To ask you about conservatory

[LolleePop]

I'd like a small conservatory on the back of my house exactly like the one in this house. But how come I've been told I have to have doors in between the house and the conservatory?
I want to knock the back of my house out (super easy job as the whole of my back wall of my house is upvc framed glass patio doors and windows) and add a conservatory EXACTLY like this, same style, same depth, same size.
My house is the same proportions.
So why is this house marketable with an open plan conservatory, yet I've been told by 3 different builders that I can't have an open plan conservatory and if I went ahead and got one I'd have to find someone who was willing to do it against building regulations and that I'd never be able to market my house for sale????
Why can't I have exactly what this house has?
Can't afford a traditional brick extension, hence looking at conservatory.
I only want one that's 6 foot deep!

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144790955?utm_campaign=property-details&utm_content=buying&utm_medium=sharing&utm_source=copytoclipboard#/&channel=RES_BUY

Hm hard to know how they've done it - maybe they've used more insulation than you normally have with a conservatory? Or possibly been done by a cowboy builder? This house hasn't had a survey done or anything, perhaps if you tried to buy it your survey would say it's not ok!

But your builders are correct, if you have a standard conservatory you have to have external type doors separating it from the rest of the house. I think you need it to not be on the central heating either?

Essentially it's because of why everyone always whinges about conservatories, boiling in the summer, freezing in the winter. It looks like you'd be roasting (excuse the pun) in that kitchen in summer.

More to the point - er... I've just noticed the 'sculptures' in the front garden!

We have a conservatory at the back (which came with the house). It gets incredibly hot in the summer - we've recorded over 50C with the windows and doors closed. It then gets really cold in the winter - our boiler is generally more than sufficient for the house, but if we've had the doors to the conservatory open (for a larger gathering) we've had to run the gas fire as well as the panel heaters in the conservatory itself and the central heating. I would never put one on without a door between, though I've seen houses for sale with a floorplan like the one you've attached.

Conservatories are exempt from building regulations if they have an external wall separating them from the main house. You can absolutely build a conservatory like in the pictures but it will have to comply with BR and you will need to get in signed off by building control. The builders either don’t want to bother or there are structural limitations to your property. Essentially, this will be an extension which will need changes to fundament, cavity insulation etc and will be more expensive than a regular conservatory build.

Yeah, too hot in summer and too cold in winter. I did something similar with an extension and it wad unbearable.

We had a conservatory fitted WITHOUT doors OP! We contacted several conservatory companies and none had ever done this- because it required building regs. We organised this separately to the conservatory company via the council, but it can certainly be done! There were fees involved with this though.
I'd recommend getting orphan, brick walls where you can. It helps to reduce heat loss. We chose the best, most insulated ceiling glass they had. For various reasons, we were only there a few months before moving, so cant comment on all seasons. It did, however, get very hot and glary on a sunny day, and chilly at night- despite being such a new, modern conservatory! I'd swap for more of an insulated roof- so essentially an extension if possible! Maybe with 1 or 2 glass panels instead of the whole ceiling. The one in the real estate brochure you showed has opaque glass- which might help a bit too, but depending which way if faces, I'm sure it too would get very hot.

Was the one you linked to part of the original build? It looks like next door's is identical, so assume it was designed and approved as a new build meeting all the relevant legislation.

Ours is open to the kitchen and does not have building regs - our vendors bought an indemnity policy as part of the sale, as did the previous owners when they sold.

Have to say it's not ideal as it does get cool in winter.

How much do you think the conservatory like this one would cost, including being properly insulated etc?
6 foot by 18 foot.

To me that's not a conservatory. They do normally have internal doors. This would be more of an extension.

Something to consider is the sound when it rains. My parents conservatory is really loud and they're glad of the door being able to close.

To me that's not a true conservatory. It has half brick walls and only one row of glass (plus the roof).

The estate agent's description of the house says it's a conservatory. If you read the description of the house, you'll see.

The estate agent's description is just words. They usually explicitly say you can't rely on the description.

That is either an extension or an incorrectly built conservatory.

No idea, you need to get some quotes from builders. Even my partner who builds for a living can’t answer that without seeing the scope of work in person.

You could look at a proper extension instead, but that would be dearer. It would save you roasting and freezing though.

My friend moved into a house with something similar years ago but larger about 12× 15ft, roasting, freezing, chilly or noisy....awful.
Her mum made a heavy curtain to pull over as it was baltic the first winter. The curtain helped but the following year they paid for doors to be installed and that made a huge difference.

I mean, an estate agent can say whatever they like, doesn't make it true!

I'd say what you're proposing sounds really impractical and like something you'll massively regret down the line. Noisy, expensive to heat in winter and boiling hot in summer. It's got no benefits as far as I can see?

How an estate agent describes a house is not relevant.

@Catza gave you such a detailed and well informed response and all you could say was 'how much would it cost'.

That's not a conservatory, it's an extension with a clear roof. That will have been built when the house was built new.

That kind of extension being put on at a later date needs steel structures down the sides and across the top to support the upstairs of the house (it's irrelevant what you have their currently as that would have met building regs at the time but is unlikely to meet building regs now. The sides of the extension in the photo will have certain insulation again (again to meet building regs), the sides will also have certain fire retardant plasterboard (different to normal plasterboard) because it's in the kitchen.

If you just want a conservatory you need to keep a door between the house and conservatory which is of an external lockable type, you need a heat source in the conservatory, you need a certain amount of glass or brick ratio etc.

A conservatory will be cheaper but in the UK often unusable due to being too hot, too cold, too noisey (raining)

The pictures you show are of an extension.

Conservatories are with a door inbetween them and the house. Im sitting in mine now

Its about the regulations for heating and building control

You can have the style you want but it will take the planning and sign off to do it and will cost more but they certainly add more space

That's an extension to the house not a conservatory in the link. You will want a door to shut when it rains,believe me!

Its not particularly noisy in our conservatory when it rains, where are people getting this from?

Ahh, and the estate agent's word is law? 😄 They're not builders or in charge of building regulations.

Lots of folk would call that a conservatory but it is, legally, for building regs purposes and as far as a builder is concerned, an extension - different regs, different costs, potentially planning app required etc etc. And that's due to the lack of doors between it and the main house.

Actually they call it a 'part conservatory'. There's a difference. It was built with the house.

If you want this you'll need an extension with a support joist etc.

Their own experience? 🤔 Just a guess but I'd say that was it.