Quictent Greenhouse 1302W
The Quictent Greenhouse 1302W has a shape more consistent with tents and storage buildings. Quictent’s focus seems to be more about party tents, canopies, and portable garages.
This 10 feet long, 9 feet wide, and 8 feet high greenhouse…with 90 square feet of growing space…has 2 zippered doors and 5 screened roll-up windows. There are 2 windows on each side and a window in one of the doors. All windows are held in place with Velcro…rolled up…or down.
There are no tools required for setup because the frame parts click-lock into each other. One person can build this greenhouse easily in less than 2 hours. That includes the time to sort out the parts by the numbers on them and match up the numbers as shown in the assembly instructions. An extra set of hands can help get this greenhouse finished in less than an hour…SYNERGY!
The frame is white powder coated steel for rust resistance.
The oversized reinforced clear white polyethylene cover is UV protected and uses Velcro fasteners to attach to the frame.
TIP: To protect your cover and give it longer life, wrap your greenhouse frame with pipe wrap insulation. The pipe wrap will also keep a heated frame from baking and destroying the plastic cover. And, periodically, use a disinfectant that is specially designed as a fungicide, virucide, and algaecide for cleaning greenhouses such as Physan 20. Physan 20 is also used to clean and disinfect outdoor fountains, bird baths, and pools.
After using Physan 20, and making sure that the cover is clean and dry, apply a coating of 303 (30306) Marine UV Protectant. The 303 will rejuvenate the UV protection…making the cover look brighter and newer…giving it much needed extra protection. IMPORTANT: Follow the directions on the label.
A polyethylene plastic greenhouse cover won’t last forever. The cover usually starts to deteriorate or tear within the first several years. Thus, eventually, there will be a need to either repair or replace the cover with good quality 6-mil polyethylene plastic sheeting.
TIP: Instead of completely replacing the cover, just add the sheeting as another layer to the cover, hold it in place with snap clamps, and cut out holes for the windows and doors. It also wouldn’t hurt to have a roll or two of polyethylene repair tape to take care of small rips and tears in the plastic. And, what would make your greenhouse really cozy on a cold winter’s night is a top-of-the-line infrared heater.
TIP: Pick a calm day to build this greenhouse! Remember…wind is your enemy when trying to install a polyethylene plastic cover that is always ready to take flight and soar into the heavens!
Once completed, the greenhouse cover is big enough to bury the flap ends. Alternatively, you can place a board on the flaps to protect the plastic and put cement blocks on the boards for stability. Placing 8 blocks…2 on each side and one at each corner…will go a long way to keep the greenhouse in place.
TIP: The greenhouse comes with rope and 12 small tie-down stakes but, they are inadequate for stability during periods of strong wind! Instead, use some long tent stakes or metal T-posts or U-posts in the corners and the middle of each side to steady the greenhouse.
Customer Issues
- The cover can tear prematurely…even though it has a reinforced mesh. This would be a good reason to keep a top notch 6-mil polyethylene plastic roll on hand.
- Defective low-quality door zippers.
- The Velcro holding the windows in place not matching up well especially if the cover is pulled tight across the frame.
- Incomplete and ambiguous assembly instructions. One customer didn’t realize that the window flaps were supposed to be on the outside until the cover was stretched over the frame and they noticed that the Velcro straps used to secure the cover to the frame were now on the outside.
- No framing on the front and back wall to support the plastic so, they will blow in and out when exposed to a little wind.
- The greenhouse needs a roof vent for an easier way for heat to escape when necessary.
Even with these issues, customers said that, considering the low cost, they could “weather the storm” and put up with a few minor inconveniences…and, they would purchase another Quictent Greenhouse 1302W in a heartbeat!
So, knowing the willingness of customers to purchase this greenhouse…even with its disadvantages…would you concur with them? Your thoughts and input are appreciated in the comments section or by email: jim@perfect-vegetable-garden.com.
Jim, the Life Long Gardener
Hi Jim,
Great review!
The Quictent Greenhouse looks very spacious and easy to build. The fact that it doesn’t require any tool and another person to set up the tent is fantastic! Since I live near the sea, there is a lot of winds. Putting blocks on the tent to prevent it from flying away is a great idea, but the problem is that I use synthetic grass in my garden and the weight of the blocks may deform the grass. Wouldn’t it better to attach each corner of the roof with ropes? Could you suggest me, please?
Thank you very much for this excellent post!
Hi Daniella,
Since you have gone to the expense of installing artificial turf in your yard, I can understand your concern. By the way, I hope you had the installers put a gopher mesh on the ground before installing the grass. Otherwise, they will make a complete mess of your beautiful yard if your area is prone to their existence.
Ask yourself a question. Are you going to permanently keep the greenhouse in the same spot year after year…after year?
If the answer is no, then you probably don’t want to buy one because…eventually, even being light weight, it will damage spots on the artificial turf anywhere it touches.
If you do plan on permanently leaving the greenhouse in the same spot then, even if a long board with cement blocks on top is sitting on the flap, you will never see any grass deformation. However, if you want to minimize the possibility, then try my suggestion of using metal T-posts to anchor the greenhouse. Cut a small slit in the artificial turf, use a fence post driver to pound the post straight down into the dirt. Then, apply a bead of quality elastic adhesive around the opening…and give it at least 24 hours to cure before walking around in the area.
Jim