RUSSELL Halls Greenhouses BC Magnum 108 Assembly

Greenhouse Site Prep and Foundation Assembly
Overview:
The greenhouse foundation consists of 4 by 4 pressure-treated lumber held together with galvanized 6" x ½" lag
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bolts with washers.
The 4 by 4's will be nestled into a pad of crushed rock, which in most cases acts as the greenhouse floor.
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Sometimes people will install pavers either over the whole floor or just in the centre as a walkway.
Plan for a pad that is about 18" larger on all sides than the greenhouse. You will need access to all sides both
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during installation and later for maintenance.
Materials Needed:
Landscape fabric to cover excavated area, overlap joins by 6 inches
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Enough ½" to ¾" clear crushed gravel to fill the space
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Preparing the Site:
Measure out the space, making sure to add extra width on all sides. For example, an 86 greenhouse (8 ft long by 6 feet
wide) would require a pad of 11 ft by 9 ft; a 128 greenhouse would have a pad about 15 by 11 ft and a 148 greenhouse
needs a pad about 17 ft long by 11 ft wide.
Be sure that the site is level. If it isn't, you may need to use landscape ties or allan blocks to build a retaining wall along
the lowest side and possibly part or parts of the adjacent sides.
Once the site is level, excavate the sod and soil down to a depth of 4-6 inches.
Line the whole area with landscape fabric and fill it in with 4-6 inches of ½" to ¾" clear crushed rock. The finished level
should be at grade or slightly higher.
How do I know how much crushed rock to order?
Bulk rock, soil and bark mulch are calculated in cubic yards. A cubic yard measures 3 ft x 3 ft x 3 ft or 27 cubic feet. If you
need 4" of gravel, multiply the length of the space by the width to find the square footage, and then divide by 3
(because 4" is one third of a foot) to figure out how many cubic yards of rock to order.
Example 1: You have an 8 x 6 greenhouse and you need to fill in an area four inches deep. Adding 18" on all four sides
gives you a pad size of 11 by 9 or 99 square feet. Dividing by 3 equals 33 cu ft or just a little more than a cubic yard. Get
a yard and a half to have some extra, just in case.
Example 2: You have an 8 x 10 greenhouse and need to fill the area 6 inches deep. Adding 18" on all sides gives you a
space 11 x 13 feet or 143 sq. feet. Dividing by 2 (because 6" is ½ a foot) gives you 71.5 cu ft or just over 2.5 cubic yards
(71.5 divided by 27).
Are we installing your greenhouse? If yes, STOP HERE. Your work is done. Please note the following:
• INSTALLATION DOES NOT INCLUDE SITE PREP, and when we arrive to install the greenhouse, we will expect to
find a level pad of ¾" or ½" clear crushed rock.
The actual foundation IS INCLUDED, and we will be bringing all the wood and fasteners with us.
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1370 Wain Rd., North Saanich, 250-656-0384
Email: info@russellnursery.com
YouTube Channel: Halls Greenhouses BC