Welcome! Log In Create A New Profile

Advanced

printing a greenhouse

Posted by Autarkyboy 
printing a greenhouse
April 30, 2010 01:55PM
Hello I posted a similar message some time ago but I think that it was filtered by an anti-spam bot cause it was full of commercial links, so I rewrite it with no links.

I want to build a greenhouse so I searched the web about the topic.

Greenhouse glazings usually are made of glass, polycarbonate or acrylic, they must let the light pass through but they must retain the heat and they must be lightweight but strong enough.

You can measure the performance of a glazing by these parameters: % of light that passes through, R-value and years before the plastic gets ruined by the sun.

Polycarbonate panels can be extruded with more than one "wall", that means that air is trapped between two walls so that it can act as a thermal insulator. I found sheets with even 5 or more walls.

Using more walls reduce the % of light that passes through but increases the thermal insulation greatly.

My questions are:

Is it possible or convenient to print a greenhouse with a RepRap?

Can I make transparent panels?

Can I use some 3d printer techniques to print panels with very high thermal insulation? like printing something with a lot of air trapped in a smart way inside?

Will printing my panels be cheaper than buying extruded ones?

Why is nobody doing that? Is there some sort of show-stopper that I am not aware of?
Re: printing a greenhouse
April 30, 2010 02:07PM
You won't be able to print transparent panels on a reprap, because the filament deposition process can't create a smooth solid piece. And you certainly won't be able to print anything as large as a greenhouse glass sheet. For certain, it would be cheapest to purchase extruded ones.

But you might be able to use a RepRap to make joiners and connectors for your panels.
Re: printing a greenhouse
May 01, 2010 08:59AM
jbayless Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You won't be able to print transparent panels on a
> reprap, because the filament deposition process
> can't create a smooth solid piece. And you
> certainly won't be able to print anything as large
> as a greenhouse glass sheet. For certain, it would
> be cheapest to purchase extruded ones.
>
> But you might be able to use a RepRap to make
> joiners and connectors for your panels.

Can't I do anything to print a transparent object? I dunno, sanding it or applying other surface finish treatment.
VDX
Re: printing a greenhouse
May 04, 2010 03:35AM
... i've tried with a PMMA-glue called "Acrifix192" - with a steppermotor driven dispenser and UV-LED's for precuring you can print similar to the reprap-head and it cures to a completely transparent solid PMMA-body ...


Viktor
--------
Aufruf zum Projekt "Müll-freie Meere" - [reprap.org] -- Deutsche Facebook-Gruppe - [www.facebook.com]

Call for the project "garbage-free seas" - [reprap.org]
Re: printing a greenhouse
May 04, 2010 04:33AM
Autarkyboy, let us put it this way: how many cubic centimeters of plastic will you be depositing?


-Sebastien, RepRap.org library gnome.

Remember, you're all RepRap developers (once you've joined the super-secret developer mailing list), and the wiki, RepRap.org, [reprap.org] is for everyone and everything! grinning smiley
Re: printing a greenhouse
May 09, 2010 06:02AM
SebastienBailard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Autarkyboy, let us put it this way: how many cubic
> centimeters of plastic will you be depositing?

I don't know, it is just a brainstorm for now. Why do you ask that? Will it take months of printing time? It's an aspect that I didn't consider.
Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.

Click here to login