Did you know the most common mistake made when building a Sunroom is not taking the loss of light to the main house into consideration? Did you know there is a difference between direct light and indirect light in your home?

 

Conservatory Designs specialise in constructing successful Sunroom designs which try to maximise the amount of sunlight into your home.

 

Sunrooms have a traditional slate and tile roof, which as you would expect, blocks a considerable amount of light from the room over which you build the sunroom. While the sunroom may be bright and airy, you may be left in a situation where you have to have the lights on in the internal room on a daily basis.

 

So what are the key elements to ensuring that you will maximise the light to the house

 

1. Construct the Sunroom with as highest possible an eave height possible, this will maximise the amount of direct sunlight to the internal room, and as the days get darker it ensures more light for longer.

 

1. Plaster and paint the ceiling rather than sheeting in timber. Timber sheeting which may appear as a cosy alternative is also a much darker option. Plastering the ceiling and painting white reflects a lot of light back into the house

 

1. Consider a Pavilion front to the Sunroom. A Pavilion front is basically a glass gable in the front of the sunroom instead of sloping the roof down at the front. It is more expensive option but will allow more light into the house.

 

1. Put in at least three roof lights into the roof, four if the design allows and the bigger the better. While many companies offer two roof lights as standard, our standard is the “as many as possible”. The more roof lights in the room then the brighter the room.

 

1. Consider widening internal windows in the house or converting to doors to allow more light penetrate into the internal rooms. Also be careful with the interior design, you should consider using bright colours which will also reflect light back into the house from the sunroom.

 

Before deciding on a sunroom remember your internal rooms will be darker, if this is an important factor then perhaps consider an energy efficient conservatory as an alternative. Also bear in the mind that all of the above suggestions cost more and may not be offered as a standard specification, at Conservatory Designs Ltd, we only offer the specification which ensures the best outcome for the client so remember no two quotations are alike though they may appear similar.

Conservatory Designs Ltd specialise in building Energy Efficient Conservatories and Sunrooms.

 

There are four key elements to ensuring the best insulation for your conservatory

 

1. Glass
2. Conservatory framework
3. Wall and floor insulation
4. Roof glazing

 

Glass: Heat loss is measured by the U value, which in simple terms is the speed that heat can move through a material, so the lower the U value the slower the heat moves through the glass and the better the insulation. Traditional double glazed units and those used in most homes in the Ireland have a U value of 2.5, at Conservatory Designs we use Vista Therm Elite glazing which offers a U value of 1.1, over twice the insulation of normal double glazing, and this ensures that your conservatory will be warm and easy to heat in the winter.

 

Conservatory Framework: Little attention is paid by consumers to the actual structure of the conservatory. At Conservatory Designs we use the thickest and best insulated framework on the market. The rafters which hold the roof glazing have two chambers on the exterior which offer excellent insulation and minimises heat loss from the roof. The photos below show the comparison between our chambered rafter and the cheaper versions on the market, which although quiet similar from the outside, the single skin rafter capping is clearly inferior from both a structural and insulating point of view.

 

Our side framework is a full 70mm thick compared with the industry norms of 58mm. The photographs below show the comparison between a 58mm and 70mm frame.

 

 

The additional width and larger chambers of the 70mm frame offers much improved strength and insulation.

 

Wall and floor insulation: Conservatory Designs Ltd offer two services, a supply and fit on a prepared site or a full turnkey service where we carry out all the works to include the conservatory floor, walls and plastering etc. It is essential that the correct insulation is used in all external walls and the conservatory floor. A cold floor can act like a giant fridge in the conservatory sucking the heat from the room. We use and recommend Kingspan insulation products, these foil backed insulating boards provide long term thermal performance over the lifetime of the building and are CFC/HCFC-free with zero Ozone Depletion Potential. The foil backing on the sheets acts like a mirror reflecting heat back into the room.

 

Roof glazing: We offer two choices of roof glazing, 35mm seven ply polycarbonate and Pilkington Activ glass. Both materials offer U values of less than 1.2 and are available in choice of tints to suit the direction of the conservatory and the amount of sunlight required into the house. Again there are inferior products available which will appear similar and will cost less. Most roofs on the market offer 25mm Polycarbonate which only has 5 layers instead of seven and this compromises the insulation values of the roof.

 

Below you will find the links to each of the roof glazing options with their respective U values and properties

25mm Polycarbonate

http://www.brettmartin.com/roofing/polycarbonate/marlonst/range/fvw25mm.aspx

35mm Polycarbonate

http://www.brettmartin.com/roofing/polycarbonate/marlonst/range/35mm7wall.aspx

Pilkington Activ Roof Glass

http://www.pilkington.com/resources/activconservatoryliteratureaug08.pdf

The final consideration to ensuring a warm, cosy and economical conservatory is the form of heating used. The quickest, easiest and cheapest to install is a simple electric heater, however these are also the most expensive to run. It is our experience that people are reluctant to use the heaters due to the cost and therefore lose out being able to use the conservatory in the winter months. At Conservatory Designs Ltd we plumb radiators from the house system as standard, this may involve adding a stronger pump to the heating system but it ensures the most cost effective and comfortable heating and ensures that your conservatory is an all year around room.

For further information and Energy Efficient Conservatories contact our office at 045 844002 or info@conservatorydesigns.ie

Almost all of our conservatory designs can incorporate a tiled or slated roof. The extra loading necessitates the use of a steel superstructure or relies on the more traditional masonry construction methods. Care must be taken when considering a sunroom as the solid roof will block sunlight from the main dwelling. Careful positioning of roof lights is essential.

Side Glazing

Conservatories Designs use Vista Therm Elite glass in all their sunroom projects.  Vista Therm Elite glazing will:

• Eliminate heat loss in the cool months
• Help cut energy costs
• Make your Sunroom more comfortable during winter

This glass is the latest and most revolutionary development in low emissivity glass with a U value of 1.1m/m2k. Heat generated within the sunroom is reflected internally back into the room while cold from the outside is reflected back out while retaining 100% of the light transmission.
For further information, download our Elite glazing brochure .

Roof

Our Sunrooms are available with a choice of slate or tile finish with typically two Velux roof lights and a plastered ceiling. Timer sheeted ceilings are available however these can substantially reduce the light to the main house.

Methods of building Sunrooms/Solid roof conservatories

At Conservatory Designs Ltd. we use two principles methods for constructing sunrooms. The first is more like a solid roof conservatory with the main structure consisting of the Upvc windows, just like a conservatory with a steel superstructure of 100mm by 100mm box steel to carry the weight of the concrete tiles or slates. This method maximises the amount of light in the sunroom and into the interior room of the house.

Alternatively we can build the sunroom using the “traditional build” method which is to build the structure using a traditional block walls but with a large amount of openings in the wall for windows. This gives the effect of a bright room rather than a conservatory. It is worth noting that while we can make the sunroom as bright as possible it often darkens down the room, over which the Sunroom is constructed, significantly. While this can be mitigated using Velux roof lights it will not fully compensate for the loss of light. Anyone considering a sunroom should expect the need the additional lighting inside during the winter months.