Just Venting

This is another post that was inspired by our Field Day on August 17.  We are hopeful that others might find this to be helpful.  Granted, CSA members or farm customers may only  find this an idle curiosity, but some of our farming friends might like learning more about these vents.

Venting the high tunnel is critical to provide a better environment to the plants inside

What is the problem?
the basic issue - heat rises, the plastic roof of a high tunnel holds the heat in, plants can only withstand temperatures that reach certain levels.
The solution, put vents on the end walls of the high tunnel building towards the peak.  These vents are typically just a framed in square that has a pivot point on the sides at the center point.  That pivot point is usually just a heavy duty bolt.   The very basic solution is to provide rope ties at the top and bottom of the vent to hold the vent in an open (or closed) position.

At issue here is the fact that the farmer has to be willing and able to go out and open or close the vents manually as temperatures change.  This can be a bigger deal on very sunny, but cool days.  The heat in the high tunnel might build up significantly and will need to be vented.  So, what happens if you go to a farming conference in last February and the sun comes out and the high tunnel gets warm?

The Gigavent opener can be oriented various ways to do its job

There are certainly all kinds of vents that exist that open and close using a small electric motor.  Funny thing about electric motors - they require electricity.  And, we did not want the expense of running electricity to this building.  There are solutions that might include a solar panel to convert the sun's energy to electricity.  After all, the days you want to open the vents are typically sunny days.  But, this is more complex and expensive than is necessary.

We were pleased to find the Solar Vent Works pages.  These pages provide some decent descriptions and gave us enough data to point us to the Gigavent as our choice for our high tunnel end walls.  They are now in their second season of use and we have no complaints.

Installation included a fair amount of exploration and discussion between Tyler and myself.  In the end, I have to admit that Tyler did most of the work.  But, that's because he likes doing that kind of thing much more than weeding.  Go with our strengths!

These vents have held firm in wind and they are reasonably easy to adjust if you feel they are not opening soon enough (or too early).  The only issue we have had is that the cylinders worked their way lose in February.  So, clearly, you need to recheck how well seated the cylinders are on a periodic basis.

We have yet to purchase a replacement cylinder, but understand they are available.

Other places you could order these vents include:
    Grow Organic dot com
    ACF Greenhouses

We just like the colors in this picture.  Enjoy.