Portable/Temporary work shelters

[servicepub (RIP)]

My (silver) PA shelter at the Hammond Barn has had a tarp added for extra protection but the one at Don Dingwall's back yard didn't and it 'blew apart' last week. I think that I will invest in a Cdn Tire model this summer.

[Bob Carriere]

You can actually skin it twice...once on top once inside..... keep the space in between inflated with a small blower.... instant insulated green house.....

Unless you use pressure treated plywood it eventualy rots and fails.... for our purpose with proper ventilation...single skin it would work.... so would a pole barn construction..... rigid frame.... sheet metal roof and canvass siding...

What it really boils down to is do you spend $3000 for a very secure 8x8x20sea container that you can use as soon as it hits the gravel bed.... estimated life.......25 years.... or $1000 for a rugged 10x7x20 HD canvass shelter that requires 8 hours to set up good for 10 years....... or a $500 do it from scratch project that will consume 3 weekends and last 5 to 10 years.... the big cost is quality UV resistant covering.....

Frankly at my age, with all due respect to practicality, if I can get a middle of the ground solution for 10 years with minimum efforts to set up and to maintain....... $1000 for ten years is $100 a year.... after that my needs to shelter a wheel chair will be minimum.....

I found this Canadian company from NB....Cover tech...... looks promising....

There may be others....but bottom line is that for a quality 7x12x20 average costs is about $1000..... if it will last 10 + years....ain't so bad.

Boob

[Lionelgee]

Hello MLUers,

When I worked in Parks and Gardens in Queensland we made a modular hot house which had a lightweight metal frame which could be dynabolted down to concrete blocks; or if you wanted bolted into concrete footings in the ground.

The sides of the vertical posts and the pitched roof had "C" shaped channels. The metal frame was made up of two posts and a centre flange which the pitched roof went either side of and then bolted to the posts. Then waterproof film which had circular ribbing sewn into its sides was fed through from the bottom of the "C" on one post up over the roof pitch and down the other side. Dishwashing liquid really helped you feed in the film through the "C"s. To keep the frame strong and the film rigid a number of horizontal spans of metal secured the film to the base of the posts.They also used wire and turnbuckles to make everything rigid and it was rated to be very windproof.

The units were originally designed to provide temporary housing for disaster areas in Asia as they were waterproof and could stand up to strong winds. If you wanted to expand the structure you just bought more waterproof film and more metal frames.

They were designed to be fully transportable so they could load into small planes and once they landed they were light enough to be transported by animal or human powered village vehicles and taken to where they were needed. All you had to do to shift it once it was no longer needed was slide the film out and unbolt the metal frame, roll up the waterproof film and throw it in the back of a truck or trailer and flown out to be stored and taken it to the next place it was needed.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Lionelgee]

I just remembered that the film panel (between the two posts) also had a window each side. Insect screen was sewn permanently into the panel and the windows had a zipper. So you had ventilation and when it rained you could zip up the window flap and it stayed waterproof. End panels and sliding doors finished the job to make things snug.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[maple_leaf_eh]

Army surplus modular tentage on aluminum frames is OK for small low vehicles, but it isn't all that tall for the bigger ones.

I have a name brand driveway shelter (Tempo) and its advantage over the Princess Auto model is spare parts. Two winters ago there was about 4m of snowfall, and my beloved was struggling to keep the important parts clear. The shed collapsed, and so did most of the neighbours'. I helped them tidy up and collected a fine selection of poles and fittings, then sold the remainder as scrap steel. I only needed to buy the critical angles from the factory. Try that with something made by the 'supplier of the month' at Princess?

The back 2 bays of my shelter resemble one of those boat covers. I made mine with rough lumber and of all things, the vinyl media from a Marlboro cigarette billboard ad that my brother cadged off a shooting buddy. Any strong fabric will do.

[rob love]

Originally Posted by maple_leaf_eh

Army surplus modular tentage on aluminum frames is OK for small low vehicles, but it isn't all that tall for the bigger ones.

There are 3 foot leg extensions you can put on that combined with extended mod canvas will let you park a duece in there with room to spare. If one doesn't have the extended mod canvas, it is too easy to sew the extensions on.

Something I am going to try this summer is to install the canvas inside out on a mod tent. The insides of mod tentage are now white while the outside is still the usual green. By putting it up inside out I hope to reduce the heat requirement and at the same time make it look less like an army tent.

[Lionelgee]

G'day MLU'ers

The height on the temporary housing could be however high you wanted. All you need to do is choose a suitable height for the posts and cut the film to fit. It was aluminium framing that was 100 x 50 mm and the structures were actually cyclone rated. You could also use film with a reflective coating to keep them cool in summer.

I am not sure how the structures would handle snow as it is not much of an issue in Asia where the shelters were designed to be used for emergency housing after a natural disaster. They were for a possible UN contract which they lost because the structures were too dear. So having paid for the patents the company decided to branch out into building horticulture structures as there was more money to be made in that area. I think the company no longer exists.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Barry Churcher]

Bob and Clive, thanks for the update on the PA silver tarps. I have an old one that has been outside for 7 or 8 years and if it wasn't for the mice it would still be good. I was going to buy a couple of PA tarps on sale, starting today, but after your posts I will rethink this. I know the blue ones last about 15 minutes.
Cheers,
Barry

[Bob Carriere]

Hi Barry

My first PA tent was tan and lasted about 3 years...... the silver tents use to last two full seasons....... now it seems that the silver application flakes off before the season bearly ends...... what you have left is a rag type weave that will absorb water.... freezes and then becomes brittle.

Even on firewood piles I could count on 2 to 3 years use... n ow one summer and they are rags. The blue or green ones are even worst.... I covered furniture on the pickup.... halfway down from Toronto it started to fray and came apart.

The heavier 14 oz. poly tarps of the quality Winter garage are heavy as hell but they seem to last a lot longer...... some trailer storage outfit near my place have had some for 3 to 4 years ands still look new.

Boob