Making Clips for Poly Tunnel Covers

I've been struggling with trying to keep the plastic on my low tunnels in my garden. Recently I figured out how to make some secure clips that won't come loose in the wind.

[@EssayonsFG]

Nice bit of ingenuity, PPG. It works which is the most important thing. Take care and stay safe, Rob

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thanks.

[@DavidMFChapman]

Nice trick! Here’s hoping you a prosperous 2020 gardening season!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thank you. Have a great season. Take care.

[@UT33200]

Those covers should stay on there forever now. Clearing the beginning of the warm weather tipping point. Stay safe and motivated. Thanks for the share!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

They have stood up to some fairly windy days now. As a bonus I can pull them back almost like a curtain to plant in the beds and quickly cover them back up.

[@ltlbnsgarden]

So glad it worked for you my friend 😊

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thank you. We have 80 km winds today. They are lifting the hoops out of their holders but the plastic is staying on. It is much easier to grab a hoop and pop it back into its holder than wrestle with the plastic and little clamps in this wind.

[@HortiHugo]

Oh well demonstrated ... might adapt this for a future project I have coming up. Well done, Hugh 😊👍🏼🌿

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thanks. My daughter helped with the camera work which made it much easier to show.

[@HortiHugo]

Prairie Plantgirl oh well done her too - always hard to capture these tasks so well on video 😊👍🏼🌿

[@BenniLkitchengarden]

Great demonstration and tip, PPG. Adding the pipes in hot water was a good idea. I don't use plastic on my tunnels, but fleez and net. I attach the net with plugs in the ground. Hope your plastic tunnels will work for you. All the best.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thanks. I’ve found my frost guard fabric ripped when I would peg it in the ground. I have some on the hoops with these clips right now and it is staying intact.

[@richiecaelwarts7873]

That's a great idea I used a heat gun to do the ones on my plastic another thing that works great is old garden hose spilt the sane way. Have a great day !!!!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I had another suggestion for a heat gun. That would work well I’m sure. I tried garden hose another year and it wouldn’t hold for me. Must have been the wrong diameter for the piping I have. Thanks for the suggestions.

[@crisl9079]

Thank you so much for this! I have a raised bed that I want to put shade cloth on (and a tarp to protect it from our FL summer monsoon rains!) and this worked wonderfully. I put the pieces in a vice and used a recip saw to slit them lengthwise; it wasn’t perfect but it got the job done. I took my hoop pvc pipe into the kitchen and put my pieces in slightly boiling water (stove was set to 5 -medium heat-and they melted in like 30 seconds and I was able to shape them very quickly and easily around the hoop. So happy to have found such an easy and thrifty way to secure materials onto my hoops! Hope you have a great gardening season and God bless!😊

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thank you for coming back to leave a comment after trying this out. I’m glad it helped you.

[@crisl9079]

Sure.😊 I am going to try to make another set to clip a tarp over the shade cloth I currently have clipped on to protect my veggies from our torrential rains…we’ll see if I can get away with 2 layers.🙂🤞🏻

[@ArkansasWoodcutter]

Awesome tip. The queen of the cold.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thank you.

[@ScottHead]

Smart! I bought the clips and lose them easily, so scrap pipe would be a better idea. Thanks for the demo.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I just can’t pay for something like that. I’m too cheap 😊. These are working well for me.

[@theunretireddesigner6448]

Perfect timing. I am just getting ready to set mine up. It’s supposed to be really windy tomorrow here in Edmonton.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

👍

[@kaishrikrishna6649]

hi

[@DigwellGreenfingers]

That looks like a good idea PPG!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thanks. It’s pretty simple actually, not sure why I couldn’t wrap my head around it sooner.

[@DigwellGreenfingers]

@@PrairiePlantgirl Ha ha - your genius moment!

[@SimplyGarden]

Great idea. I know that irregation pipe can be tough stuff to work with. I haven't used plastic for my hoops yet. They call that Yankee inginuity over here in New England. Lol🙂. I hope you have a great weekend. Off to plant my leeks and potatoes.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I’m really liking having these clamps. It makes it easier to pull the plastic back by pulling the hoops back, then they are easy to put back in their spots without fussing with the plastic again. Before I was fussing with clips and boards and bricks to keep the plastic taught and in position. Enjoy your planting.

[@SimplyGarden]

@@PrairiePlantgirl thank you. I know what you mean by fusing with boards. By the way, distraction this afternoon. One of my hives swarmed today. Unusual for this time of year. I kinda knew that might happen because of the number of bees in this hive. We were able to capture it into another box. Talk to you soon.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

That’s great that you were able to capture it. That must be a little scary when they swarm considering your wife’s allergies.

[@dionjones6740]

You did a good job demonstrating this idea. To make it easier and safer for your self you might try garden hose for the clamps. I take a leaky garden hose and cut it to about 6 inch lengths and split it. The same as you're doing but it is not necessary to heat the hose pieces. I enjoy evey one of your videos. Maybe one day you could put all your gardening tips and ideas into a book. I would buy one. Best Wishes. Grandpa Jones. 😃

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

You are very kind. I’ve tried garden hose in the past and I’d didn’t work for me. I’m not sure what size of garden hose it was.

