3 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING A SUNROOM
1 THE ORIENTATION
“How you’d like to use the space can help determine its position, accessibility and light,” says Virginia Murray, director of sales and marketing at Mozolowski & Murray. Sunrooms located on the southern side of your house will benefit from the maximum amount of sun. If you plan to use the sunroom in the morning, positioning it on the south-east elevation will give you the best of the morning rays, while south-westerly orientated sunrooms will capture the finest sunset vistas. Excessive solar gain and glare are key factors to think about for south-facing extensions. You can use 3D modelling to chart how much sunshine your addition will receive, depending on the time of day and year. This will help you determine whether any overhangs or shading devices will be needed to avoid overheating.
2 OUTER FRAME MATERIAL OPTIONS
Brick and block with spans of glazing is usually the favoured choice for those looking to match the materials to their existing house. Aluminium offers a streamlined, contemporary solution. Its innate strength makes it possible to achieve slimmer sightlines with more glazing in between. Timber is a characterful choice, and offers plenty of options to accommodate both your taste and your budget, including hardwoods like oak and modified products like Accoya. Softwoods like larch or Douglas fir could also be used. PVCU products (windows, doors and frames) have come a long way in the last 30 years. Though they don’t have the same strength as metal or wood, they’re still robust enough to last for decades.
3 LIGHTING THE SPACE
There are myriad ways to invite sunlight into your garden room. Overhead glazing that is angled towards the light source (in the form of a fully glazed roof, lantern or rooflight) can yield up to twice as much sunlight as vertical glass. There are rooflight solutions for flat and pitched sunroom coverings, including openable, horizontal, domed or pyramid shaped. There’s plenty of choice in terms of opening configurations, too. Most rooflight installations are acceptable under Permitted Development rights, however, if your property is listed or situated within a conservation area, you may need to apply for formal consent. Many suppliers offer conservation designs that sit flush with the roof for less of a visual impact on the exterior of the overall structure.