wellsy's shadehouse project

wellsy's shadehouse project

I thought this may be a good time to post a few shots of my new shadehouse project to go in with all the other wonderful posts from members showing their own shadehouses.

For me this has been a very complicated project which is still underway so please forgive any rough edges you may spot in the background here and there.

My new shadehouse is approximately 15m long and 5.5m wide (85m2). It has a pitched roof with the centre approximately 700mm higher than the outer walls. The basis of the construction is a combination of 3m X 1.2m X 4mm galvanised mesh fence panels (50 sheets) and (15 sheets) 3m X 2.4m X 4mm galvanised mesh sheets.

The foundation is premixed concrete which is approximately 300mm wide and varies in depth from 300mm up to 800mm depending on the site requirements. Site requirements included the need for retaining walls to the pool area.

Initially, the mesh fence panels were stood up vertically, two at a time, with temporary supports installed while the premix concrete foundation was poured around the mesh and allowed to cure overnight.

Once around six fence panels had been erected a second row of fence panels (which were to become the support for the ridge of the roof) was erected parallel to the wall at 2.8m with spaces between the sheets wide enough for walkways. While this row was being erected the bench structure was also put in place to allow the mesh to become integral with the wall and the centre support.

Note how the mesh of the bench is bent securely around the wall in the below photo. Doing it this way gives a massive boost to the strength of the whole structure. All joins in sheets has been done this way.

The project began so long ago I can't really remember when it was exactly. If I had a better organised life I would have taken a photo of the demolition of the first section of my old worn out shadehouse (75m2) which had served me well for around 15 years.

In any case construction began around 2 years ago now and has been at times a very frustrating and complicated job. The main problem is that as most of us who live in suburbia know space is one of our main constraints. My old shadehouse was actually filled to the brim with plants at the start of the project and something had to be sorted to house them while the new shadehouse was being built.

The answer was a 'temporary' shadehouse' which was built in my pool area (much to my wifes distress) and using nearly half the mesh fence panels (25 sheets which were later recovered to use in the new shadehouse). In any case a temporary space was created which was approximately 30m2 so around 1/3 of my collection was moved into this temporary area allowing demolition and construction of the rear section to begin. Once the rear section was built it was covered in new shadecloth and the plants from the centre section (which was to be demolished next and subsequently rebuilt) were moved into the new rear section.

Construction of the centre section was partially completed 'underneath' the old structure by temporarily raising the old structure (including the old shadecloth) above the level of the new works. Walls, benches and centre supports were installed in this way however the roof could not be completed due to the old structures supports being in the way. Demolition of the front section was then started after the plants from that area were moved into the partially completed centre section. This was possible due the old shadehouse structure still remaining in place above the new centre section.

The front section of the new shadehouse contained the entry which was an old double sliding glass door which was actually left in-situ from the old shadehouse and incorporated into a substantial concrete structure designed to become an architectural feature of the shadehouse.

Another concrete structure was to become a large pillar with a water feature on the side facing the entry.

The shadehouse is situated on a site which has an 800mm fall from the far end to the front entry and a sideways fall of around 400mm. This fall is being used internally to allow the water which runs off after watering to be reclaimed in another project which is also underway at this time. Details coming soon!

Internally the height to the ridge at the far end is 2.9m and at the front is 3.7m. In the below photo you can see an area on top of the shadehouse which is still well and truly under construction at present. This area is part of a passive solar ventilation system which reaches to 4.5m in total above the ground.

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