Converting existing conservatory into a 'proper room'.
Discussion
We have a 7 year old conservatory 4 metres square and it has brick/breeze block dwarf walls. What I have been wondering is if it would be possible to remove the plasticwork and existing roof and continue the dwarf walls to create 'piers' so that a proper tiled roof could be put on it?
Apart from wondering if this is possible (I have a good bricky that has done other work for me and know a roofer as well), I'm wondering about the 'legals' of this proposal:
Would this require new planing permission to do?
Would the existing footings be deep enough to satisfy any building control requirements?
Would it still be possible to have nearly as much glass as now (apart from the corner piers and I guess some brickwork around the french doors would also be required, further reducing the glass area)? Maybe even a velux window if this would be allowed?
The purpose of this change would be to allow the room to be used as a cinema room in winter, which could fill another thread entirely, but mostly that we don't use the conservatory in the winter (despite having a large radiator it seems pointless trying to battle the heat loss). We use it lots from April to September, so it would still need to be light and airy for that use hence the question about the amount of glass.
Any thoughts from the PH massive?
Apart from wondering if this is possible (I have a good bricky that has done other work for me and know a roofer as well), I'm wondering about the 'legals' of this proposal:
Would this require new planing permission to do?
Would the existing footings be deep enough to satisfy any building control requirements?
Would it still be possible to have nearly as much glass as now (apart from the corner piers and I guess some brickwork around the french doors would also be required, further reducing the glass area)? Maybe even a velux window if this would be allowed?
The purpose of this change would be to allow the room to be used as a cinema room in winter, which could fill another thread entirely, but mostly that we don't use the conservatory in the winter (despite having a large radiator it seems pointless trying to battle the heat loss). We use it lots from April to September, so it would still need to be light and airy for that use hence the question about the amount of glass.
Any thoughts from the PH massive?
Can't help you on the planning / building regs aspect but in your situation I'd first of all dig some inspection holes to determine the depth and suitability of the existing footings. Most conservatories are erected outside building control and the footings are often not to the same standard as an extension would be.
One solution is to clad over your existing roof with lightweight immitation roof tiles , I have seen this done before , a friend of mine owns a company that does it.
example
http://www.catalystroofs.co.uk/images/gall/full/MR...
One solution is to clad over your existing roof with lightweight immitation roof tiles , I have seen this done before , a friend of mine owns a company that does it.
example
http://www.catalystroofs.co.uk/images/gall/full/MR...
Edited by R60EST on Wednesday 5th January 23:43
Thanks for that...I think I have some pictures of the original build somewhere. I don't think cladding the roof would gain much in terms of heat loss though...I can't help but think about that awful stone cladding when you posted that, but maybe I should look into it just to be fair. 
Here's what we did with a similarly cold and large (4x4m) conservatory in winter. We cut up some celotex (70mm) into false wall panels to block off most of the wall glass, and made them tight enough to "wedge in" place. These were decorated using water resistant wall paper, glued to the celotex using spray on adhesive as wallpaper paste wouldn't stick to the foil surface.
These work really well in the winter months, the room stays substantially warmer and we can turn the rad off "5"! We left the roof but could easily do this as there are ridges to be able to jam the celotex panels in place. The wall panels are removeable for cleaning and occasionally you do get condensation behind them, but only on real real cold days. In summer, we store these in the garage (above the Porsche!!)
Sounds a bit naff, but for three months of the year they work great. And it is a cheap option, I got the celotex for £20 a sheet we used about 7 sheets. We walpapered both sides, plane on the outside (sort of beige!) and a funky grey / silver/ black pattern inside. Used them two years now and still look good. This year I stuck some painted skirting on them and they really look like just walls.
For proabbly £300 and a weekend's work, (the wallpapering is the worst bit as you cannot reposition the paper as it is contact adhesive) but cutting the sheets is easy with a hand saw.
Oh and I found "sealing" the cut edges with the foil tape that they sell with the panels helped keep the dust down and helped the wallpapering. By this I mean seal all the cut eadges of each panel, dont stick the panels together with the tape or you cannot remove them. You can cut out plug point access etc too really easily. And we have hung pictures on them this year too.
