# Mini greenhouse as a closed chamber



## Aunt Caffy (Jun 22, 2014)

My plan is to use two 4' by 4' Palram Plant Inn greenhouses as my indoor closed chamber. I've assembled the first one. The greenhouses are $300 each on Amazon with free shipping. 


There are four drain holes.


I'm covering the drain holes with plant fabric and sealing that with aluminum duct tape. I'm covering the metal interior sides with a solar heating pool cover and also sealing with the same tape. This is the heat and water resistant stuff used in plumbing and duct work. I've also attached a container of waterless hand soap (with a 3M Command strip) to the exterior wall. The walls are UV resistant polycarbonate.



I will update with more pictures as I progress with substrate,plants,decor, lighting, etc.


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## Team Gomberg (Jun 22, 2014)

I'm excited to follow this..


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## leigti (Jun 22, 2014)

That is going to be a nice big enclosure.


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## juli11 (Jun 22, 2014)

What a GREAT idea!!!
I hope I can do the same for my turtles. Which turtles do you want to keep in this greenhouse?


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## naturalman91 (Jun 22, 2014)

this looks great but did it come with lights? or just the green house, for 300 im almost thinking i could replicate that with some pvc and plastic


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 22, 2014)

This is going to be for cherryheads. It doesn't come with lighting as it's for growing plants outside.


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## Flipper (Jun 22, 2014)

Aunt Caffy said:


> This is going to be for cherryheads. It doesn't come with lighting as it's for growing plants outside.


 This is going to be fantastice!! I look forward to updates


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 22, 2014)

Underneath I provided additional structure for the plant trays by placing plant stands under the drain holes. To bring the stands up to the level of the plant trays, I used small squares of plastic, foam, and leftover pool cover. I tried to take a picture, but it's pretty dark under there. 

I got the lighting attached. I suspended my dome lights with the hanging plant things that came with the Plant Inn. I secured them with zip ties and more of the aluminum tape. 



With the hood light, I used industrial strength adhesive-backed Velcro. I threaded the zip ties between the two sides of the Velcro and slipped them through more of the plant hangers. I further secured the Velcro with more of the aluminum tape. 


I have two hygrometer/thermometer combos. One is at either side of the greenhouse.


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## naturalman91 (Jun 22, 2014)

its lookin good is that hard plastic or just a plastic cover?


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 22, 2014)

The polycarbonate is pretty thin. You can cut it with some aviator snips or other heavy duty scissors.


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 22, 2014)

I've put in all the plants and decorations I've bought except the little fairy garden fence I'm going to put across the outside of the front opening. It's so cool to watch my little misting system working.


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## Elohi (Jun 22, 2014)

Can you take pictures of it in it's entirety now that it's complete? I looked at this greenhouse on amazon. Seems interesting. 


Elohi(Earth)


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## Flipper (Jun 22, 2014)

Wow!


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## naturalman91 (Jun 22, 2014)

wow looks great are you keeping them separate? i ask because of the divider


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 23, 2014)

naturalman91 said:


> wow looks great are you keeping them separate? i ask because of the divider


The divider is just part of the greenhouse structure. I guess it would suffice to keep torts separate. I was hoping that the wee ones would be able to cross via the Mayan temple/turtle pier.

I've still got about a month before I get any little inhabitants. I hope to get the temperatures and humidity perfected by then.


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 23, 2014)

Elohi said:


> Can you take pictures of it in it's entirety now that it's complete? I looked at this greenhouse on amazon. Seems interesting.
> 
> 
> Elohi(Earth)


This is the view from the side. I can't get it from the front because my sewing machine area and the cat tree block me from going back far enough to get a full shot. Right now, it's just one of the greenhouse units. I will get a second unit once I'm able to relocate the bookshelves/printer stand/junk that's in its future spot now.


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## Shakudo (Jun 23, 2014)

It looks very cool!!! You did some nice work there!!!

I really hope your cherries will not ravage everything , tortoises tend to... Redecorate....


Good luck with your project, it's really cool and keep us posted


Take care,

Joey


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 23, 2014)

I bought the live plants for the babes to eat. I hope they don't wreck any of the artificial stuff, but, given my luck with pets, I'll be replacing the decor soon enough.


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## ShadowRancher (Jun 23, 2014)

That's really cool! Its similar to my winter build for my sullies (you just used a cooler greenhouse ) http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...from-this-winter-pic-heavy.94380/#post-878104


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 26, 2014)

Right now, I have humidity levels around 60% with a low temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit and a high temperature of 82. I have two more CHEs on order. I may not need both, and I'm increasing the amount of time my misting system runs. I'll see how that affects things. I have some more plants to put inside and have wheat grass seeds on order. 

All that and I've added a "Beware of the Tortoise" sign.


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## bouaboua (Jun 26, 2014)

How cool and interesting....Thank you for sharing it. 

Yes...."Beware of the Tortoise"


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 26, 2014)

Aunt Caffy said:


> Right now, I have humidity levels around 60% with a low temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit and a high temperature of 82. I have two more CHEs on order. I may not need both, and I'm increasing the amount of time my misting system runs. I'll see how that affects things. I have some more plants to put inside and have wheat grass seeds on order.
> 
> All that and I've added a "Beware of the Tortoise" sign.


I switched my two heat lamps so that the CHE was closer to the center and not so close to the greenhouse wall. The low temp is now 80 degrees Fahrenheit, the high side 91, and the humidity at 55%. I guess I don't need two new CHEs right now, but I imagine you can't have too many spare bulbs. Maybe one CHE hooked up to the dimmer switch. I'll find out how the extra misting works tomorrow.


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## alysciaingram (Jun 27, 2014)

My two greenhouses came in today, with my bracket lights. Thanks for the inspiration!


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 27, 2014)

alysciaingram said:


> My two greenhouses came in today, with my bracket lights. Thanks for the inspiration!


Make sure to wear some gloves when you're handling the pieces. Some of them can be sharp.


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## alysciaingram (Jun 27, 2014)

Thanks for the heads up! My outdoor enclosures just got finished today so I'll be building those tomorrow!


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## Aunt Caffy (Jun 29, 2014)

I put in some more plants and heating/lighting. 






I've put baby's name up. His/her name is going to be "Rowan," which is Gaelic for "little redhead." I think that's perfect for a baby cherryhead. 



The basking spot is still too hot, around 104 degrees Fahrenheit. So I've ordered a dimmer switch. My humidity is still too low (60-70% depending on how close to the ground it is). My additional coco noir still hasn't arrived. I've upped my misting times again. I'll see how much that helps later today.


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## alysciaingram (Jun 29, 2014)

Starting mine up! Thanks again!


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## nadia055 (Apr 6, 2020)

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