I had to add some extra shelving to my greenhouse. I’ve been growing so many plants, and the bottom shelf of my current setup wasn’t getting enough light. So, I decided to make use of the back wall. I’ve got hundreds of seedlings going, and they needed more light to thrive.
I mostly used leftover lumber. I had some leftover 1/2” hardware cloth/wire mesh from the last shelf build. I also used paint that was left over from the overall project. Additionally, I used 2” exterior screws and staples. I used a drill, a stapler gun, and a speed square. I also utilized a measuring tape and a circular saw to get the job done.
I used treated 2×6 cut as following:
4 legs (54”)
2 long shelf sides (87”)
2 short self sides (22”)
2 cross supports in the center (19”)
First, I cut all the lumber and marked the height on the legs where I wanted the shelf. The speed square made this super easy.
Next, I attached a long shelf piece to two legs at the marked height using the exterior screws X2.
I stood both sections up. I began screwing in the short sides so I wouldn’t have to do too much. This way, I ensured I had enough hands.
I was able to screw in the short sides again using my marks, making everything even and square X2.
Then, I marked the open shelf space into thirds, 30 inches from each end for the cross supports and attached them with exterior screws too. This build is split into a couple YouTube videos. Check out part one of the build here.
Next, I painted the whole thing with the leftover paint. It’s exterior paint from Lowes that I’ve used before on the outside of my house and it holds up really well. For the whole greenhouse project, I actually diluted the paint by about 30% water. I decided to dilute it because it just goes on so smoothly and I don’t need 100% coverage. I like the translucent look for this project.
Up next was moving the shelf into place. I had to dig out 3 inches of rocks so it could sit nicely on the ground. Once it was in place, I rearranged the rocks back and attached the hardware cloth using staples and a staple gun. I was a bit short on hardware cloth, but I just didn’t want to buy another roll. I’m sure I’ll redo, rearrange, or replace how I do this greenhouse and the shelves over the next year. But I’m not too worried about it right now.
Now, all my plant babies get to bask in the sun until I’m ready to transplant them outside. See me attaching the hardware cloth and setting up the seedling trays here on YouTube.