A Scots woman built her own greenhouse for £100 after being quoted £1,000 in an impressively thrifty DIY venture.
Hilary Hart, an NHS occupational therapist and mum of three from Dundee, shared her DIY project with the money saving community website LatestDeals.
"I'm so pleased with the result," said the 58-year-old about her new DIY greenhouse which was one tenth of the quoted cost.
The project started when her old greenhouse that belonged to her mum became unusable after the door blew off.
She explained how a temporary fix of a weighed down shower curtain looked "terrible" and did not keep the heat in.
After Hilary ordered a new greenhouse online, she began to search for contractors and one professional quoted her £1,000 for building the base and installation.
She said: "The guy said it was a tight space and it would be a difficult job. I thought it was a lot of money and didn’t want to end up being coerced into moving the greenhouse somewhere else.
"It was a great spot! So I decided to have a go myself."
Hilary studied YouTube videos to learn how to make concrete and lay greenhouse bases.
Unfortunately, she didn't realise there was a concrete shortage until after she had dug a big hole in her garden, but she managed to score some concrete from a builders yard.
All in all, the DIY greenhouse cost £104, including three bags of cement from Travis & Perkins in Arbroath for £17.50.
The rest of the supplies were from B&Q: three bags of sharp sand for £21 and 20 bags of gravel for £53, a plastering trowel for £9 and measuring jugs for £3.50."
Hilary noted: "It did take a few journeys, especially for the sand, as I only have a wee Skoda."
Having secured her supplies, she got to work laying the foundation.
"Overall, preparing and laying the foundation was really hard work," she said.
"At first I mixed the concrete in my tub trug, and that worked well, but it knackered the tub trug!
"It took several days, so I passed the time by listening to John Grisham audio books whilst I was doing it. One of my pals suggested I was burying bodies!"
She then filled the area with concrete using a shovel to evenly spread it.
Hilary explained the process: "I filled the area with the concrete once it was ready and used a shovel to spread it around evenly.
"I used a straight piece of timber to compact the concrete and then I levelled it out, ensuring the corners were filled.
"I then left it to set for four or five days and it was ready to be built on once the greenhouse arrived.
After all that hard work, Hilary was happy with her DIY greenhouse.
She said: "I'm so pleased with the result.
"I think doing it myself was just a great feeling. The cost of the materials for the base was just over £100. I bought a recycled plastic rug for the floor, because I thought it looked a bit like a conservatory floor."
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