The purpose of this of this essay is to explore the construction of a conservatory that is livable all
year around. When you build a conservatory there are several factors that need to be regarded
that usually are of no importance when you build a regular conservatory. The glassed facade
needs to have a very good U-value and all the parts of the facade need to be isolated and the
construction needs to prevent thermal bridges.
In this essay we will start by looking at the shape of the conservatory. Due to the façade consists
of glass the conservatory will need to have a good ratio between the area and the façade so that
the heat losses will be at a minimum. However, due to the fact that one of the sides of the façade
is connected to the warm house, you quickly realize that the shape of the conservatory is of no
importance.
There are two common ways to build a foundation for a conservatory, a molded concrete
foundation and isolated wooden beams. The molded concrete foundation is usually
recommended but if you have a difference in heights on the ground the wooden beams are a
good solution. The frame of the conservatory usually consists of gluelam; however there are
some exceptions where the frame consists of aluminum. It is very common for the roof of a
conservatory to consist of polycarbonate which is a very good at isolating while the price is still
relatively low. Depending on how much time of the year you want to spend in the conservatory
the thickness of the polycarbonate while differ. It is recommended that the minimum thickness
of the roof of a conservatory that is to be used all year round should be 32 mm.
The price of the conservatory varies greatly depending on how much time of the year you want
to use it. A regular conservatory can cost around 33 000 SEK for an area of 10,5 m
2while the
same conservatory would cost up to 127 000 SEK. The difference in price arises due to the fact
that the demands on a conservatory are higher it is to be used all year round. While a regular
conservatory might have a U-value of 6,7 W/(m
2*K) the U-value of an all year round
conservatory is 1,1 W/(m
2*K). The biggest increase in price comes when you go from an almost
all year round conservatory to an all year round conservatory. The U-value decreases with 31 %
while the price increases with 152 %. This is probably due to the complex process of preventing
thermal bridges by installing plastic between the aluminum profiles.
In today’s market there are three different categories
of facades: sliding facades, folding facades
and fixed parties. Even within the different categories there are different facades, they vary
depending on how many glasses they consist of. These differentiate in price, this price difference
is directly correlated to how much of the facade that you can open. The more you can open, the
more expensive the price is.
Also, we examine two different ways of heating the room, stoves and floor heating. Floor heating
is a popular alternative for all year round conservatories because they usually have a molded
concrete foundation. It is rather difficult to install floor heating in isolated wooden beams.
That is why we examine another alternative, stove that run on ethanol. Apart from the heat they
also add an esthetic appeal.
At the end of the essay we will design our own conservatory that is adapted to the house. The
final price for the all year round conservatory lands at a whopping 313 300 SEK.