At Griffin we understand that your glasshouse is a one-off purchase which is why we offer so much choice. Depending on the look you wish to create we can tailor the glasshouse to suit your exact requirements. Whether you want a Victorian style glasshouse or you are trying to recreate the orangery of your dreams we can help.

We have standard options of course, but we also offer a range of roof pitches, glass widths and colours, as well as all the accessories you are ever likely to need to compliment your glasshouse, greenhouse or orangery to make it a fully functional and user friendly addition to your garden. In fact, you will wonder how you ever got by without a Griffin Glasshouse. At Griffin, the possibilities are endless!

Planning and Positioning your Griffin Bespoke Glasshouse

At Griffin we want you to gain the most from your new glasshouse. To do this we feel it important to start from the very basic idea and then plan through to make sure every detail is perfect.

POSITION
The aim of a glasshouse is to capture as much light and therefore heat as possible. The easiest way to accomplish this is to build a free standing glasshouse with its longest axis running east - west.

If you are planning a lean to or lean to with offset ridge glasshouse or orangery then the best position would be on a south facing wall. The wall acts as a large store for the suns heat and collects heat during the day which it emits at night.

While this sounds fairly simple, keeping track of where trees, walls and other structures cast their shadows can make life a little more complicated. Also trees need to be thought of as sources of falling leaves, twigs and even branches. So while a few leaves are merely a yearly annoyance to be cleaned up, a large branch can cause more problems. A good glasshouse makes the best use of available sun all year round, not just the summer.

It's also advisable to consider how far from the house a glasshouse is. Too far and you won't use it as much. Of course you may not have these options but we can still help by suggesting alternative designs that make the best use of your situation.

STYLE
If you are planning an orangery or conservatory style glasshouse you will also need to consider the style of glasshouse with regard to your house or other close by structures. Griffin offers a full range of styles and finishes from classic Victorian Orangeries and Glasshouses to more contemporary Greenhouses.

PLANNING
If you live in a Listed building or within a National Park or Conservation area then you will need planning consent prior to building or replacing your glasshouse or orangery. We can undertake this aspect of the process. Usually we have no problems with planning but it is often worth just a quick call to your local planning office to put your mind at rest.

WATER
A mains tap within the glasshouse is the most obvious way to provide water for your plants. But if the structure is a long way from your mains supply this can prove expensive to arrange.

With hosepipe bans and the general environmental considerations of water usage, it makes sense to collect and reuse as much rainwater as possible. When you think how much water you can store within the glasshouse for instant use it makes even more sense. We suggest the use of large troughs, normally under benching, to store the water.

Our 3m x 0.6m x 0.6m lidded tank stores over 1000 litres (250 gallons) of clean soft rainwater that you can either fill a watering can with or use a pump and hose to water your plants with.

ELECTRICITY
If you need a small electric heater or power points for other equipment a fully waterproof electrical supply is required. But if you have got an electric supply to the glasshouse why not make use of the other options available to you.

Fully automatic ventilation can be specified. No more racing to open the vents on a hot morning or to close them during a sudden cold downpour. The thermostatically controlled system will do all the work for you. All you have to do is set the temperature you want it to operate at.

Another option is lighting. Not everyone wants to pot up all night, but with lights you can at least extend the time you do spend in the glasshouse.

Other electrical items we have found in our customers glasshouses when we return to view them:
Propagation benches
Radios
Kettles
Exercise bike
Beer fridges!

OTHER USES
While we build mainly glasshouses this doesn't mean that our customers don't find other uses for them. Whether you want a rain proof corridor to join parts of different buildings together, or a room to act as a storm porch a glasshouse will often fit the bill. An orangery can be the ideal substitute to a freestanding greenhouse if you have a very small garden or no garden at all!

All our greenhouses, glasshouses and orangeries are single glazed so will, under certain conditions, form condensation. This is channelled away within the structure to the exterior. This means that while a useful 'room' can be created, we do not suggest they are used as conservatories.