Best Greenhouses for Snow and Wind

A greenhouse provides a protected place to grow—not another source of worry whenever snow begins falling or the wind starts blowing.

Above photo is an Trillium Greenhouse in the New York snow.

If you live in an area with severe winter weather, choosing the right greenhouse requires more than comparing its appearance, size and glazing. You also need to consider how the structure will withstand the specific snow and wind loads at your location.

Sturdi-Built Greenhouse has a proven track record in demanding climates, including deep-snow areas of Colorado and Alaska, in the Seirra Nevada mountains above Reno with a 203-pound ground snow load, and on the Oregon coast near Astoria where wind gusts can exceed 110 mph.

Snow Loads and Wind Loads Are Different

Snow and wind place very different forces on a greenhouse.  Snow creates a downward load on the roof. The structure must support the accumulated weight and transfer it safely through the rafters, beams, posts, walls, and foundation.

Wind can push against the greenhouse from the side, create pressure on the windward wall, and produce suction on the roof and opposite side. Strong gusts can also place sudden loads on doors, roof vents, and other moving components.

A greenhouse designed for challenging weather needs to address both types of forces—not simply have a steep roof or heavy framing.

Strength Must Be Balanced with Light for Growing

Strengthening a greenhouse for high snow and wind loads typically requires adding structural components to the frame. These may include larger or additional beams, posts, rafter ties, gussets, and corner braces.

However, every added structural component can create a shadow. Too much framing may reduce the amount of sunlight reaching plants, particularly during winter when the sun is lower in the sky and daylight is already limited. 

This is an important design balance: the greenhouse must be strong enough for the anticipated weather without adding unnecessary framing that interferes with light transmission or growing space.

At Sturdi-Built, structural reinforcements are selected and positioned to provide the required support while preserving as much natural light and usable interior space as reasonably possible. The goal is not simply to build a heavier greenhouse. It is to build an appropriately reinforced greenhouse for the conditions at its location.

Greenhouses for Areas with Heavy Snow

A properly designed greenhouse can perform well in snowy climates when its model, structural reinforcements, foundation, and glazing are selected for the site.

Sturdi-Built has supplied greenhouses for high snow locations including:

• Colorado, where deep mountain snow is common
• Nevada, in the Sierra Nevada mountains above Reno, with a 203-pound ground snow load
• Alaska, where greenhouses must withstand long winters and significant snow accumulation

Growing in Colorado - Nantucket 

Growing in Missouri Snow - Tudor

Growing in Alaska Snow - Heirloom

Ground snow load is not necessarily the same as the final roof snow load used for structural design. Local building officials or engineers may account for roof slope, exposure, drifting, elevation, and other site conditions when determining the required design load.  For especially demanding locations, site-specific engineering may be required.

Greenhouses for High-Wind Locations

Wind resistance depends on more than the strength of the greenhouse frame. The entire load path matters—from the roof and wall framing to the sill, anchors, basewall, and foundation.

One example is a Sturdi-Built greenhouse near Astoria, Oregon, designed for a coastal environment where wind gusts can reach approximately 110 mph.

Astoria Oregon Greenhouse - Artisan

High-wind sites may require additional framing, bracing, anchors, vent restraints, and foundation connections. Exposed hillsides, coastal areas, open fields, and locations without natural wind protection deserve particular attention.

Sturdi-Built Weather Kits

Sturdi-Built offers Weather Kits to strengthen the greenhouse frame while preserving light transmission and useful growing space inside.

Available options include:

• A Weather Kit designed for conditions up to 70 mph wind and 70 pounds of snow and ice
• A heavier Weather Kit designed for conditions up to 100 mph wind and 100 pounds of snow and ice

These components are incorporated into the greenhouse’s clear-heart redwood frame with careful attention to their effect on sunlight, beds, benches, shelves, and normal movement inside the greenhouse.

