Conservatory Roof Replacement

J_e_l_b

Hi everyone, I'm considering getting my conservatory roof replaced with a solid tiled one and just wondered if anyone has any advice on pro's and con's to look out for and also if anyone has any recommendations of companies they have used? Thanks for any advice

Davesnave

I presume you don't really mean a traditionally constructed, tiled roof, because if you do, the rest of the conservatory won't have been designed to carry the weight.

Do you mean the fake tiled/slated roof conversions that are lightweight and thus no heavier than glass roofs? These are offered by a number of companies so it would be good to establish what sort of thing you envisage at the start of the thread.

Think about light levels. A friend replaced their conservatory roof with a fibreglass one, but it still needed additional supports. When it was complete, they realised their living room behind had become darker than expected.

J_e_l_b

Hi, thanks for your reply, sorry I didn't make it clear what I'm looking for, I have a glass roof at the moment and I'm looking to replace it with the lightweight tiles to make it usable in winter and I'm also planning to add a couple of velux windows so as to allow a bit more light in.

Davesnave

OK that will be helpful as there are people with more experience than me here when it comes to the various lightweight roofs and whether Velux windows can be installed in them. I've only had them put in traditional cut roofs, where they worked well.

TELLIT01

There are a number of potential methods, but those which fit an insulated roof with tile effect, which complies with building regs generally require the entire roof assembly to be replaced.  Other systems basically replace each glazed section with an insulated pvc panel and are nothing like as well insulated.

We have had ours replaced with 'Guardian Roof' but still have one section fully glazed to avoid the rooms behind it being too dark.

greenface2

they're mainly called warm roof . I install guardian but there are others on the market , I cant see any difference between guardian and equinox . I point my customers to equinox systems on you tube because its clearer to understand the construction . you need to make sure your conny is strong enough to take the extra weight and decide a decent firm to do the job . someone who does a lot and have a good reputation would be my choice . There is different options of styles availables / I use 175mm of insulation . plus membrain and vapour barrier . Soakers . all back sealed . It takes a lot longer but ive never been back . (only installed about 25/30 ) its not my main income and try to let others do my connys  

Hudsonbutler

Our conservatory is 9m x 3m roughly, we had a guardian roof with metal tiles. Ours also had a double glazed roof.
Yes you lose a bit of light, but you gain in summer as we are south west facing, it was a lot cooler.  In winter it holds the warmth. 
We have not looked back. Oh and we were advised against velux windows as this defeats the object. 

TELLIT01

Ours is also S/W facing and it has made a massive difference to the temperature on hot days, that's even with a full length glazed panel.  I don't doubt the difference would be even greater if it was completely solid.  The people who did ours advised against velux windows but that was because - in their words 'they are a stupid price'.

Davesnave

I think lifestyle comes into the equation. If you are the sort of person who would stay indoors on a hot day in summer then reducing the heat build-up is a serious consideration. For us, not so much. We had scaffolding erected over our old conservatory, saw what that did to light levels in the living room and decided to stay with a glass roof.

For us, the conservatory isn't as useful in summer as it is at, say, this time of year. We are also fortunate in being able to heat it cheaply, although we still insulated the walls and floor to normal building standards.

TELLIT01

Our conservatory also has full height walls on 2 sides,  only small windows on the 3rd and low brick wall below full width glass on the 4th.  Because it's S/W facing it doesn't get blasted by the sun all day and, with underfloor heating, can be used throughout the year.  The solid roof has reduced the max temperature experienced quite a bit and makes it generally a more practical space.

J_e_l_b

Thanks for all your comments everyone, my conservatory is also south west facing and although it's lovely to sit in when the sun is out at this time of year it's unusable in winter, I have underfloor heating but the heat just disappears through the roof even though it's special thermal glass etc etc. I've been looking at the roofs with a fully glazed section (or maybe 2 as it's a large L shape conservatory) but wondered if that may be defeating the object of having a tiled conversion,