Conservatory roof replacement

We had our conservatory roof replaced with a tiled one, four years ago
We have a south facing garden and the heat could be unbearable in there. Of course, in the winter, it was freezing and unusable
We used a reputable local firm and we are delighted with the results
We removed the French doors to open the conservatory into the kitchen and installed a Roente heater in there, which keeps a constant temperature
We could choose the tile colour, which matches the roof of our house
It is still very light and bright in there
I am very happy with our conservatory roof ?

A friend recommended one of those trendy sails. It fits beneath the roof in summer to provide shade and in the winter she takes it down and washes it, then puts it away.

Self cleaning glass seems to be working for us.

Oh, interesting, Greyduster
I must say a glass roof needs cleaning occasionally which is a downside.

Callistemon I paint in ours and also tie my own fishing flies, and there is ample light to do both. The white vaulted ceiling does reflect a lot of light downward.

I do like the fact that it is very light and I can do craft in there, so personally I would not have a solid roof but it depends what you want to use it for.

Ours isn't freezing in the winter; we have underfloor heating and 2 oil filled radiators, one either side.
We've sat in there with snow and ice outside and it's been lovely and warm.
The floor was well insulated when it was being built too.

We had our large conservatory roofed about four years ago, for the the usual considerations - baking in Summer (over 100 degrees if it had been shut up all day while we were out; you couldn’t bear to be in there until it had cooled down) and freezing in winter. It made a dramatic difference in the summer, and was certainly not as cold in the winter, but you still need to consider some form of heating. As for gloom, it’s a trade off. We considered how much we would use the conservatory against how much we actually used the dining room. We could have had roof lights put in, but it wouldn’t have made a lot of difference to the light levels and they were going to put up the cost considerably. The actual structure is very lightweight - some contain a lot of wood which adds to the weight - and the amount of insulation is amazing. It has stood up to some really rough weather. In the end, we chose a small fairly local firm, who arranged for us to visit and talk to someone they had fitted a roof for. The price was just over nine thousand and it has been worth every penny. We have had quite a few people knock on our door and ask who did the work and were we pleased. We are always happy to let them see the finished article. There are lots of firms doing this now and it pays to do your homework as prices can vary enormously. Two of our neighbours have gone down the same route and we all used different firms.

Mine has been replaced with a glass “ orangery” type roof. It’s so successful that I’ve removed the patio doors, a few other tweaks like triple glass windows etcand it’s like a proper extension , winter and summer for much less cost. My neighbour , a builder, did it.
If I ever want to sell and move I have to put the patio doors back on apparently!

Franbern, it's not the conservatory itself, but the adjoining dining room that would be darker here. It 'borrows' light from that side of the house.

There would also be planning and building regulation issues too. Conservatories have to fit strict 'identity' criteria. Reducing the amount of glass can mean that they become extensions instead.

Special lightweight plastic tiles. Guaranteed a lifetime/. Probably less weight than the glass that was there.

Also - make sure that your structure is strong enough to withstand the extra weight of a solid roof.

Many conservatories are basically perspex boxes with shallow foundations.

Thanks so much everyone for your replies.

I think the cost I mentioned is pretty high because the quotes are from companies who actually make the insulated "solid" roofs.

I might be wrong but maybe if a builder fitted a solid roof then the cost may be cheaper.. however our conservatory was built by a conservatory company and the roof is an odd shape so not sure if a builder would do it.

I did ask for ideas on my local facebook page, and several builders have responded saying they could come "and have a look" .

May I ask .. those of you who have had a glass roof replaced by a solid roof.. who did you use? We have had quotes from Ultraframe .

Thanks again

My son and DiL had a solid roof put on their conservatory couple of years ago. It is wonderful, and it means they can use this as an extra room the whole year round. Not sure what people mean by making it dark. They decided not to have a window in the ceiling (which can be done), but do have a lovely white ceiling, and the conservatory is most definitely not at all gloomy(if anything brighter than previously!!! And, it is that much cooler in the sunshine, and definitely warmer in winter. Do not think they paid anything like eighteen grand though.

We too have a large conservatory, with the usual freezing in winter etc. A neighbour suggested having insulation panels fitted in the roof. Is this a good idea? Has anyone done this?

No, we decided not to have it done having had someone from the company round to chat about it.
We do have a special opaque anti-glare? roof on ours and we wouldn't sit in there on a hot summer's day anyway.
I like to watch the clouds passing over!

I would choose automatic roof blinds if necessary rather than an solid roof.

I`m with Hetty58 100%.

Would your complaint give you a contact who might let you go to see whatever they are offering in a real home?
That might help.

I was at a small hotel two years ago that had automatic blinds (probably thermal) and they worked well. They seemed to operate on their own.

I had mine replaced in 2018, I initially considered a tiled roof and dismissed it due to the gloom. I have a large conservatory and went with a local company who replaced the poly carbonate roof with an opaque glass one. I spent 24k in all but decided to replace the windows and doors in the conservatory at the same time for more energy efficient ones. We had a few hiccups but I'm delighted with the finished article, it's just so much more usable all year round. Because the roof is white it's still very light but there is no glare and I can barely hear the rain whereas before it sounded horrendous.

We have a south facing conservatory. Unusable in summer & in winter, also lots of glare. We purchased some specialist removable covering (a type of dense netting) to go on the roof on the outside, made it better but gave everything a dull green tinge. We had a solid roof put on 2 years ago. What a difference. Room is usable all year round except for really cold days - it is not heated. Certainly recommend a solid roof.

Sheena , if you love spending time in your conservatory, and can afford it, why not have it done?
Could you ask the company for recommendations, so that you then can ask a couple of clients that have had it done, whether it was worth doing.

We covered the roof with tarpaulins to see what effect the solid roof would have on light levels in the dining room. Result? Gloom! We invested in automatic thermal blinds instead.

I would be interested to hear about this too. It's something we thought about doing.

Sheena
We had ours done and as you say the price was, ouch ( but not as much as yours)
We have never regretted a moment ?