Build Your Own Plastic Bottle Greenhouse
Do you have tons of plastic bottles lying around your house and excess backyard space? If so, you might want to look into building a plastic bottle greenhouse. The greenhouse idea was devised and brought to life by Blue Rock Station. For $5 (the electronic version is $4), you can buy instructions to build one yourself.
Make sure you have plenty of tires for the rammed earth foundation, at least 1000 2-liter plastic bottles, straw bale, and two 55 gallon rain barrels. A hefty load of starting materials for sure, but nothing compared to what you would need for a traditional greenhouse. And what better use is there for plastic bottles (besides energy-intensive recycling)?
Blue Rock Station’s greenhouse booklet discusses design creation, site prep and drainage, wind issues, orientation, insulation, and more.
Photo Credit: Blue Rock Station
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January 1st, 2009 at 7:46 pm
What is the life of the plastic bottles? Being that they are not light-stable, wouldn’t they start to crack and degrade and need to be replaced every year?
January 6th, 2009 at 2:58 am
Really amazing idea, but are there vents you can open in the summer? Looks like it works really well, which means it gets warm when it’s warm out…
January 9th, 2009 at 2:57 am
This is a great idea! Finally, something to do with all those plastic bottles!
I just read an article on picking a site for your greenhouse…..just wanted to pass it onto you.
http://mymilescity.com/how-to-miscellaneous/prepare_greenhouse_site.html
February 7th, 2009 at 4:56 am
In addition to the first response, long exposure to plastics isn’t good for anything. It could even affect the air inside the greenhouse.
March 7th, 2009 at 4:42 am
Don’t go breathing the air inside that greenhouse. Polyethylene terephthalate (recycling code number 1) desintergrates due to sunlight. The process is called photodegredation. The particles are released in the air and breathing them has been proven to cause cancer. Photodegradation also seeps plastic particles into the liquids these bottles contain. This is why such bottles are called “one-time-use” by the FDA.
April 28th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
I think that those arent bottles, can someone prove they are infact bottles and not ice. It really looks like ice, that and the fact Mr. Freeze is in the image i think its obvious.
thank you
July 10th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
I’ve built one to a different design which you can see at http://www.squidoo.com/plasticbottlegreenhouse
November 15th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
What a neat and fun idea, thanks for sharing. I think this is a great way to help recycle and enjoy the environment at the same time.