hot air. There's a YT video about a guy in Nebraska (I think) who runs hundreds of feet of air tubes into his walipini that he grows citrus during the winter. Summers in Nebraska can be very hot so I assume those tubes also provide sufficient cooling in the summer to not cook everything inside.
If you had the option of installing an opaque and lightly insulated roof, would that help control the excessive heat and cold? I'm considering a similar project but with a YALA glamping tent, keeping the polycarbonate high walls but solid ceiling. It would be darker but the experiment would be that there would be sufficient ambient light from the walls. Also considering an aquatron septic system instead of a drain field. Love the project! How high are those sidewalls?
I don't know what the effect would be of having an opaque and insulated roof. Most of the year the sun is low enough to shine through the side walls so it should be enough light and heat except during the height of summer. However, for heat and humidity control, the ridge vents are open pretty much 7x24 from mid-spring to late fall. So that's a pretty large gap along the entire length of the greenhouse. Your glamping tent may not have that issue. How do plan to vent heat and humidity with a solid/tent roof? Yeah, I wish I had a different septic system but it was installed by the previous owners and it would have cost too much time and money to dig it up and install a different system. Sidewalls are 12'
@liveinagreenhouse I saw a few videos about piping air underground but I may just install conventional greenhouse fans on the north sidewall to pull warm air out. Maybe for winter get a roll up insulated blanket for the walls that I can drop at night and roll up in the morning. The continuously open vents in the summer are normal but my controversial theory is maybe it works too well for letting in light and make the walls taller by a couple feet and roof insulated. I'm a year of saving to start the project but I've got the land. Keep up the updates!