During an earlier period in my life, I lived in a house that had a glass conservatory. It was one of the things I liked best about the house. I would spend hours lounging on the sofa with a book in my hand gazing out into the garden. I used it throughout the Spring and Autumn and even during the hot summer months of the year.
People often complain about heat build-up in their conservatory, but my conservatory had a unique feature, it had the ability to raise the ridge, (the highest part) of the roof, to let the hot air out. Warm air rises and in a conservatory it gets trapped. My conservatory got over this problem by releasing all that hot air and sucking in cooler air through the windows and doors at the bottom.
Now that conservatory must have cost someone many thousands of pounds when it was first put in and most conservatories are nothing like it. That ability to raise the ridge was a game changer. Most conservatories installed in the late 20th Century were modular (supplied in set sizes) and had a polycarbonate roof. To this day polycarbonate has remained very popular. Multiwall Polycarbonate Sheeting is a highly practical roofing material for conservatories because it is lightweight, so easy to handle especially when compared to glass. It is strong, with high impact resistance and comes with a UV inhibiter which helps extend its life.
Early conservatories tended to be fitted with 16mm (or even 10mm) multiwall polycarbonate sheeting but as they grew more sophisticated 25mm or even 35mm polycarbonate sheeting was used.
Many conservatory owners out there unfortunately have a space which is uncomfortably hot in the summer months, especially in southfacing glass ones.
So what to do? Well, the simplest and most cost-efficient way to overcome this heat problem is to put in a roof vent. A Conservatory Roof Vent is an ingenious way of adding an “opening window” in your roof. When your conservatory gets hot you simply open the vent and let the hot air out. Modern conservatories tend to come with roof vents, but the really clever thing is that they can be retrofitted into existing conservatories, even glass ones!
The Roof Vents sold on www.theglazingshop.co.uk are made to fit between the glazing bars so they are securely fitted in place. There are cheaper roof vents on the market that “float” in the middle of a sheet, but these can cause the sheet to bow, especially if the roof vent is used often, and leaks can follow.
There is a wide choice of Roof Vent colours on www.theglazingshop.co.uk including White, Anthracite Grey, Rosewood, Golden Oak or Blue White so you will find be able to match pretty much any conservatory. You can choose to have the inside of the vent the same colour as the outer or white if you prefer. You can have the polycarbonate vents glazed or unglazed whereas glass roof vents are supplied unglazed for you to add your own unit from your local glazier. We have a guide to calculate the size of roof vent you need, and the sizes of the polycarbonate or glass needed.
Roof vents can accommodate 25mm or 32/35mm polycarbonate, just specify the thickness of polycarbonate currently in your roof using our simple drop-down menus. Glass roof vents are used with 24mm glass units which, as I mentioned earlier, can be bought from a local glazier to fit the unglazed roof vent. Glazing the vent is simple as is fitting it into the conservatory. Because of the way the roof vent fits between the roof glazing bars you can have as many as you want to suit your conservatory.
Whilst you can control your vents manually with a pole, you can also add handy features like motorised vent operation. Climate control can be used to open and clsoe the vents automatically when a set temperature is reached or close them if it rains. How clever!
But the big question to ask is do Roof Vents work? Well, the simple answer is yes, they let out the hot air at the top of your conservatory allowing cooler air to come in through the doors and windows below. The best bit is they can be retro fitted onto existing conservatories helping to extend the life of your conservatory and allow you to spend more time enjoying its benefits.
If you have any other questions regarding adding roof vents to your conservatory roof, give us a call on 01536 446395 and we will happy to assist you further.