Conservatory questions?

[AndrewSchofield]

We're having a conservatory installed on the rear of our property. We've asked for double doors on the front elevation and the quote/spec has come back showing these opening outwards and i'm aware that very often uPVC patio doors do open outwards. Why is this?? I personally prefer doors to open inwards as it seems more natural and i think the hinges on the outside look unsightly. But is there a particular reason why we should have outward opening doors - or why this is the standard spec for them??

Also, we're weighing up between a poly-carb roof and glass. There's an obvious finanical saving by having poly-carb but what are the other pros and cons for each? I've been told that poly-carb can be very noisy when it's raining, but that it also diffuses sunlight better so you don't get the sun shining in your eyes and it stays a little cooler under direct sunlight? The conservatory is on the Northern elevation of the house so gets little direct sunlight - will one be better than the other for maximising the light inside the conservatory?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

 

[sotal]

My colleague had a glass roof one built just before me and it made me decide on having a poly roof!

The glass one in my opinion looks slightly better and is much quieter in heavy rain.

We decided to go for the thickest polycarb we could get, the amount it diffuses the sun is amazing. So much better than the glass. Ours gets sun from 9.30am until sunset so it was an important consideration for us.

My wife also hated the thought of all that glass above your head.

The glass also showed things like bird muck. It stands out like a sore thumb.

The final thing for me was cost

 

[AndrewSchofield]

Yeah, cost is a huge consideration for us. The conservatory isn't that big and so having a glass roof puts the total cost of the work up by 15%!

If its massively beneficial to have glass we've got the money to have glass, but we've also got many other things we could spend that money on?!?

Good point on the bird muck too - they tend to nest under our eaves every year!!

Does anyone know if poly-carb discolours over time or will start to look dirty any quicker than the uPVC frame will?

 

[Richard C]

All the UPVC French doors I’ve seen open outwards & the construction of the frame & weather seals is such they would not be suitable for inwards opening; but I assume they can be made to open inwards, not sure; French doors opening inwards will also reduce the useable space inside due to the arc of the doors.

We’ve got opaque 45mm poly; noisy when raining but I find it can be quiet therapeutic & very good at reducing glare. Glazed roof units are expensive on their own but will also put up the cost of your cons a fair bit as a more substantial ring beam will be required to support the weight of the glass. We’ve got friends who have a glass roof & the heat gets so unbearable they had to spend a other £2k on roof blinds which they now keep permanently closed! Overall I think the cost of glass offers little additional advantage over a thick poly roof, if any. Our cons is now 5 years old, South facing & poly looks as good as it did on day one. Frames have not yellowed at all, we get a bit of green after winter but I presure wash it every spring.

Little tip; make sure you have external doors on adjacent sides of the cons, the through draft helps tremendously on hot summer days.

 

[AndrewSchofield]

Richard - the catalogue this guy has given us has some examples of conservatories and some have inward opening doors, some have outward opening doors - so it clearly is possible - strangely the inward opening ones are the ones constructed from brown uPVC and the outward ones are on the white ones - I don't know if that's a coincidence or if there's a reason - i can't see what difference that would make.

I understand your point about the space implications with the door arc - the missus is concerned about that - but i can't see what use the space in front of a door is anyway - its not like you'll put a chair or table in front of a door? I'm concerned about the doors blowing in the wind if they open out and closing on the chidrens fingers!! Unfortunately site restrictions dictate where the doors go so we're limited to double doors towards one side - we've got opening lights on the other side though so will have to rely on them for cross ventilation!!

So do I take it that poly-carb is fine - but the thicker the better??

 

[Richard C]

Richard - the catalogue this guy has given us has some examples of conservatories and some have inward opening doors, some have outward opening doors - so it clearly is possible - strangely the inward opening ones are the ones constructed from brown uPVC and the outward ones are on the white ones - I don't know if that's a coincidence or if there's a reason - i can't see what difference that would make.

Almost certainly coincidence so clearly not a problem I would think.

I understand your point about the space implications with the door arc - the missus is concerned about that - but i can't see what use the space in front of a door is anyway - its not like you'll put a chair or table in front of a door?

I suppose it depends on the size of your cons; but if you have the door open inwards, it will only go through 90 degrees (against the reveal), depending on where you site your chairs you could be looking though a door into the garden rather than though open space; just a thought

I'm concerned about the doors blowing in the wind if they open out

That can be a problem & I’ve fitted strong chrome plated carbine hooks; as long as people remember to hook them on of course.

and closing on the chidrens fingers!!

It’ll tech them not to interfear & play with things they shouldn’t be . Seriously, the carbine hooks work well with my grandkids & are even strong enough to stop one of the more troublesome ones persistently trying to slam the doors

So do I take it that poly-carb is fine - but the thicker the better??

Personally I would say so; 45mm was the thickest I could get hold of when I had mine built but I believe you can get even thicker now.