What's so wrong with a conservatory?

[conservatoryconfusion]

So I need more space due to having 3 children incl set of toddler twins - no playroom and id say a smaller than average lounge. Kitchen/diner and no other space downstairs

I must have contacted a dozen builders for a quote on an extension but the ones that do bother to speak to me say they are booked up for 2 years

So I've booked a couple of companies to quote a conservatory but then everyone I mention it to so says "don't do it"

I don't get it? As far as I can see

pros
One company - all complete in short space of time
Finance options to spread cost over 5 years
Cheaper
Less disruption

cons
Apparently too hot in summer - but wouldn't you just open the doors? Install roof blinds?

Apparently too cold in winter - don't you just have a radiator installed? Or at very least an electric one?

I think you might not be appreciating the level of cold in winter - there’s no insulation so you’re basically outside, and a single electric heater won’t really cut it.

@Haus1234

Even with a glass roof instead of a polycarb one?

I have one which is newish and I really like it. It's on a North/north west facing end of the house and has underfloor heating. I love it tbh. It's great to sit there feeling like you're in the garden on cold days. We have our dining table in there and eat there for every meal. When it's sunny and over about 26 degrees outside there can be too much sun and heat on an evening so I just open the bi-folds and we eat on the patio.

@MakkaPakkas

Is the underfloor heating electric or did you have it connected to a wet system/existing house plumbing?

I'd add because it's a new one it's reasonably well insulated, there's a value given to that I can't remember what it's called but ours is 1.

@conservatoryconfusion it's electric

We moved into a house with one last year and have yet to use it. It has two radiators in it so we can warm it in winter but it is v expensive as the heat just escapes out of the roof. We are planning to change the roof next year so it can be used all year round. It will be nice to have the extra space but make sure it is really well insulated.

Also, one of the walls is brick with kingspan on it to increase insulation. That was something I was worried about, but it's not been a problem. My mum has an old one and in the winter she just closes the door on it and uses it as an extra fridge, so it can be an issue, but building regs mean that newer ones do have better insulation.

Ours is open to the kitchen and I was concerned about temperature extremes but it's fine. North-west facing. Blue glass roof, double glazed and a rad on the central heating.

I have a thick rug in the floor which helps.

It's such a lovely bright room.

We bought a house with a conservatory on the back which was used as a playroom. It was east facing. We had foils inserted into the polycarb roof to help with the temperature. It had a radiator in but we also had to put an electric heater with a fan in to take the chill off as it is like trying to heat up the outside. You would be keeping that heater running for hours on end and it will cost a lot. Glass lets out a lot of heat so all those windows don't help.

When it is hot in summer yes you can open the doors and windows but it doesn't make a huge difference there is still solar gain going on the whole day.

If you were going to go for a conservatory I would look at getting double skin, insulated, with an insulated floor, a solid roof and more walls than glass. It would be better to hold out for an extension.

Well insulated, glass roof and under floor heating may make it more usable. Another negative; dead flies in the summer 🤮

Ours is south facing and does get hot in summer but is still perfectly useable with a canvas ‘sail’ (get proper blinds if you can afford them!) and the doors open. A radiator and passive solar gain keeps it perfectly ok in winter.
It was the kids playroom and was a lifesaver in terms of space.

I love our conservatory, and it was great when my DDs were younger.
Yes we didn't use it so much in winter, but if we wanted to then an electric fan heater got the temperature up quickly. And yes it gets hot in summer but windows open and then open door to garden it cools down, and has good garden access.
We used to keep bulky toys in there like the play kitchen, and also large tubs with duplo, toy cars etc, which we could then rotate into the living room.

we moved to a house with an older conservatory with a polycarb roof that was leaking, paid around £4k to have the ceiling insulated and a lightweight roof put on. Obviously not had a winter in it yet, but can already notice the difference in terms of stabilised temperature in the house, plus noise reduction. I think you'd be fine with a new one that is properly insulated.

Thanks all

So currently where the conservatory would go is also NW facing - this is off a kitchen/dining space - which already has a 3m wide set of French doors with windows either side (I'm hoping the conservatory people would be able to reuse these as they aren't that old)

One side would definitely need to be brick wall as it would but up to the neighbours side wall which is on the boundary wall

The other side is like a side access single door so could be half height brick either side so I don't think walls wise I'd have much less solid wall than I do now

The roof I'd go with glass and the more insulated option?

