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Johnny's Selected Seeds Quick Hoops 7617 Instruction Manual

Elliptical high tunnel bender
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955 Benton Ave., Winslow, ME 04901 • Phone: 1-877-564-6697 • Fax: 1-800-738-6314
Overview:
This bender allows you to make spacious 24' wide tunnels at any desired length using 3 pieces of 1 3/8"
diameter chain-link fence top rail bent into long-radius hoops and connected to form 24' wide bows, then
placed atop high ground posts created with 1 5/8" diameter 8' chain link line posts. These structures are
designed for use only in areas with little or no snow load, or alternately as three-season structures in any
location by removing the main sheet of greenhouse film before snowfall occurs.
September 2016 - Elliptical Tunnel trial
at Johnny's Research Farm, Albion, ME
A
www.johnnyseeds.com
Quick Hoops™ Elliptical High Tunnel Bender
Email: service@johnnyseeds.com • Web Site: Johnnyseeds.com
Contents
This bender set includes two separate
jigs. One for the long radius across the
top of the hoops (A), and one for where
the hoops meet the ground posts (B).
This second jig is actually our 3' wide
Quick Hoops Low Tunnel Bender, which
can be used to make 3' wide by 4.5' tall
B
low tunnel hoops out of ½" EMT like the
ones shown to the right.
The set also includes required mounting
hardware for both jigs and a lever bar for
the long radius bender.
Instruction Manual for 7617
Copyright © 2021Johnny's Selected Seeds. All rights reserved.
1
7617.999 | Rev 06/21/2021 | AL, JG, ms

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Summary of Contents for Johnny's Selected Seeds Quick Hoops 7617

  • Page 1 Instruction Manual for 7617 Quick Hoops™ Elliptical High Tunnel Bender Copyright © 2021Johnny’s Selected Seeds. All rights reserved. 955 Benton Ave., Winslow, ME 04901 • Phone: 1-877-564-6697 • Fax: 1-800-738-6314 Email: service@johnnyseeds.com • Web Site: Johnnyseeds.com Overview: This bender allows you to make spacious 24’ wide tunnels at any desired length using 3 pieces of 1 3/8” diameter chain-link fence top rail bent into long-radius hoops and connected to form 24’...
  • Page 2 Materials: An Excel spreadsheet calculator has been developed to allow you to custom design a tunnel to meet your own operational and financial needs. It may be downloaded from the product page for the 7617 Quick Hoops™ Elliptical High Tunnel Bender or from the Growers Library on our website.
  • Page 3 Mounting the Bender Jigs: Both jigs may be mounted to any solid surface, such as a workbench, a picnic table, hay wagon, etc. They may be lag-screwed or thru-bolted Short radius into place. 5/16” mounting holes are bender pre-drilled in them and the screws, bolts, etc.
  • Page 4 Bending the Hoops: Hoop #1 After determining how many bows your high tunnel will have, set aside three times that number of top rail pipes so they can be bent. 12” 7” Make two marks, one at 7” and one at 12”, from the swaged (male) end of the first pipe to be bent.
  • Page 5 10. Insert the swaged end of the partially bent pipe into the holding strap at the end of the short radius bender. Insert so that the 7” mark is just to the left of the holding strap. 11. Pull back and bend around the short radius bender until the pipe just touches the wood screw or nail from step 9.
  • Page 6 Assembling the Bows: 1. In a flat area, lay out Hoop #1, #2, and #3 as shown in the diagram above. 2. Insert the swaged end of Hoop #2 into the non- swaged end of Hoop #1. 2., 3. 3. Insert the swaged end of Hoop #3 into the non- swaged end of Hoop #2.
  • Page 7 7. Variances in wall thickness between different lots of top rail can cause the bend radius to vary. The bottom portions of the bow (shorter sections of Hoop #1 and Hoop #3) should be at a right angle to the straight pipes.
  • Page 8 9. - 13. 9. If the bow ends were ‘toed in’, remove the wood screw or nail from step 9 of Bending the Hoops and set it at 7” away from the center bolt of the short radius bender. 10. If ‘toed out’, remove the wood screw or nail from step 9 of Bending the Hoops and set it at 5”...
