No-Clear Tunnels

Hello, everyone!

I’ve been eager to share some insights about our tunnels on the farm and how they perform in snowy conditions.

When I first got a tunnel, it was a significant upgrade. If you’ve ever owned a covered growing space, you know the difference it makes. These are Farmer's Friend tunnels—not the big, Rimol greenhouse kits—but slightly narrower and very effective. But I felt that we were kind of doing things “on the cheap” with our sort of J.V. tunnel choice, until I saw other farms lose fancier tunnels to snow collapse.

Snow Challenges and Solutions

During our initial seasons, I worried about snow damaging the tunnels. I used to clear off the snow and shovel out the sidewalls, but soon realized these structures are designed to shed snow easily. This feature eliminates the need for constant clearing.

Designing for Strength

We ensure the tunnels withstand heavy snow by placing the bows closer together during construction, adding strength. Our setup also includes hip boards attached to each rib, tightening the plastic and providing stability beyond typical caterpillar tunnels.

Both round top and gothic profile Farmer’s Friend tunnels can handle even the heaviest snowfalls. The narrower profile on our tunnels allows snow to slide off, maintaining integrity where other wider models can struggle.

We have five Farmer's Friend tunnels, with only one being heated. It features a small chimney and a double layer of poly with an inflation blower kit for extra insulation. Our tunnels are all the 14ft wide and 16ft wide models. We have not tried the “Haven” series Farmer’s Friend tunnels yet.