MoonShadows said: Wish I had read both posts before responding to the first one.
As far as your 2nd post. The link I gave you in my first reply should show you how to put foam board around the perimeter. Also, look up Swedish Skirt on YouTube. There are a couple of videos there. One is for a house, and one is for a huge greenhouse if I remember correctly.
I was going to put a Swedish Skirt around my new greenhouse, but never got to it before the winter, but was pleased with the temps without it, but I was growing all cold crop plants. I may still do it at some point. If so, I will slope it down, put a layer of protective plastic underneath and above it, and then put a layer of gravel on it. No soil, although, I'm sure you could do that, too.
The little bit of slab sticking above the ground will have some negative effect, but it should be minimal. You could always cover the foam board with something if you don't want to see it but want it all the way up the side.
Dinner's ready! I'll come back later from "Here's my plan right now" and continue to put my 2 cents in for what it is worth.
MoonShadows said: Not sure about the energy saving, but you lose either 15 or 20% of your heat through the floor. Can't remember which it is, but you can look it up.
I looked up your greenhouse. Nice size.
Triple poly. Great. I have triple poly too, 16mm triple-wall poly
I would cover North and East walls. (I haven't covered my east wall yet in this new greenhouse, but I did in my old greenhouse.) If I remember correctly, AFC sells a bubble wrap that is made specifically for greenhouses. Looks durable. Don't buy cheap bubble wrap. It won't hold up. Even better, think about using Reflectix. It is a thin layer of bubble wrap with aluminum coating on each side. It is better than plain bubble wrap if you install it properly (air space between the Reflectix and wall) and reflects the heat back into the greenhouse. I've used it in both my greenhouses.
You'll love it in the cold Chicago winters. Sometimes I spend a good part of winter afternoons just puttering in the greenhouse. I also bought 2 high deck chairs so we can sit and relax in the winter.
rrubel said: I love the look of your greenhouse, and the Reflectix actually looks good too. I've seen people insulate their GH's where it looks like an eyesore but yours definitely doesn't!
It looks like the ones from Lowes and from Reflectix website has a foil side and a white side - where did you get the all white version? It looks like yours has textured squares - is that how it came?
MoonShadows said: Actually, what you are looking at is Phase Change Material attached over the Reflectix. The PCM are 2' x 2' panels (4 sections) that have a substance (think like wax) that begins to melt at 65 degrees. As the substance melts, it absorbs heat. At night, when the greenhouse cools down and falls below 65 degrees, the panels begin to solidify and give off the heat back into the greenhouse. Each 2x2 panel can hold 400 BTU's of heat energy. I have 63 panels, so I have the potential to store over 25,000 BTU's of heat energy. In the summer it works the opposite, helping to keep the greenhouse cooler during the hottest part of the day and give the heat back at night when the greenhouse cools down a bit.
Here's a pic when I first started hanging them over the Reflextix (double sided aluminum layer). I used the 24" x 25' rolls; 4 of them; run horizontally on 1x2 pine boards I attached to the greenhouse (with a 1.5" air space between the reflectix and the outer wall of the greenhouse) so I could staple the Reflectix and then screw in the PCM panels.