  • Page 9 Creating Angle Braces: 1. Eight angle braces (four for each end of the tunnel) must be made from four pieces of 1-3/8" top rail. These pieces should be about 5 ft. long (exact length is not critical). Do this by cutting the swaged end off the top rail and then cutting it in half.
  • Page 10 Hints on setting the corner ground posts: Use the following diagrams to help you set the corner posts in a perfect rectangle. 6. Make a mark at that 4. Make a mark at that distance that is also 24 measurement spot at ft.
  • Page 11 Site preparation and setting the ground posts: Note: Some of the following photos (like the one at the bottom of this page) will not be of this exact tunnel, but they will illustrate the subject matter at hand. 1. Prepare the footprint of the tunnel as you would with open soil in a field.
  • Page 12 b. Run a long tape measure from corner post 2 to corner post 3. Secure one end to post 2. Pull it tight and secure the other end to post 3. Secure with duct tape, clamps, or something similar. This will serve as a gauge as well as a straight line for setting the other posts.
  • Page 13 4.g. 4. k. e. Make a 2" long cut centered between the sides of the fabric (probably on the yellow line) that is about 1’ in from one end. Make just a single cut in line with the length of the fabric.
  • Page 14 Framing the Tunnel: Bows: Transport the first “end wall” bow to the furthest corner ground posts and insert until the bow ‘seats’ firmly against the top of the ground posts. Repeat for all other bows. Ridge Pole: 2.a. - e. a.
  • Page 15 b. Attach the end of a long tape measure to the end of the ridge pole with a clamp, etc. and run the tape measure reel to the opposite end of the tunnel. Center it laterally and leave it hanging off the opposite end wall bow so that its own weight is keeping the tape taught.
  • Page 16 3. Angle Braces: At this point, these must be installed so that all bows are vertical and plumb. a. In one corner of the tunnel, slip a 1-3/8" brace band over the end wall bow, two 1-5/8" brace bands over the second ground post, and one 1-5/8"...
  • Page 17 4. Purlins (optional): These are horizontal pipes of top-rail, similar to the ridge pole, that are added for strength. They are attached to the bows from beneath to prevent collection of water and/or snow in the plastic pockets that would be created if they were attached to the top. You can install two, four, or none at all, depending on the desired strength.
  • Page 18 d. Pre-cut and place a 2’ piece of patch board inside the seam created by the two hipboards. Center and clamp in place. e. With a 5/16" bit, pre-drill four holes as shown through the patch board and the two hipboards.
  • Page 19 d. Pre-cut and place a 2’ piece of patch board inside the seam created by the two baseboards. Center and clamp in place. e. With a 5/16" bit, pre-drill four holes as shown through the patch board and the two baseboards.
  • Page 20 Traditional End Walls: Note: If you would like to build lower cost “Scissor Doors” instead, please skip to page 30. There are a great many ways to go about this, few of which could be considered wrong. We are illustrating how we decided to craft a traditional end wall for our 14' x 200' trial tunnel.
  • Page 21 Outside of Endwall 2.e. Side Baseboard 2.d. 2.c. 2.e. c. Butt another piece of 5/4" x 6" x 16' decking board up to the end of the one installed in 2.b. above and clamp to the groundpost on the opposite side of the tunnel. Using the end of the baseboard as a guide, make a mark on the backside of the decking board and cut along that line.
  • Page 22 3.d. 3.j. 3.h. 3.l. 3.l. 3.l. 3.k. 3.i. 3.a. Repeat steps 3.a. through 3.e. for the opposite side of the door frame. 3.h. g. Clamp one inside door frame board constructed in steps 3.a. through 3.f. in place so that its inside edge is aligned with the outer marks on the bow and baseboard.
  • Page 23 Rest a 2" x 4" x 10' board vertically on top of the baseboard, centered between the door frame and the endwall ground post with the wide edge facing outward from the end of the tunnel. Make a mark just below the bow and cut to length.
  • Page 24 4. Doors: these will be built in-place for best fit. The measurements below are approximate, since the boards will be cut to fit. See diagram to the right for the 4.d. sequence used for assembly. a. Lay some type of spacer that is about a 1/4"...
  • Page 25 e. Using 1.25" drywall screws, install flat metal L-straps at all four corners on the inside face of the door (see photo previous page). Using the wood screws supplied with them, install hinges about 1' from the top and bottom of the left side of the door as shown 4.g.