Just an idea, could save you loads and mean it is all back to normal in summer.
These work really well in the winter months, the room stays substantially warmer and we can turn the rad off "5"! We left the roof but could easily do this as there are ridges to be able to jam the celotex panels in place. The wall panels are removeable for cleaning and occasionally you do get condensation behind them, but only on real real cold days. In summer, we store these in the garage (above the Porsche!!)
Sounds a bit naff, but for three months of the year they work great. And it is a cheap option, I got the celotex for £20 a sheet we used about 7 sheets. We walpapered both sides, plane on the outside (sort of beige!) and a funky grey / silver/ black pattern inside. Used them two years now and still look good. This year I stuck some painted skirting on them and they really look like just walls.
For proabbly £300 and a weekend's work, (the wallpapering is the worst bit as you cannot reposition the paper as it is contact adhesive) but cutting the sheets is easy with a hand saw.
Oh and I found "sealing" the cut edges with the foil tape that they sell with the panels helped keep the dust down and helped the wallpapering. By this I mean seal all the cut eadges of each panel, dont stick the panels together with the tape or you cannot remove them. You can cut out plug point access etc too really easily. And we have hung pictures on them this year too.
Just an idea, could save you loads and mean it is all back to normal in summer.
s3fella said:
Here's what we did with a similarly cold and large (4x4m) conservatory in winter. We cut up some celotex (70mm) into false wall panels to block off most of the wall glass, and made them tight enough to "wedge in" place. These were decorated using water resistant wall paper, glued to the celotex using spray on adhesive as wallpaper paste wouldn't stick to the foil surface.
These work really well in the winter months, the room stays substantially warmer and we can turn the rad off "5"! We left the roof but could easily do this as there are ridges to be able to jam the celotex panels in place. The wall panels are removeable for cleaning and occasionally you do get condensation behind them, but only on real real cold days. In summer, we store these in the garage (above the Porsche!!)
Sounds a bit naff, but for three months of the year they work great. And it is a cheap option, I got the celotex for £20 a sheet we used about 7 sheets. We walpapered both sides, plane on the outside (sort of beige!) and a funky grey / silver/ black pattern inside. Used them two years now and still look good. This year I stuck some painted skirting on them and they really look like just walls.
For proabbly £300 and a weekend's work, (the wallpapering is the worst bit as you cannot reposition the paper as it is contact adhesive) but cutting the sheets is easy with a hand saw.
Oh and I found "sealing" the cut edges with the foil tape that they sell with the panels helped keep the dust down and helped the wallpapering. By this I mean seal all the cut eadges of each panel, dont stick the panels together with the tape or you cannot remove them. You can cut out plug point access etc too really easily. And we have hung pictures on them this year too.
Just an idea, could save you loads and mean it is all back to normal in summer.
Being cheeky but do you have any pictures? Sounds like a great idea.These work really well in the winter months, the room stays substantially warmer and we can turn the rad off "5"! We left the roof but could easily do this as there are ridges to be able to jam the celotex panels in place. The wall panels are removeable for cleaning and occasionally you do get condensation behind them, but only on real real cold days. In summer, we store these in the garage (above the Porsche!!)
Sounds a bit naff, but for three months of the year they work great. And it is a cheap option, I got the celotex for £20 a sheet we used about 7 sheets. We walpapered both sides, plane on the outside (sort of beige!) and a funky grey / silver/ black pattern inside. Used them two years now and still look good. This year I stuck some painted skirting on them and they really look like just walls.
For proabbly £300 and a weekend's work, (the wallpapering is the worst bit as you cannot reposition the paper as it is contact adhesive) but cutting the sheets is easy with a hand saw.
Oh and I found "sealing" the cut edges with the foil tape that they sell with the panels helped keep the dust down and helped the wallpapering. By this I mean seal all the cut eadges of each panel, dont stick the panels together with the tape or you cannot remove them. You can cut out plug point access etc too really easily. And we have hung pictures on them this year too.
Just an idea, could save you loads and mean it is all back to normal in summer.
