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

[ToastyCrumpet]

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.

Yes they aren't that practical. Ours is freezing in the winter and often roasting in the summer. We use ours as a dining room (though rarely eat in there). It's nice to have the extra space but an extension would probably be more useful.

DM has one that's more a sun room I guess? Double patio doors from the kitchen/diner lead into the sun room/conservatory which has all brick walls with insulation and another set of patio doors into the garden, it also has a standard house roof. It still gets really cold during winter even with extra insulation due to being a partial brick structure with insulation, and a proper roof. She uses a portable canister gas heater in it (also has a built in radiator), and it leaks the heat like you wouldn't belive. I think she paid £15k several years ago, and she's said if she was to do over she wouldn't do it again. I think she imagined it as somewhere to sit and have breakfast, and read in afternoons on sunny days. But it's basically a place to park the indoor clothes horse, and leave the dog to dry off on rainy days.

Mine was built on the cheap by the previous owners and its deffo too hot at the height of summer and too cold in the winter. But this time of year and in spring it's great. I use it for drying washing plus it's a sort of play room with a kids craft area. I have enough living space that I don't need it day to day so it's a bit of a bonus room really. If money were no object I'd replace it with a proper extension and have a utility/cloakroom area instead but its definitely got its uses.

We use ours as our main living room all year. When we bought our bungalow ut had a tiny kitchen and living room, which we knocked through to make a big kitchen diner. The conservatory is bigger than that room so is our living room. I love it the light keros me happy. We have underfloor heating and a ceiling fan. Its never to hot or to cold.

My mum has one which is lovely. Always pleasant and a lovely place to sit down and read. Under floor heating, tinted roof etc.

We have one which came with the house. Too hot/cold, crappy roof, a few of the glazing panels have blown and we can't get rid of the ants. Oh and crack between the wall and the house. It has a radiator but that does fuck all.

We don't have the funds to repair at the moment but I'd like to replace the panes/roof, get underfloor heating and get it fixed basically. It's a good size and would be good chill out space for teens if we can make it work. But it's about 4th on our list of priorities atm and I can't see me getting change from 10k to get it up to spec.

We have one. We paid for a glass roof and have a radiator in it so use it all year. We looked at replacing it with an extension. Due to foundation issues the costs were prohibitive. We like ours it gives us an open and light dining area off our kitchen.

We've just had the plans drawn up to replace our dated conservatory that came with the house. We do use it all year round as its the main access to the back garden but it takes about 30 mins to warm up in winter. We're replacing with a bigger wrap round garden room/Orangery that we can use to entertain etc

We use ours all year round.
We have our dining table at one end and a sofa ,couple of chairs,coffee table and TV at the other end.
We have a radiator which works off the gas central heating and in the summer we have a free standing fan .
It was a great space to have when the DC were younger and having friends over. I think at one time we had 8 youngsters in sleeping bags on camping mats for a sleepover.We just ordered in pizza for them and basically let them have fun playing video games and watching DVDs.
I wouldn't be without it now although we are now toying with the idea of replacing the old polycarbonate roof with a solid roof.

I love mine and use it all year round. Heat it in winter sure, as with the rest of the house. It defo can get very warm in summer but I just open the double doors out to the garden - it’s like sitting in the garden anyway.

We got the roof replaced on ours, now it's perfect to use all year round.

We love our conservatory. Spring/autumnn evenings when it's just too cool to sit outside you can still make the most of the light. If it's too hot we sit outside anyway but sometimes you get an edge to the breeze which can make it uncomfortable. Winter afternoons we just stick an electric heater on for a couple of hours and watch the birds on the feeders. So many other uses. Wouldn't be without it.

Yeah. I don't see the point of them myself.

When I was at uni our landlord had made one into an extra bedroom. I felt so sorry for the girl that ended up living in there, it was freezing!!

My parents have a South-facing one. It’s great on a sunny day.

When the conservatory is warm, it helps warm up the rest of the house. When it’s cold (e.g. at night), you can just keep it closed.

On a rare sunny day in December, you can sit out there in 25c heat. I love it!

We have one (was on the house when we bought it), and it's glorified storage. Absolutely roasting in summer and sooo cold in winter. It's probably useable for about 2 weeks a year. It is good for getting my seeds started in in spring though. To be fair, ours is probably not very well made, as the previous owners aren't renowned for doing any kind of building work to a decent standard. It is also full of spiders and woodlice.

People don't have conservatories anymore, they have garden rooms, sun rooms or an orangery because they sound so much 'better' than a conservatory .....

Mines not cold. It's got a radiator attached the the central heating and underfloor heating too. But it is an oven in the summer! 42 degrees I've seen in there, completely unusable.

We didn't build it, it was here when we bought. If we stay here we will replace it with a proper room rather than another conservatory.

I posted above how much I love mine but it doesn't get used much in winter. Just had a quote to fit underfloor heating £2k. I reckon that will make it useable all year round. I realise the electricity will cost a lot but that's not my main concern.

@PaulinePetrovaPosey

Ours is great all year round. But it has good blinds and ventilation in the summer, and insulation in the winter.

I think it's a get what you pay for thing - cheap conservatories will be crap.

This. We use ours all year - we even have Christmas Day there.

When we decided to add ours years ago (when we were younger, better off and less concerned about the economy etc!) we decided it was only worthwhile if it was properly heated. So we have central heating radiators plus separate underfloor electric heating. We use it as our living and dining room all year round usually; on very cold days we use another room, maybe for month or so max., but it can be heated up comfortably for use even on cold days when we want more space. Eg Christmas dinner.
If there is the slightest heat in the sun we open the doors to the kitchen and study and it heats the whole back of our (otherwise dark) old house. I hang large paper bats and ghosts from the roof for kids Halloween and paper snowflakes at Christmas. Best thing we ever did to house.

If you buy a house with one, it is most likely going to be too hot or too cold, unless it is pretty new.

If you are thinking of building one

1. Why not an extension? (for the cost difference I don't get why people pay out for conservatories)
2. If you must, get underfloor heating and heat reflective roof blinds. My parents have one which they use all year round, but they have heating and roof blinds

I have a conservatory rather than an extension because I didn’t want another room the same as the others.

I wanted a bright room that’s got glass walls and a partly glazed roof and feels like I’m sitting in the garden . Except I can do that all year because mostly it’s too cold Or wet or windy to sit in the garden.

And I can have comfortable furniture without dragging out cushions each time. And electricity and WiFi.

It’s nothing like an extension.

@S00LA ideally I would have an extension, followed by a conservatory. Not possible for me right now, but I agree the two are different.

I have an extension and a conservatory, some people’s conservatories are more similar to a log cabin, they actually just want a very bright and open garden room to use in the summer months. They might not suit everyone but for some they are exactly what they want or the most they can afford.

@Boulshired yes my cousin's has this, it's more like a glass lean-to, apex shaped. They are south facing and it's lovely year round.