  • Page 26 m. Cut two 1" x 4" boards to span the insides of each of the doors as a bit of extra bracing. Level these with another piece of board as shown to the right. 4.m. 4.m. n. Cut to length as needed and install wire channel around the open holes in the doors, around the door frame, and along both sides of the endwall...
  • Page 27 c. Starting at the top and working concurrently down both sides of the endwall bow, wire the plastic into the channel, keeping the plastic taut across the face of the endwall as you go. Continue all the way down to the baseboards (see photo previous page).
  • Page 28 5.i. h. Trim off excess plastic along the outside edges of all the channel, leaving about an inch or so extra. When you are done, the endwall should look like this: 5.i. 7617.999 Rev 06/21/2021 | AL, JG, ms www.johnnyseeds.com...
  • Page 29 6. Door hardware can be 6.a. anything you dream up. a. First, we installed a sliding bolt lock at the top and bottom of the left hand door, which will be closed most of the time, 6.a. but can be opened when needed to allow access for walking tractors, 6.a.
  • Page 30 Scissor Doors for an End Wall: This is another way to do an end wall that has been developed by Eliot Coleman and is in use extensively at his Four Season Farm. It is a very low cost method, but the beauty of it, especially for a tunnel this size or larger, is that it instantly allows small tractor access, which can be a huge labor saver.
  • Page 31 In the Framing the Tunnel procedure (page 14), you should have opted to leave at least six extra inches of ridge pole and purlins protruding out from the endwall. If you did not, follow this procedure: i. Cut the swaged end of a scrap piece of top-rail, so that the non-swaged portion is 6" long. ii.
  • Page 32 3. Side Support Arms (optional): We thought that this was a large enough opening that some extra support for the plastic might be good to help with wind. These are made the same way as angle braces on page 9, except they are 3.a.
  • Page 33 4. Quick Release Door Latch: This is what will be used 5/16” hex 4.b. - c. 4.a. One half of a most to secure the scissor doors and open them for nut in here 1 3/8” x 1 3/8” venting. kennel clamp a.
  • Page 34 e. Adjust the Snap Clamps as necessary to remove any wrinkles in the scissor door plastic. Install self-drilling screws (phillips or hex head - your choice) through the Snap Clamps. Ensure that the clamp does not loosen or release while doing so. g.
  • Page 35 n. When you are done, the endwalls should look like this: 6.n. 7617.999 Rev 06/21/2021 | AL, JG, ms www.johnnyseeds.com...
  • Page 36 Skinning the Tunnel: This is an "all-hands-on-deck" evolution that is best done with little or no wind. If possible, postpone this portion of the procedure if the weather is not cooperative or if you feel you do not have enough people to control the plastic.
  • Page 37 3. Pulling the plastic: 2.c. a. When everyone is ready, give the word, and raise the plastic up and over the tunnel, centering it evenly on all sides. b. Wire a small section of plastic (maybe 2 ft.) in the wire channel at the peak of one end of the tunnel to hold the plastic centered and in place on that end.
  • Page 38 4.a. 4.a. 4.a. 4. Roll-up sides (part 2): a. Position the top rail assembly so it rests on top of the plastic and the J-bolts, up against the baseboards of the tunnel. Wrap the plastic around the top rail evenly and secure in place with Snap Clamps every two feet or so such that the top rail is suspended an inch or so above the J-bolts evenly along the length of the tunnel.
  • Page 39 e. Guide Rail: Hold a 10’ piece of 3/4" EMT up to the corner of the tunnel where one of the hand cranks will be located. Make a mark 2' above the top of the hipboard. Cut it to length. Position the top rail assembly so it rests on top of the plastic and the J-bolts, up against the baseboards of the tunnel.
  • Page 40 6a., b. 6. Lacing: a. Pre-drill 1/4" holes through the wire channel on the hipboards that centered between each of the bows, plus one extra hole at each end even with the 6.c. - h. endwall bows. Do not drill into the hipboard itself.
  • Page 41 Your 24' Elliptical High Tunnel is now complete! 7617.999 Rev 06/21/2021 | AL, JG, ms www.johnnyseeds.com...