A Small Greenhouse from a Bus Stop Shelter

By Bill Rosener
Published on July 8, 2009
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This small greenhouse was made from a former bus stop shelter.
This small greenhouse was made from a former bus stop shelter.
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Adding shelves to the greenhouse increases capacity.
Adding shelves to the greenhouse increases capacity.
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A nursery cart can be used instead of a greenhouse — wheel the plants outside during warm weather and bring them inside overnight or in cold weather.
A nursery cart can be used instead of a greenhouse — wheel the plants outside during warm weather and bring them inside overnight or in cold weather.

I’ve thought about building a small greenhouse for a long time. One day, when I was at a surplus auction, I saw a bus stop shelter for sale and had a great idea — that could be my new, small greenhouse. I paid $750 for it. I knew the tempered glass alone was worth that much.

Over the next few weeks, I converted the shelter into a small greenhouse. I added vents along the bottom, then filled in the bottom of one entrance and installed an automatic vent opening at the top. In the other entrance, I installed a hinged door.

Initially, I was worried about the acrylic, domed roof. Would it let in enough sunlight for the plants to grow? Before installing the roof domes, I had placed them on the grass for several weeks. At the end of that time, the grass under them was much taller and greener than the surrounding grass. So it turns out that the white acrylic domes make a perfect greenhouse roof. They’re virtually hail-proof, diffuse light and provide protection from the intense sunlight during the summer.

If you want to build your own small greenhouse, here are six suggestions from my experience.

Automatic Vent Openers

Maintaining an appropriate temperature in a small greenhouse can be time-consuming. Some greenhouses have doors and windows that are opened manually when the outside temperature rises. By installing automatic vent openers, you can drastically reduce the time you spend with climate control. These temperature-controlled devices have a metal cylinder containing a mineral that expands when heated. This pushes a piston to open the vent. As the temperature drops, the mineral shrinks and a spring closes the vent and resets the piston. These vent openers do not require electricity.

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