[feldar]

Thinking of getting a poly tunnel, not too big, but don't know if i should buy secondhand ( do they fall to bits after a while) or save my pennies and buy new?
I've never bought anything like this before so any help would be greatly appreciated

[Skirza]

We bought an 18x14ft polytunnel from citadel polytunnels back in April. As we live in a really windy area, we spent a bit more upgrading. I have to say it was worth it, we survived the 70mph gusts of last week with only minimum stretching of the polythene and no movement of the frame. My advice would be, don't whatever you do risk a cheap polytunnel off somewhere like ebay(although there are a couple of decent firms who advertise on there). There are several good suppliers who will give you sound advice. If you can find a secondhand one, make sure the hoops are a decent thickness and not twisted. Look for extra strength like crop bars and make sure the diagonal struts are present. You can buy new polythene for around £50 so that isn't an issue but again, make sure you buy good quality. Good Luck 

[Fleecewife]

We have heard comments from people who have bought second hand polytunnels that the frame is not the expensive bit, nor even is the polythene, but it's all the doors and odds and ends like anti-hot-spot tape which add up.  If you do opt for a second hand frame then check as Skirza says, but also that there is no corrosion at the bottom of the uprights, where they have been in contact with the soil.  This applies to uprights set into concrete as well as to those just in the soil - we have just refurbished our 21' x 42' Northern Polytunnels tunnel and had to treat the base of all the uprights against rust, as well as replace all the wooden base rails and end framing, doors, louvres etc.
Do your research before you jump in and buy what may appear to be a bargain.  There are tunnels of all different designs and qualities out there, with hoops of different diameter  and thickness metal, as well as a variety of different polythene covers which have different qualities appropriate to different conditions and uses. If you have carpentry skills then you can save yourself a lot by making the doors and louvres yourself and glazing them with twin-walled polycarbonate sheets which you can buy from the internet - this is what we did second time around and made the lot (4 doors and 4 louvres) for the cost of one bought in, plus a couple of sheets left over to make a cold frame  .
Our newly re-covered tunnel did stand up to the recent big wind, which here reached gusts of about 80+mph, but it was scary inside it as the frame gives with the wind and creaks and groans like a sailing ship in a tempest    We have crop bars at each hoop and triangulation bars at the corners, plus reinforcing struts from the last crop bar at each end to the door framing, but the whole thing is intended to have some 'give'. Two important points when you do get your tunnel are: make sure the base is very exactly rectangular, and get the cover on as tightly as you can - readjust when the weather is hot if necessary.
Whatever you decide to do, a polytunnel is a great place to grow your protected crops.

[OhLaLa]

Mine was secondhand (an unused one from a garden centre, I was a bit cheeky - I saw it was empty whenever I drove past so I popped in and asked do they want to sell it to me) but luckily all metal in good nick. Yes, the additions add up: tape, doors, concrete (our uprights are concreted in), and all the various fixings that you (we) found were missing. We also had to buy the skin but struck lucky with that one (just a tenner from an auction). It was a bit of messing about getting all the bits as of course we didn't know they were missing until we tried to reassemble it (never had one before), but it still cost us much less than new.

Then of course there is the puzzle that is building it when it is sourced from so many places and can't quite remember what bit went where....

Love it though, the strawberries were sweet and plentiful this year so it's earnt it's keep already as far as I'm concerned. Melons, cucumbers, tomatoes etc yet to crop........

 

[feldar]

Cheers everyone thanks for the advice, was going to look at ebay but might shop about a bit first now

[northfifeduckling]

we bought the frame second hand and the polythene new. we made our own improvised door, which works fine . We just put an old table inside,and water with a hose although an irrigation system came with it

[katie]

Check you don't need planning permission before buying. We're in the middle of a bitter battle when the neighbours are trying to stop us putting one up on our working smallholding. A lot of authorities have changed the rules to need planning recently.