Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that if you have a conservatory, it will be too cold to use for about half the year?

100 replies

ToastyCrumpet · 28/09/2020 18:45

I mean, you won’t be able to sit in it for any length of time unless you spend a fortune heating it. I’m not sure what people use them for.

OP posts:
Coquohvan · 28/09/2020 22:04

@AWafferthinmint

Those of you who have an insulated roof, would you mind me asking how much you paid? We are desperate for ours to be done but have no idea how much they cost.
Best to get a few (3) quotes. Ours was an ‘all in cost’ of the build.
Twigaletta · 28/09/2020 22:09

YANBU. I have a south facing one and we use it as the DC playroom. Can be roasting in summer so have blinds and double doors open. In winter we have radiator and fan heater so we can use it before and after school. It's great for drying clothes on sunny days! But if it wasn't there we'd definitely have done a proper extension. I personally would never ever get one built.

Twofurrycatsagain · 28/09/2020 22:20

Unless it's really cold outside (below -5) I can get my conservatory warm enough. Hot weather is a nightmare though - top temp this year 112. I'm either going to get thermal roof blinds or replace the roof.

Roominmyhouse · 28/09/2020 22:27

I love mine. It is chilly in the winter but it’s lovely in the summer and rarely gets too hot except for maybe 2 hours a day if it’s really sunny. We had ours built as it was significantly cheaper than an extension and has given us the extra space we wanted. It’s been a great home office for me too during Covid.

deste · 28/09/2020 22:32

I have just got a quote for my sisters conservatory for a new roof so it can be used year round. I think it will make a huge difference.

IdkickJilliansass · 28/09/2020 22:34

Ours came with the house, it’s crap.

MagnoliaXYZ · 28/09/2020 22:50

My mum has a conservatory. I like it. It's cool enough in the summer with the doors open. Great for drying herbs though with the doors closed. In the late winter/early spring, it's good for starting the seeds off. And in the winter, it is great as a walk in fridge especially when there is all the extra good around at Christmas.

It's nice to sit in from about February to September. It's getting a bit chilly in the evening now though still tolerable during the day.

Hardbackwriter · 28/09/2020 22:57

Our old house had one open-plan onto the kitchen (which is apparently not allowed under modern planning regulations - it should have a door), facing south. It was actually not too cold in winter, it doubtless drove up our heating bills but it didn't feel noticeably cold, but it was completely unusable in summer and as it was our dining room we just had to eat in the garden from June to September. They never seem to be usable all year round. I would never build one (does anyone, any more?). We moved out on the Friday and the people who bought it off us had someone coming to put a proper roof on it starting on the Monday!

AdoreTheBeach · 28/09/2020 23:07

I have three friends with rather large conservatories. All use year round. In fact, one is open plan to her kitchen and is the seating area for her dining table. One has had to have a roof put on instead if the glass as it was too hot year round during the day (south facing) .

Cadent · 28/09/2020 23:15

I like what they have in the current Aldi, a conservatory that’s not really a conservatory, lots of glass but still a part of the living room.

Original poster
ToastyCrumpet · 28/09/2020 23:29

Don’t they grow mould if you use them for a lot of plants or to dry washing?

OP posts:
Titsywoo · 28/09/2020 23:35

The one that came with our house was awful. It was about 8m x 4m and appeared to have been built by a previous owner. The roof was plastic and leaked terribly and the glass was all single glazed. It was FREEZING in winter and like an oven in summer. We removed it after 18 months as soon as we had planning permission for an extension.

Coquohvan · 28/09/2020 23:42

@ToastyCrumpet

Don’t they grow mould if you use them for a lot of plants or to dry washing?
You would have heard of ventilation, maybe not.
PickAChew · 28/09/2020 23:46

@Whammyyammy

Conservatories are so 1980s, cold in winter and hot in summer, so unusable most of the year. You can get the roof insulated and covered with pvc panels over replace with extension.
Yeah, last I'd heard, replacing one with an extension cost all of a fiver.
Tillygetsit · 28/09/2020 23:49

We have a radiator in ours.

catnoir1 · 28/09/2020 23:49

I have one with a proper insulated roof but it's cold.

You can heat it very quickly with a plug in heater on for 20 minutes.

I love my conservatory and wouldn't be without one.

Cadent · 28/09/2020 23:55

Sorry that should been current Aldi ad.

Is south-easterly the best aspect for a conservatory then?

littledrummergirl · 29/09/2020 00:27

Dh said he was bored during furlough so I suggested we look into a conservatory. He signed up to a number of free/for sale sites and acquired windows, bricks and a conservatory for free. As he used to work as a bricklayer he got his tools out and built us an orangery with a cloakroom at one end so we finally have a downstairs toilet.
The plan is to put a heated infinity pool into the space to use it all year around. At the moment it's a fabulous space for drying washing.

ThatsnotwhatIordered · 29/09/2020 00:53

I have one (was already built when we bought the house) I currently use it for DS's playroom. Got a comfy sofa, tv and all his toys in there so it that respect it is a godsend as we wouldn't have the room otherwise. It is very hot in summer though and very cold in winter, its joined onto our kitchen and we have to keep the patio doors shut else it makes the kitchen and living room cold! Apparently there is some form of cheaper underfloor heating you can get? We keep meaning to look into it.

PennyCrayon85 · 29/09/2020 01:16

My mum and dad have a small conservatory and they use it all year round. It’s like a living room for them. It’s a nice wee room.

Up until now I was desperate for a conservatory but after reading this thread I want an orangery now!

wigglerose · 29/09/2020 01:36

Ours has a leaky roof. The quotes to have it replaced we've been given have been eyewatering (like 4-5k... the fecking new boiler and new radiators in every room in the HOUSE cost less than that). So I hate using it because there's buckets everywhere for when it rains.

Susannahmoody · 29/09/2020 02:05

I fell asleep in my parents one once. When I woke up I felt absolutely wiped out - it was so hot and stuffy.

Other than that, very nice spot

Happytobeme123 · 29/09/2020 02:26

My parents had a new ceiling put on theirs which means its cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. They use theirs all year round.
Its handy for us to visit now as we can social distance from conservatory to living room.

Original poster
ToastyCrumpet · 29/09/2020 02:28

@Coquohvan If you’re trying to be sarcastic, it would be more effective if you made sense.

OP posts:
Shakespearsister · 29/09/2020 03:51

Ours is Victorian and made of cast iron and remarkably delicate glass panes. It has this strange looking paraffin heater thing that looks incredibly dangerous and hasn’t been used in decades. It is too cold to use in the winter so we’ve been trying to find a way of heating it but that will have to wait until next year when things calm down.