Cooling a conservatory

[Katymac]

OK I am stupid - I have a south facing conservatory & it is hot

I have roof windows which are open and a draft through but it is a lean to with a low ceiling

I used to have homemade roof blinds but I took them down to wash & they need to go back up but before I do that I thought I would investigate options

So can I use:
Paint on the ceiling?
Stick insulation up? What glue should I use?
Can I use space blankets somehow?
Polystyrene or bubble wrap?
Make new blinds with wadding in to increase the insulation?

Help me please?

[Katymac]

Bump

[Macarena1990]

We have a south facing conservatory too and until we had shade sails put up it was unbearable. They were over £1k, but there are tutorials on youtube if you are handy with a sewing machine?

[Reed88]

Ah! I can help :-)

Demonstrating my knowledge...

Have you thought about replacing your conservatory roof? Is it glass? You can now get solid conservatory roofs which will make your conservatory a lot cooler.

Otherwise blinds may be the way to go.

Ultraframe do solid roofs (there maybe others but thats the only one I know of) Maybe contact a company in your area to get some idea on price.

Ah ok just looked- Realroof might be suitable for a lean-to...

For prices:

//www.conservatoryonlineprices.co.uk/conservatory-quote/- I don't think you can just get a price for a roof, you might be able to but if not you can contact them to see how much roughly it would cost.

[Badders123]

Like Macarena have just bought sail blinds from shadeplus for £1100
Cheapest I could find

[Katymac]

We have a poly carbonate roof & I don't think we can afford to change it right now

I had cotton blinds - does anyone know what the roof sails are made from?

[Badders123]

It's specialist fabric - blocks 90% uv Ray's and keeps heat out

[Katymac]

I've had a google & found some but it's quite expensive really $10 a metre plus shipping & customs so I'd better have a bit of a think

I am pricing getting a solid roof from the people who built it about 13 yrs ago

[Badders123]

our glass roof was £3.5k
I looked at buying the fabric too but after Postage etc it would hAve been ££££
We have paid £1100 but that's for 3 sails....yours might not need that mAny?

[Badders123]

If its a lean to type then you could just Have one large one?
Would cost about £400?

[Katymac]

Umm it's 42 ft by 12ft rising to 16ft

Back to the cotton I have I think

Still wondering about backing it with space blankets or wadding for additional insulation

[Badders123]

Blimey!

[Katymac]

I used to run a nursery in it but I went bust

So I had a massive spring clean and I am re-purposing the rooms - DD & DH have a gym in the smaller room with her piano in & I have a reception room & a sewing area in the bigger room

But it needs to be cooler - I may just replace the old blinds - but I think I should remake them really

[DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen]

You can buy ready made sails on eBay, all sorts of sizes and shapes and they're about 15 quid each- block out UV and make a huge difference.

[Badders123]

Just put ours up - they look ace

[Katymac]

The ones on eBay are very very cheap.......cynical me thinks there must be a problem

[Badders123]

Me too Katy
The ones I have are quality and come with a 5 year guarantee
But obv you pay for that

[DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen]

I like them and have them up, they look great.

[Katymac]

Hmm, may I see pictures from each of you please- in the interests of market research

[Badders123]

Here you go

[Katymac]

Oh they are nice are they canvas or more nylon-y?

[Badders123]

The are special uv fabric
Feel very odd
Conservatory noticeably cooler this morning

[Badders123]

They do a cad design for you via Skype.
It's very clever :)
They can do all sorts of shales and there are some lovely colours to choose from.

[Katymac]

Interesting - it sound good (but perhaps out of our price range)

[SlipperyLizard]

DH used space blanket type stuff and cladding to insulate ours - it wasn't easy but it was cost effective and has made a massive difference- cool in summer and warm in winter.

It takes someone very good at DIY to achieve it, I have also now seen companies offering a similar service though.