I love mine. It's open to the kitchen, east / south facing and we use it as a playroom. Opens out onto the garden and it's lovely to open the double doors all summer, hear the birds, massive flow of light and space.

DFIL has one and it's fine, it's fairly small and rectangular, NW facing so not much sun on it, he has an oil filled radiator in there to take the chill off on cold days, it has brick walls to about 1/3 height then glass windows, corrugated polycarbonate roof. Thick rug so the floor doesn't feel cold underfoot. It gets used all year round and I have never felt too hot in there.

I feel better about it now thanks everyone!
We can't move as the market where we are is horrific - still 50 viewings per house, can't view unless sold, housing selling for 10% minimum over guide price and no hope of it slowing down as demand hugely outstrips demand in this area. So extension is the only option but the lack of builders is stressful and all I'm after is a play room/day room where I can stick a sofa and a TV and an IKEA kallax for the toys 😂

We desperately need a downstairs loo too and spent a looong time googling if possible to put one in a conservatory but looks like that would be difficult

Op I do think - from what I’ve read - modern conservatories are better insulated and a better use of space - but I think people (like me!) judge them on old ones that seem to get very scruffy and dirty and need to be maintained. Even on rightmove where people are trying to show the best side of their houses you see these unloved rooms with clutter / exercise bikes etc and obviously just a store room and often they look dirty / falling down / dirt on the ceilings and I just wouldn’t buy a house where my first job is to replace a conservatory.

We moved house and there is a lovely good quality conservatory, in 2018 we had a light weight roof fitted I think it was £12k.

It's a use every day room now, well worth the money spent on it.

My parents in law have had one for years and they use it all year round (so do we when we’re round there, they’re not just bonkers). To make it useable they have an air conditioning unit for the summer, and that can also heat it when needed in the winter. It’s half brick up to the base of the windows as well, and is attached to the other side of their old French doors.

It would be awful in the summer without ac.

We had one done in 2020, opaque glass roof and dwarf walls with long ceilings if that makes sense.

Pros;
We now have a dining room, more space to put certain things that couldn't be in living room
It's added value to the house as it's a nice one (cost £17,000)
In summer I love to be in it during the morning and tea time as the warmth is lovely
We have underfloor heating in it also which helps for winter
Ours is small ish so we can easily heat it with one electric fire
Nice when friends come round to escape from the main room and have privacy for food and chats

Cons:
In summer it is ROASTING in the middle of the day, couldn't be in there for more than 20 mins and due to the glass roof the sun beams in (wish I'd done a normal roof!)
In winter it is cold (BUT as ours is small it does heat up really easily in 5 mins with the electric fire and underfloor heating)

Blinds cost a lot (then again that's the case whichever room you're in, we got perfect fit blinds so cost more but look tons better and don't waste space/safe for DC)

We had a conservatory put in November using Conservatoryland with the fancy blue glass as roof. Whole thing up in 2 weeks and then we did the flooring / plastering and electrics ourselves, but could get contractors too. Around 3m x 3.5m so it's been a fab space. We got an AC unit put in (£1.2k ish) with a heat pump but tbh we've not needed it that much! But more economical than putting rads in and the AC means it's the coldest room in the house on hot days! :D

I know AC a bit pricey but if you consider that it makes the room an all year prospect then it's really much more cost effective.

We were quoted around £50k for extension (just for structure!) And conservatory has come in around £25k (£20k for the build, £1.2k for AC and around £3.8k for flooring/electrics/decorating/blinds)

Sorry if too much info but thought might be helpful! :)

We use ours all the year round with absolutely none of the problems mentioned here. I find it a real morale booster in winter to be out there enjoying the light.

@Treezees

No that's great Thankyou! Yes I was thinking an extension would be £50k plus for us too

I'm expecting £15k-£20k for the conservatory - the big French doors and side windows are less than 5 years old so I'm hoping we can save money by reusing them

I think we'd be looking a 4.5m wide by 3.5m deep

@GalactatingGoddess

Is it still roasting with the roof blinds?