Weather Kits are matched to the greenhouse model, size, foundation, and local design criteria. Sites with requirements exceeding the standard kits—such as a 203-pound ground snow load or wind speeds above 100 mph—need individual evaluation and may require custom engineering.

Are Engineering Calculations Required for a Permit?

Permit requirements vary by city, county, state, greenhouse size, and site conditions. Some building departments not, others may approve a greenhouse using standard plans and construction details. Others may require structural calculations prepared or reviewed by a licensed professional engineer.

Engineering calculations may be required when:

• The greenhouse exceeds a local size or height threshold
• The property is in a high-snow or high-wind area
• The greenhouse is attached to a home or another building
• The design includes a custom foundation or masonry basewall
• The building department requires documentation showing how the structure carries snow and wind loads

Sturdi-Built partners with DoTech Engineering, an engineering firm familiar with our greenhouse models, materials, and construction methods. Because DoTech already understands our products, its engineers can efficiently evaluate a greenhouse and prepare the structural calculations and supporting documents needed for many permit applications.

Lower Heating Costs with Insulation

In snowy climates, the roof must provide structural strength while helping retain heat.  

Sturdi-Built’s Thermal Option interior adds an interior glazing layer to reduce heat loss. Depending on the selected material, it creates an insulating air space between the exterior glazing and the interior layer.

The Thermal Option can be added to the roof, walls, or both. This can make the greenhouse more comfortable for plants and reduce the amount of energy required to maintain the desired winter temperature.

A thermally improved greenhouse will still require heat in very cold weather, but better insulation helps the heating system work more effectively.

Use In-Swinging Doors

We generally recommend doors that swing inward in areas with heavy snow or strong wind.  An in-swinging door offers two important advantages:

1. Snow accumulating outside the greenhouse is less likely to prevent the door from opening.
2. A wind gust cannot catch an open door as easily and pull it outward, potentially damaging the hinges, door, or frame.

Protect the Plants, Not Just the Air

Heating the entire greenhouse is only one approach to winter growing. Often, the most important goal is keeping the plants and root zones warm.

Radiant soil-heating cables installed in growing beds can provide heat directly where plants need it. This may allow growers to maintain cooler greenhouse air temperatures while protecting roots and supporting healthy growth.

Winter heating options may include:

• Radiant floor heating
• Electric greenhouse heaters
• Natural-gas or propane heaters
• Radiant soil-heating cables in growing beds

The best choice depends on the greenhouse size, climate, available utilities, desired indoor temperature, and what you plan to grow.

Add Light for Winter Growing

Even when a greenhouse is warm enough, short winter days may not provide sufficient light for active plant growth.

LED grow lights can supplement natural daylight and extend the useful growing period. They are particularly helpful for seedlings, herbs, vegetables, and other plants that need consistent light during the darkest months.

Start with Local Weather Requirements

Before selecting a greenhouse, check with your local building department to determine the applicable:

• Ground snow load
• Roof snow-load requirement
• Design wind speed
• Exposure category
• Seismic requirements
• Permit and engineering requirements

Conditions can vary significantly within the same state or county, especially in mountain, coastal, and high-elevation areas.

Snowflake Arizona - Tudor

A Greenhouse Built for Your Climate

The best greenhouse for snow and wind is one designed around the actual conditions at its location. That includes the frame, glazing, doors, vents, reinforcements, anchoring, basewall, foundation, and—when required—professional engineering.

It also requires a thoughtful balance. The greenhouse must be strong enough to withstand the expected weather while avoiding unnecessary framing and shadows that reduce the natural light available to plants.

Sturdi-Built has handcrafted redwood greenhouses since 1952. We can help evaluate your greenhouse size, growing goals, local snow load, wind exposure, permit requirements, and winter-heating needs to develop a structure suited to your property.

Contact Sturdi-Built Greenhouse to begin planning a greenhouse that is beautiful, functional, and ready for the weather where you live.