Keep the ideas coming, though part of the point of this is to use the room as a cinema setup. The existing plastic roof has poor soundproofing ablities although I can heat the room well just by turning up the rad it seems a waste to pump the heat out through the plastic ceiling for a whole winter. The levels I like to listen at and the late night aspect would have the neighbours complaining which at present you can't even hear my setup if you go outside the living room window (though you can feel the sub through the porch supports.
I need the higher ceiling too as it helps reduce picture washout due to reflection back onto the screen...I currently have the setup in my living room, but I have a Heath Robinson setup of a black cloth 'tent' that I put up when watching a film. I'd prefer a properly darkened room with dark walls and the ceiling could be darker too if it's higher up, then I can just switch on and enjoy a film without faffing about with black cloths etc...I find the picture looks too washed out in the living room if I just lower the screen and leave the room as is, even though it's completely void of ambient light.
I need the higher ceiling too as it helps reduce picture washout due to reflection back onto the screen...I currently have the setup in my living room, but I have a Heath Robinson setup of a black cloth 'tent' that I put up when watching a film. I'd prefer a properly darkened room with dark walls and the ceiling could be darker too if it's higher up, then I can just switch on and enjoy a film without faffing about with black cloths etc...I find the picture looks too washed out in the living room if I just lower the screen and leave the room as is, even though it's completely void of ambient light.
I have had a similar dilemma, I have a 4 x 4m conservatory that is unusable 6 months of the year, we have a had a builder quote for conversion to a normal room but have decided to take it down and start again - this is mainly due to footings issues - the 4 x 4m extension inc plastering etc came in at £13500 or £11500 if we give the builder the conservatory once its taken down - we have just put in for planning as we dont have it on the conservatory - the roof will be a low slope flat grp roof with 2 velux windows in this worked out at £1800 of the cost - 800 of which is for the velux.
From a 'legals' point of view you're wanting to convert a 'non-habitable' room into a 'habitable' room.
Planning issues will depend on the type and location of the house.
Building Control issues will start at the depth of the foundations and end at the roof. Generally speaking it's easier and cheaper to pull down a conservatory and start again.
Alternatively, instead of rigid board insulation you could use secondary glazing made up of polycarbonate sheets. Which would keep the light but make the cinema a bit harder.
Planning issues will depend on the type and location of the house.
Building Control issues will start at the depth of the foundations and end at the roof. Generally speaking it's easier and cheaper to pull down a conservatory and start again.
Alternatively, instead of rigid board insulation you could use secondary glazing made up of polycarbonate sheets. Which would keep the light but make the cinema a bit harder.
Definition of "conservatory" is 50% or more glazed, so if you can add piers and support roof and still keep at least 50% glazing you could avoid building regs, i.e. keep it defined as a "non-habitable room" per Mk1's post above. Roof material is neither here nor there, unless regs changed recently.
Also supposed to be kept seperate from main living space with doors, and not plumbed in to main central heating system.
Would agree with a bit of digging to check you do have some sensible footings there, before adding the extra weight, of course.
Also supposed to be kept seperate from main living space with doors, and not plumbed in to main central heating system.
Would agree with a bit of digging to check you do have some sensible footings there, before adding the extra weight, of course.
Edited by deeen on Thursday 6th January 12:41
deeen said:
Definition of "conservatory" is 50% or more glazed, so if you can add piers and support roof and still keep at least 50% glazing you could avoid building regs,
50% is for the walls only.In addition the roof needs to be at least 75% translucent .Edited by deeen on Thursday 6th January 12:41
Busamav said:
deeen said:
Definition of "conservatory" is 50% or more glazed, so if you can add piers and support roof and still keep at least 50% glazing you could avoid building regs,
50% is for the walls only.In addition the roof needs to be at least 75% translucent .Edited by deeen on Thursday 6th January 12:41
OldSkoolRS said:
We have a 7 year old conservatory 4 metres square and it has brick/breeze block dwarf walls. What I have been wondering is if it would be possible to remove the plasticwork and existing roof and continue the dwarf walls to create 'piers' so that a proper tiled roof could be put on it?
Apart from wondering if this is possible (I have a good bricky that has done other work for me and know a roofer as well), I'm wondering about the 'legals' of this proposal:
Would this require new planing permission to do?
