Most people extending their house choose to do so by installing a lean to conservatory. Conservatories at the rear of your house rarely need planning permission, so you can extend with a lot lower costs and less bother.
You can buy free standing conservatories, but contemporary designs are all available in lower cost lean to styles. If you are extending your house a lean to conservatory provides a light and airy room, which is easily accessible from the original house. You can choose between styles that have a low wall all round or styles that have floor to ceiling windows and doors. Inner walls will be of sheetrock, with the gap filled with insulation.
A full width conservatory extension can double your kitchen width and give a modern, light family room.
There are various styles of uPVC and timber lean to conservatories available and the choice comes down to personal preference and whichever design looks better with your house.
UPVC built conservatories are more weather proof and require almost no maintenance, which is why PVC is replacing timber as the material of choice. Timber rots, PVC cannot rot. Timber needs painting every three years, PVC never needs painting. The roof of a timber lean to conservatory is very difficult to reach to paint the wooden frame.
You can buy plans and kits for DiY lean to conservatories, but this is a two man job, and not one for the inexperienced handyman. You will need scaffolding to make for a safe building site. DiY conservatory kits are only readily available in wood.
When you are looking at lean to conservatories’ prices they compare favorably with those for a traditional extension, added to which most jurisdictions do not require planning permission for conservatories built at the back of a house. The $4000 to $25,000 price tag includes double glazed sealed unit windows that would bump up the price of an ordinary extension.
Any conservatory supplier will handle all the extras, and there are as many as there are when you buy a new car. Blinds for windows and ceiling are an essential extra you should budget for. You will also need new electricity outlets, built in storage and plumbing for radiators if you intend to extend your current heating system. You will need extensions to your house alarm system, too.
Specify the highest quality of glazing available. Better sealed glazing units prevent more heat loss and oil is going up in price all the time.
