All You Need To Know About Conservatories.

When selecting your DIY conservatory, the specification that you choose will depend on what you want to use it for. For instance, if it will be used as the study room most likely it will be in use nearly every day. Therefore, it is important to consider the best quality and the most energy efficient glazing roofing materials. This will ensure that there is minimum heat lost during the cold season when the heating may be on for the better part of the day. If it is going to be for use as dining room, heating every day may not be necessary.

According to the above discussed points and whatever the space going to be used for, your DIY conservatory should meet the following specifications.

•  It should be 28mm thick and toughened E reflective glazing. This is a minimum requirement if you are looking to conserve heat and you do not intend to waste money on heating bills. It features a coating that reflects back heat to the room instead of expelling it to the space.
•  Should have 25 by 35 mm thick polycarbonate roofing used for roofing your DIY conservatory as it is cost effective and gives good thermal insulation. Glass roofing is another option if you don’t want to buy the option of polycarbonate roofing.
•  Another specification is opening fanlights, which should have shoot bolt locking since your insulated can sometimes backfire. This will give you the ability to ventilate your conservatory.
• The last but not least specification is 70 mm internally beaded double glazed frames. You should be aware that there exist manufacturers who still use 60 and 65 bead frames. They are not energy efficient like the 70 mm frames and because they are beaded on the outside, it makes them less secure.

To wrap up the loose ends about DIY minimum specification, it is important to mention that a fitting kit, required fixings and full instructions are mandatory if you are building it by yourself. They are a must.

 

DIY planning Permission

You will be required to submit a planning permission application to be allowed for your DIY conservatory. The main points that you will consider in terms of your personal conservatory are outlined below. But for more up to date rules and regulation regarding DIY planning permission, visit the Planning Portal Website.

· Not more than fifty percent of your original land surrounding your house can be covered with additions.

· For a property that faces the highway, addition can extend beyond its side elevation or principle elevation.

· Your conservatory should project 4 metres for a detached house and not more than 3 metres for a semi-detached house.

Conservatory Base

Fitting a conservatory is not such tedious work. You can get through the process quickly if you have the necessary principle knowledge on how to go about it coupled with skills and concise instructions. As with all conservatories, the first job done is to construct the base. There are only two choices when it comes to this that is the traditional concrete base or a pre-fabricated base system.

Concrete Conservatory Base

This is tried and tested as it has been in use for construction of conservatories for so many years. The idea here is to lay a level base, then build conservatory on top of it. Once the base is layed you can continue further with only two choices. You can opt for conservatory dwarf wall detail or conservatory solid floor detail. Each option has advantages and disadvantages as outlined below.

Advantages

Concrete pouring and wall construction is easy and it can be a DIY job. There so many builders who can be able do this also. You can use stone, bricks or blocks construct dwarf meaning everything matches and is the best possible option for insulation values.

Disadvantages

Cost, quality and work ethic can vary according to the builder doing the construction and there is huge disruption to your home with concrete lorries, skips, broken glasses and building materials.

Pre-fabricated Base (Steel Bases)

This is a fairly new option but it is quite popular with DIYers. When you use this method you can do the work and complete without needing a builder. They usually come in form of a pre-fabricated base and wall. The wall and base section are constructed from steel that is galvanized to prevent corrosion and rusting.

Advantages

They are easy and quick to install with minimal disruption during construction. They are good for areas with restricted access.

Another advantage to them is that most manufacturers build service channels so that cables can be allowed into them.

Disadvantages

Only a standard range of brick designs are available in most cases limiting compatibility with the complete look of certain properties. They cannot achieve the same level as well constructed brick base and wall.

 

Conservatory Dwarf Wall Detail

 

 

 

 

 

 

Conservatory Installation

Building your conservatory by yourself can be the most cost effective method as it was mentioned earlier. Although a complete set of instruction should come with your chosen conservatory, these are the basic steps that we found important outlining:

• Check the surface that you are going to build is free of debris and also tree roots below. If there such stuffs they could potentially damage and crack your floor slab leading to damage of your pre-fabricated base. This will save you time and money.
• The next step is to the lay the base, whichever base you choose (concrete or pre-fabricated). The size of the conservatory you are building will depend on the base you are laying. When laying the base you will need accurate corner to ascertain that they are square.
• Once you are through with laying of the base, you can now construct the dwarf walls if they are needed. Use our DIY how to lay bricks for correct guidance on how to go about it. While constructing your dwarf walls consider if you are going to require phone lines, ceiling fans or sockets. Contact an electrician for information on requirements.
• After designing the conservatory ensure you have a copy of the plan drawings for reference purposes.
• Once you are through with laying the base use the drawing to check if you have all the required elements. Next, layout the frames at the positions they are supposed to fit.
• Once you have confirmed everything fits together as it should be you can now begin construction. Fixings required should always come and included in the kit.
•  With all of the frames fitted securely in the place they belong, you can now start to fit beads and window glass as per instructions.
• Seal all the joints according to the manufacturer instructions. For instruction on how to use sealant gun, visit gun page and see our using instruction.

With DIY conservatory full constructed now, you can start to decorate it according to your requirements.

 

Choose an installer you can trust.

As a member of the Federation of Master Builders you know your in safe hand. We are fully insured and have been installing conservatories for over 20 years.

With so much experience we have seen for pretty bad examples of conservatory installations over the years. If you use us or anyone else make sure you ask for references and past work photos so you can see for yourself what finish your likely to achieve.

Here are some of our recent work pictures.

Does a Conservatory add value to your home?

We get asked by many customers if getting a conservatory will increase their properties value. So we contacted a national estate agent to find out. Property Cash Buyers stated that the addition would normally add around £5,000 – £10,000 to a homes valuation, which means the work will pay for itself in the long term. If you want to find out how much it might add to your house then visit their website. Try putting your details in with and without the conservatory option to see how much your house will be worth after using our professional services.