How to build a vertical garden?

[J-P]

After the bench seat for the dining table (& another small table from the offcut in the making), I have started the plan for the next DIY outdoor.

This time it is a vertical garden above the small BBQ that i have in my backyard. Attached the design. It is going up on a brick wall. Few questions from the experts here - @MitchellMc @EricL @JacobZ @Dave-1 (Please tag other i might have missed)

1. Is 70mm TP strong enough for this good enough for this? Expecting a total weight of about 100Kgs when filled with water.

2.  Are the anchoring with batten screws good or can i reduce by a bit?

3. Is the gap of 22mm between the merbau slats good size (Hope it will be good enough gap to slide the holders of the pots)

3. Any other consideations?

[MitchellMc]

Hi @J-P,

70 x 45mm timber should be sufficient, but it has more to do with how you'll be mounting to the wall or posts. Ensure you use adequate fixings for the weight.

Are the batten screws being used into the brick wall? If so, those should be Dynabolts, as batten screws are used for timber to timber connections.

A gap of 22mm between the batons is fine, but that's really a personal preference. As you mentioned, make sure the brackets fit in that gap.

Merbau tends to leak tannins for several weeks, so ensure you weather the battens before installing above anything that could be ruined by red dye.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[J-P]

@MitchellMc - Thanks for your response. Is 70x45 a must. I have some 70x35 lying around that I thought put to use in this project. 

Also what size Dynabolts do you recommend? I was able to get away with entire garage shelves (didn’t know this before) done with batten screw with wall plugs. I will also countersink the bolts so that they are plush to wood.

any tip of what gap between merbau battens look ideal? 

thanks for your tip on the tannin. These are under a covered pergola but will still weather them to be safe.

[Dave-1]

Morning @J-P 

For brick walls I like using the Concrete/brick anchor screws. I use to recomend dynabolts but these screws seem to be a a lot kinder to brickwork cracking or blowing out. Ramset 12 x 100mm Galvanised AnkaScrew Masonry Anchor For you depth I would factor in at least 70mm of the screw into the brick wall plus whatever timber widths you will be using on your wall. I went with 12mm size suggestion as the amount of wet dirt potentially on the wall could eb a LOT so figured better to be safe then sorry.

I went with a small gap on my privacy screens as I wanted privacy, you want to be able to hang off a planting box or three When I was nutting out how much "space" to go with between slats I generally "stack" a few rails on chocks and see how it looks. Its the easiest way to visulize the wall. I liek your 22mm width suggestion but maybe go with 28mm that way you can use easy spacer height with an offcut of the slats themselves.

I would still be aware of the tannin's as they do run and will discolour things for a bit. You will be watering the plants so the trllis will have water over it even if its in a protected space.

And extra thing you could try is to mix in with the slats larger width sizes. I did that with my front screen and it did make a differeance to the "look"

Dave

[JacobZ]

Hi @J-P,

The 70x35 should work, but as @MitchellMc has said, the quality of its anchoring is the most important thing in this case. 

Similar to the advice @Dave-1 has given, I have found that the AnkaScrew Masonry Anchors seem to be a bit more forgiving in terms of "blowing-out" brick and concrete. The size Dave-1 has suggested should be perfect.

The gap size is purely up to preference, but it is important that it is consistent. Cutting a spacer block which is placed between the battens while screwing them in place is a great way of speeding up the process and ensuring consistent gaps all around.

This sounds like a fantastic project that I'm very excited to see become a reality.

Please keep us updated and don't hesitate to ask any further questions.

Jacob

[J-P]

@JacobZ / @Dave-1 -

Thanks for your time and valuable advice.  Each Anka screw is $4+ 😳.

How many should I plan for my frame? 3 or 2 in vertical and 1 in horizontal. Total - 2x3 + 1x4 = 10. 

I came up with 22mm gap because of my a deck offcut I had. I can readjust to 28 and see how it plays with placement of pots. I also like the idea of different and will consider it for real screen project. This would be fully covered with lots. So I guess it doesn’t matter.

for tanins I will assemble the frame and water it everyday for a week or two before putting the pots.

[Dave-1]

Afternoon @J-P 

Yeah, the overall price adds up. Tho even if you went for the dynabolts its still going to be a few $$.

You can generally by a box of 10 or 20 in the aisle (couldnt find them online for some reason) I usually end up buying a box (they dont go off like breakfast cereal lol)

The only reason I say 28mm and not 22mm was because the slats you have drawn are 28mm. As long as they suit your pots id say its fine.

I actually washed and used a paint scraper on some heavily stained merabau timber a few times before I put them together, that way I knew the excess had gone.

Dave

[J-P]

Thanks @Dave-1 I will follow your tip for getting rid of ya in and will also alter the design to be 28mm. One last question

How many should I plan for my frame? 3 or 2 in vertical and 1 in horizontal. Total - 2x3 + 1x4 = 10. 

@JacobZ @MitchellMc 

[JacobZ]

Hi @J-P,

I would suggest at minimum 3 x Ankascrews into each vertical members and 1 x Ankascrew into each horizontal member, totalling 13.

This will ensure the weight is evenly distributed across the entire frame and not overload any single connection.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

[Dave-1]

Afternoon @J-P 

@JacobZ  nailed it...

Dave