Would the existing footings be deep enough to satisfy any building control requirements?
Would it still be possible to have nearly as much glass as now (apart from the corner piers and I guess some brickwork around the french doors would also be required, further reducing the glass area)? Maybe even a velux window if this would be allowed?
The purpose of this change would be to allow the room to be used as a cinema room in winter, which could fill another thread entirely, but mostly that we don't use the conservatory in the winter (despite having a large radiator it seems pointless trying to battle the heat loss). We use it lots from April to September, so it would still need to be light and airy for that use hence the question about the amount of glass.
Any thoughts from the PH massive?
If you alter the external appearance, i.e. with a tiled roof, then you should really seek Planning Permission.Apart from wondering if this is possible (I have a good bricky that has done other work for me and know a roofer as well), I'm wondering about the 'legals' of this proposal:
Would this require new planing permission to do?
Would the existing footings be deep enough to satisfy any building control requirements?
Would it still be possible to have nearly as much glass as now (apart from the corner piers and I guess some brickwork around the french doors would also be required, further reducing the glass area)? Maybe even a velux window if this would be allowed?
The purpose of this change would be to allow the room to be used as a cinema room in winter, which could fill another thread entirely, but mostly that we don't use the conservatory in the winter (despite having a large radiator it seems pointless trying to battle the heat loss). We use it lots from April to September, so it would still need to be light and airy for that use hence the question about the amount of glass.
Any thoughts from the PH massive?
Building Control wise you would then have to do calcs. to ensure that everything involved with adding extra loading is sufficient for the work involved.
We bought our place last feb which already had a 5.5x5.5m conservatory attached, i was convinced it would be too cold to use it. Anyway i put in a 8500btu rad and a 3kw oil filled electric rad. Even when its minus 4 outside its still 20 deg in here.
Yes the heat loss is terrible but i'm not bothered to the extent of not using it, its too nice a room to leave shut off. The rest of our house is fairly well insulated and has led bulbs so it appears our bills are ok, the fuel company is estimating our bills over a year and we are paying way more per month than we are using so if it means the use of this room bumps it up then so be it.
Our problem is that the conservatory has slightly pulled away from the house, its fine for now but not sure how long it will last. Some fag packet workings out show i could rip it down and put a proper single story extension in here for about 12k (with me doing most of the work and also nicking the windows and doors from the conservatory which are proper double glazed upvc units).
Yes the heat loss is terrible but i'm not bothered to the extent of not using it, its too nice a room to leave shut off. The rest of our house is fairly well insulated and has led bulbs so it appears our bills are ok, the fuel company is estimating our bills over a year and we are paying way more per month than we are using so if it means the use of this room bumps it up then so be it.
Our problem is that the conservatory has slightly pulled away from the house, its fine for now but not sure how long it will last. Some fag packet workings out show i could rip it down and put a proper single story extension in here for about 12k (with me doing most of the work and also nicking the windows and doors from the conservatory which are proper double glazed upvc units).
It's sounding more like I thought in terms of having to pull it down and start again, so that'll be a job for a few years time then as I won't borrow money apart from the mortgage. One thing I am concerned about it that I've already plumbed in a radiator and from some of the comments above this isn't allowed? I tend to leave it just on frost setting as there is a TV and some other AV gear out there that we use in the better weather. It's actually a very pleasant room as it is and we use it instead of the living room for 7-8 months of the year and even at weekends in the winter once the sun hits it. It handles the summer heat well due to the roof design/treatment despite being south facing it's never been too hot to sit in as we leave the internal patio door open during hot days.
Maybe I'll just have to revisit what I can do with the living room setup, one option is a special screen that can be used in light rooms...the bad news is that for the size I'd need it's about £5K. I made the mistake of visiting a guy who has built a proper dedicated cinema room using similar AV gear to me and it seemed so much nicer than having a modified living room.
Maybe I'll just have to revisit what I can do with the living room setup, one option is a special screen that can be used in light rooms...the bad news is that for the size I'd need it's about £5K. I made the mistake of visiting a guy who has built a proper dedicated cinema room using similar AV gear to me and it seemed so much nicer than having a modified living room.
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