Heaters for the greenhouse: which one is better to choose?
A large percentage of the population during the summer holidays prefer to go to the country. Each summer resident knows that without a greenhouse, the harvest will not fully rejoice. Many crops require heat, so we propose to consider heaters for greenhouses, with which you can harvest year-round. In the spring you can get a strong and high-yielding seedlings.
For the greenhouse
Today, energy-saving mini greenhouses are quite popular. You can choose the option with a thermostat, solar-powered (from the sun), as well as kerosene belt models with an air temperature sensor.When choosing a heater for greenhouses, it is important to at least understand a little for what purposes the equipment will be used. The market for goods is packed with various kinds of similar products. They are so different that it is difficult for an unprepared person to sort out and find a suitable device.
We will analyze devices that do not hit the budget and will be easy to install. An important factor in a good heater, we considered providing a small greenhouse with sufficient heat. Initially, you must decide what is necessary for you personally. In accordance with your requests and it is necessary to select the heating device.
In addition, it is necessary to remember about such factors as device capabilities. We mean the financial equivalent, the size of the greenhouse, the level of temperature conditions.
There are a few more parameters worth paying attention to.
- heater power;
- efficiency;
- quality properties;
- the possibility of minimizing heat loss;
- special conditions of the purchased device.
When is it necessary?
Before you answer this question, you need to identify the factors that are important to you.The most popular request of summer residents is the cultivation of a large, high-quality crop. This is enough to say that you need a heater. If we examine the question of what temperature is needed to maintain positive conditions in the greenhouse, then we can distinguish several periods.
Autumn
The temperature should not fall below -1 degree. This is one of the most important factors. In autumn, almost the entire crop is removed, it is not always necessary to create tropical conditions for the newly planted crops. It is necessary to prepare the plants for the winter.
Spring
For high-quality germination and growth of seedlings it is necessary to constantly maintain the temperature, comfortable planted varieties. It is necessary to control the temperature manually. If there was a long winter and a cold spring, the temperature should be a few degrees higher, since the earth does not warm up naturally.
Winter
The temperature is determined depending on which plants are planted in the greenhouse. If you do not use a greenhouse in winter, do not plant plants in the ground, then the device does not need to be turned on. If you grow any product, it is necessary to adjust the temperature with the condition that the crop is used to.
Summer
Mostly in the summer the heater for the greenhouse is turned off, but there are weather situations in which the device has to be turned on. For example, an early cold summer, when during the day the temperature warms up to +20 and higher, and at night it is freezing. Or when a rainy summer comes, precipitation falls in large quantities, the air temperature quickly decreases. In these cases, you must turn on the device.
Kinds
The main criterion is the personal preferences of the buyer. Much depends on the requirements put forward in the direction of the equipment. Consider several varieties.
Candlelight
Candle heaters are used mainly in spring and autumn, when the temperature changes from positive to negative (and vice versa). To minimize fluctuations in air and ground temperatures, use this device. Thick candles are placed between the bushes and set on fire. It warms the soil well and does not allow seedlings to freeze. However, such a device is designed for a small number of seedlings (not more than a few hundred bushes). In another case, the candles will not be able to warm the soil.
Candles are a small device and not always effective.Because of their small area of impact on the ambient temperature, they do not uniformly heat the earth.
"Home"
This method is used by summer residents when the summer season comes. Homemade method allows you to maintain night temperature. Being on your site, make a fire. A few bricks and a bucket of water are heated in it. When the work is finished, the bricks are placed in the greenhouse. Stones must be placed on wooden planks with water.
The design gives off its heat all night, maintaining the desired temperature. The disadvantage of this design is that the degrees do not increase or decrease. The temperature is normalized and kept all night, thanks to hot water and bricks. One of the advantages of this method is the fact that during the heating of bricks, you can cook meat on the fire or baked potatoes.
With a large greenhouse area, this method with brick and water will be ineffective.
Electric and gas
The specificity of this equipment lies in the fact that heaters convert energy into heat. Hence their big minus: a waste of energy in huge quantities.This type of heater is not suitable for a sick amount of agricultural products. Heats the device locally only those objects (seedlings, earth, air) that are in close proximity.
The disadvantage of these devices is that they do not ionize the air.therefore, it becomes dry and puts plants at risk of being infected with parasites. Electric and gas heaters cope with a large greenhouse, if there are several. But then a large energy bill will increase several times. Ultimately, this may lead to the purchase of another analogue.
Infrared
Experts in the field of agriculture notice that infrared equipment helps most grow a high-quality crop. Infrared heaters are characterized by low energy costs and high efficiency.
They have their advantages:
- They are characterized by high-quality heating, which extends to the entire territory of the greenhouse.
- They are characterized by providing air with additional humidity.
- There is a disinfecting factor, infrared rays kill a large number of germs and nascent infections.
- They are characterized by uniform warming without drought cooling, temperature drop and overheating.
- A decrease in dust in the air and the infrared heater itself has been noticed.
All these factors have a positive effect on air temperature, as well as the growth of agricultural products. One of the main advantages of this type of heat heaters is its easy installation. Install such equipment can be on the wall, racks or ceiling. A desirable and better solution is the ceiling option. Other advantages include noiseless equipment, its compactness and high mobility. Properly install the heater without the involvement of specialists.
The advantage of infrared equipment is the initial heating of the soil, not air. This factor makes the equipment energy efficient. The air will not be dried out, the plants will not receive burning heat. Infrared equipment has special temperature regulators that are necessary for different crops in different phases of growth.
The nuances of choice
The question of installation is of particular importance, which must be given special attention. It depends on the correct operation and yield.It is advisable to purchase a device that provides the function of adjusting the temperature regime with the growth of agricultural products. It is good if you can set different temperatures on certain areas of the greenhouse in order to provide individual types of crops with different types of crops.
It is undesirable to buy a device without adjustment, otherwise the necessary conditions will be created for one culture, and for another they may not be suitable. Setting a single temperature for the entire greenhouse is not the right solution. Never buy equipment with hands. First, as a rule, such products do not serve for a long time. Secondly, their quality often leaves much to be desired.
Modern devices are significantly different from the old instances. The main difference is the screen of the device. In the new heaters installed enchanting plasma, allowing to cover up to 120 degrees. This allows all plants to produce the necessary amount of heat. When choosing a product for a film greenhouse, be guided by the fact that not every variety will be suitable for it.
An interesting solution is the heating tape.In fact, it is an electrical device through which you can heat greenhouses. It is easy to operate, secure, and sealed with a waterproof jacket. It can be used in greenhouses where they grow exotic crops. It is a convenient and indispensable device.
Dimensioning
Let's take a look at which heater to choose. If you have, for example, a greenhouse measuring 6 x 3 meters, you will need two thermal appliances. Having bought two lamps with a capacity of 1.2-1.6 kilowatts, you can warm up the entire area of the greenhouse. It is important when buying to pay attention to the size of the device. The ideal option under the conditions indicated above is a heater with a length of 1.6-1.9 m and a scattering angle of about 120 degrees. If you decide to increase the area, then you need to add new appliances, or replace the entire heating.
If you have a non-standard greenhouse, its width is slightly larger, you can go for such a trick. Hang the devices on both sides, not in the center. Thereby you will remove the spaces that the gasoline heater did not reach. Accordingly, the remaining indicators can be reduced, and the number of heaters increase. When buying a tape, it is calculated per m2.This will help make the heating right and sufficient.
How to heat the greenhouse in the cold, see the following video.