[@dionjones6740]

Prairie Plantgirl Well what you're doing now is definitely working for you. Best Wishes. Grandpa Jones. 😃

[@trollforge]

What I do is cut a strip out equalling approximately 1/4 to1/3 of the circumference of the tube, depending how stiff the tubing is.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I thought about that but I like my fingers too much to try it 😊.

[@lorrainesveganallotment887]

I did that too but without the help of clamps it was a bit scary. I might try with a hot blade next time.

[@jasons-jungle]

I take an extra bit off the slit and round off the corners to help get them onto the pipe.

[@tammydeschenes4857]

Cut a little less than half off. This way it leaves a larger gap to snap on and no need to heat the plastic.

[@Jamescityboygardening]

Nice of you to do this. The problem though is in high winds the irrigation pipe clips pop right off. Last night we had 20 mph wind. Make them with Sch 40 pvc pipe they stood up to the wind force.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I’ve never had my clips come off and we get very high winds in the spring. I’m sorry you have had this problem.

[@Jamescityboygardening]

@@PrairiePlantgirl Yea thanks, it was just last night 2/11/23 one thing my tunnels are taller than yours there inside of 4x4 SFG boxes.

[@Jamescityboygardening]

I forgot to tell you I"m in zone 7b piedmont, NC.

[@ronaldandsusanshaws-growing]

Hi PPG, Might I suggest that you use some of those strips of wood and fasten one side of the plastic permanent to the side of your raised bed, that will leave you with only one long side to fasten down with bricks/stones or whatever, That idea you have is a finger breaking job, Stay safe and take care.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

That’s a great idea and I tried it. The plastic blew off one night and crawled through the yard dragging the wood with it. We can get some pretty fierce winds here. I just leave the clips on now and lift the hoops and fold them back out of the way right now. It is working so far but we haven’t had a crazy wind yet since I did this.

[@FarmerG]

Hot water helps for sure. Whenever I do any hose repair I dip in hot water 👍👍

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

It helps with all sorts of hose and tubing it’s true. I had to reheat that water multiple times. A few days later it was warm out 🙃.

[@cumbrianhomestead]

Neat idea PPG, I wonder if using a heat gun carefully ( like the type used to strip paint) would work too? Best wishes Woody👍

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I’m sure any heating would work. I actually came across another piece of hose that is thinner and a slightly larger diameter yesterday. Trying that out on a more sheltered tunnel. So far it’s staying on, but it doesn’t hold as tight.

[@bethanskitchengarden]

That's a great idea and very cheap too 😊 Did you try taking any off? Great demo, thanks for sharing. Take care 😊

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I’ve taken one off. It was easier to put back on without heat now that it’s been on for a while. I usually just pull the plastic back with the hoops and it folds back like a curtain.

[@ollie73august37]

I wonder if cutting these into shorter pieces would work and making the slots wider so that they just clip on over the piping.

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I made a few shorter. They are easier to get on but they don’t hold quite as well. I was not comfortable trying to cut a thin slice out to make a wider slot. I’m sure that would help if you keep your fingers intact.

[@BYYoseph]

Ok I officially have a crush :P

[@williamcolemansgardenandal9017]

What are the tunnels for again? (Running ducking and diving)... 🍺

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

😀luckily we’ve had such nice weather since then that I’ve even got a sunburn so I can laugh at that. Sun is shining bright again today. We just skip spring here.

[@ezzomum]

Don’t know if it’s possible, could you slice a gap in between the pipes, making into a c shape instead? I am guessing that if it’s c shaped then you won’t need to use hot water to soften it and another piece of pipe to pry it open. Also you could make it shorter for ease of cutting the gap? Of course that will mean that you need more clips. I think it’s a fantastic idea. I definitely taking in on. Thanks!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

I thought about the gap, but I think I’d slice a finger off, maybe others are more coordinated. Shorter pieces would work. I made a few shorter ones and used one on each side and one in the middle (top). Thanks for your feedback.

[@andrewkarminski2860]

Yes, I made shorter pieces and made 2 cuts with a saw to open up the pipe more. Worked well for me. Strong winds aren't really a problem where I live so the clips are only required to keep the netting in place.

[@weswes8185]

Cut a v in one end just to start it off

[@greatgardensforall]

o clever!

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Thank you. Extremely windy today and they are staying put. Normally I’d be out fighting with the covers on a day like today. So happy I did this.

[@williamcolemansgardenandal9017]

Kaboom, first! 🍺

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Oh you’re good 👊

[@oliveirlegume3725]

I will try shorter and using à table saw with some wood U shaped to maintain thé short tube without cutting my hand. Wil keep you posted

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

Not cutting your hand is top priority 👍. You’ll need your hands for gardening.

[@oliveirlegume3725]

@@PrairiePlantgirl I use them every day for so many things ! And thé wooden U profile is easy on a table saw

[@oliveirlegume3725]

Thinking of à stopper rear end to push thé tube. Or use it on a jig

[@stilley1966]

Doesn’t like to spend money but has a iPhone watch on🤔

[@PrairiePlantgirl]

If you must know, my phone is a hand me down. Not that it matters.

[@frederick19089]

check out chenille row covers. several presenters from colorado have a great idea for this problem