"Bob Walsh" wrote in message
. ..
How about using a water metering device made for watering lawns. Set it
for enough water (in gallons) to handle expected needs in the greenhouse
plus 10 or 20 percent. Some of these are battery operated and would reset
each day. This would go on the spigot before the hose.

I think misters need constant water. The swamp-coolers may not. The SC
would take up a lot of space in the Rion. I'll check out Lowe's and Home
Depot and see if I can find one of these meters. What I really need is
something to cut the water off if the hose splits.

Sams club carries a 120 or 125' hose that we have left on for months with
no problems. Our water pressure runs 50 to 70 pounds per inch. The hose is
priced in the mid 20 dollar range.

We can't leave the pressure on them here as they split. We've had it
happened at least 5 times since we're living here. The last time was this
spring. It was an expensive 50' hose from Lowe's. We just forgot to turn
the pressure off when we went in for dinner. Several hours later I heard
the sound of water running in the pipes when the TV was shut off............
another large water bill.


Bob
"Manelli Family" wrote in message
...

"Eric Hunt" wrote in message
...
Hi,

This is a problem that's been solved many times over - swamp coolers and
other devices can be used in hobby greenhouses to get the temps under
100.

But where do you get a swamp cooler? Are these home made? What do they
cost? I'm also under the impression you need a constant water supply to
the GH for a SC. Because of the limestone just under the surface it's
cost in prohibitive. The GHs are not near the waterline. Leaving the
water turned on using a hose on the surface isn't an option. We've ended
up with huge water bills several times over the years when the hose split
and no one saw it for hours - or we weren't home.

Who out there has a greenhouse where the days regularly top 100? What do
you do? Do you just tailor your collection to grow plants you know can
take that level of heat? Do you have a misting system that keeps the
humidity really high? Plants can take the heat better with more water in
the air.

Misting requires a constant water supply.

Sorry I can't be of much direct help - San Francisco is the natural
cloud forest of America, even in summer.

Good luck!

The uncontrollable heat was the reason I took all the plants out of the
GH this spring. We though the shade-cloths and fans alone would keep the
GHs at least the same temp as it was outside, boy were we ever wrong.


-Eric in SF
www.orchidphotos.org
www.plantworld.org