Greenhouses – outdoor living opportunities

Greenhouses are being used for outdoor living areas as well as growing plants

The traditional use for greenhouses is, of course, propagating and growing flowers and vegetables. Today, there is an increasing interest in using greenhouses, particularly the larger sizes. They are used as covered outdoor areas for relaxation – for hot tubs, cafe table sets and other activities.

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AMERICANA GREENHOUSE 12 x 12

The AMERICANA 12 x 12 greenhouse from PALRAM is an ideal unit for this purpose. Large enough to allow room for a well set up outdoor area, it also provides shelter from wind and rain, allowing you to spend more time enjoying the garden and relaxing. The clear polycarbonate glazing is virtually unbreakable and is an essential element in the success of the AMERICANA as an economical conservatory. When used as an outdoor covered area, the greenhouse can be installed on a timber base as shown, or on pavers or a concrete slab.

Of course, you always have the option of reverting to the primary greenhouse use for part of the unit; some people actually set their greenhouses up so that they can sit and enjoy their plants’ progress while they have a quiet cup of tea. It’s really about how you would like to have it – with the space available in the AMERICANA the possibilities are almost endless!

Outdoor storage box – new deck boxes from Suncast

New wicker style outdoor storage box range from USA

 

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SUNCAST RESIN WICKER DECK BOX DBW9200

One of the top manufacturers of outdoor storage box and cabinet units in the US has released a new wicker style range.  These deck boxes, designed for weather-proof outside storage, are made from high quality poly resin plastic which is robust and weather resistant as well as being finished in an attractive wicker appearance.

The range includes SUNCAST RESIN WICKER DECK BOX DBW 7300, the SUNCAST RESIN WICKER DECK BOX DBW9200 and the top of the range SUNCAST EXTRA LARGE DECK BOX.  All these outdoor storage box units are easy to put together – no tools are required, and the estimated average assembly time is 5 minutes!  It certainly would be time well spent to get all those patio cushions, garden accessories, toys and other bits and pieces tidy and safe in a weatherproof and lockable place.

Many other outdoor storage options are available, of course, and not everyone has space for these larger storage units, but if you can fit them in they are an excellent investment to protect items which can be safely stored outside.  Many people are waking up to the fact that there are now viable options to cluttering up precious space inside the house, and that it not really very costly to use outdoor storage solutions.

 

Mini greenhouses – ideal for today’s lifestyle

Everyone has room for a mini greenhouse, and there is a great range to choose from!

 

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SILVER LINE PLANT INN

Mini greenhouse units are a great solution – most people have the urge at some time to get involved in growing plants; kids are fascinated with the process and love to have their own little garden patch – many of us can remember pulling up the carrots every day to see how much they had grown!  But it isn’t only youngsters that are interested.  People of all ages and from every walk of life are increasingly finding gardening in some form a healthy interest and a great way to relax and de-stress.  With some the interest becomes an absorbing passion; ( they say that growing orchids is addictive!)  For others, simply being able to spend a few minutes each day growing some attractive blooms or their own vegetables satisfies the inner primary producer.  Mini greenhouses are available in a range of sizes and configurations – they take up very little room and can produce a surprising amount.

The smallest mini greenhouses are units like the SILVER LINE SINGLE COLD FRAME and the SILVER LINE DOUBLE COLD FRAME – these are designed to be used straight on the ground, and will protect seedlings from extremes of weather as well as from pests and small animals.  However, many people today live in apartments and unit developments where space is at a premium and they may not have access to an actual garden area.  Fortunately this doesn’t stop their being involved in gardening activities, as a wide range of mini greenhouse products has been specifically designed to meet this need.

One of the most popular of these is the SILVER LINE PLANT INN – this mini greenhouse is a great design which provides an outdoor storage cabinet underneath the elevated growing deck area.  Growing some fresh vegetables or flowers couldn’t be easier or tidier!  Other units include the SILVER LINE LEAN-TO, the SILVER LINE GROW DECK and the SILVER LINE GROW STATION – all designed to suit specific areas on patios and balconies.

Some of these mini greenhouse units are shown below – 

 

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SILVER LINE GROW STATION

 

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SILVER LINE LEAN-TO

And the great thing is that these mini greenhouses are very attractively priced – it doesn’t cost a fortune to get into greenhouse gardening!

 

 

 

Outdoor storage – for everything including the wheelie-bin!

Plastic outdoor storage solutions are available for most residential situations

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BIKES BINS + MORE

Outdoor storage units suitable for everything from garden tools, fertiliser and hoses to sports equipment, bikes and toys are becoming available in an ever-increasing range of shapes and sizes. Many of the more popular and attractive of these answers to the outdoor storage need are manufactured from either poly resin or polycarbonate plastics.

Ranging from small plastic storage cabinets such as the KETER MINI PATIO CABINET through to full-size plastic garden sheds such as the KETER SUMMIT – there are dozens of outdoor storage options to choose from. Often today there are restrictions on the space available to put an outdoor storage unit.  We find that often the best guide is to get the largest unit that will fit. One thing is for sure, you will fill it much sooner than you want to!

One request we often get is for an outdoor storage cabinet for keeping the wheelie-bins tidy and out of sight. There are several units especially suitable for this – some for the 240 litre bins (such as the BIKES, BINS + MORE and the best-seller STORE-IT-OUT XL) and some which will handle the 120 litre bins, such as the WOODLAND 30. These are designed to allow easy access with wheelie-bins, as the front panel opens completely as well as the lid being hinged. Of course, other things with wheels such as lawn mowers and wheel barrows can also be stored easily because of the wide opening available.

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The products now available for neat and tidy outside storage are making life easier and safer for thousands of Australians. These plastic outdoor storage cabinets and sheds are attractive and long-lasting, and are generally simple to assemble.

 

 

Plastic garden sheds – new product range available

Polycarbonate plastic garden sheds wall and roof panels are practically unbreakable

Using polycarbonate for wall and roof panels of plastic garden sheds is a new application for one of the most incredible plastics ever invented. Polycarbonate was discovered in 1953 by Dr. H. Schnell at Bayer AG, Germany, and by one of those strange coincidences, independently a week later by D. W. Fox at General Electric Company in USA . In the years since, its immense impact resistance and chemical inertness have made it invaluable for an ever widening range of products from cockpit canopies for jet fighters to specialised laboratory equipment. Interestingly, nearly all the new cars made in Europe and USA have headlights glazed with polycarbonate.

Now PALRAM have released the ANTHRACITE range of plastic garden sheds with wall panels and roof manufactured from polycarbonate. Its inherent toughness resists practically any form of impact from cricket balls (even with a test cricketer bowling!) to hail storms – even a determined assault with baseball bats or hammers. Because of this, the polycarbonate plastic garden sheds don’t suffer from the dents, scratches and corrosion that can affect Zinc or Color steel sheds. Plastic sheds simply just look better for longer!

Polycarbonate plastic garden shed panels are not completely rigid – they will give slightly under impact, and consequently galvanised steel tube and aluminium extrusion frame members are used to provide structural integrity. In spite of this added structural detail, the PALRAM ANTHRACITE range is very competitively priced and the polycarbonate plastic garden shed is showing the potential to become a serious contender for the outside storage role in the near future.