A conservatory has been popular since the early 18th century. The philosophy behind the construction of these types of rooms that are made mostly of glass is to provide an open and airy kind of feeling with the view outside of the garden and landscape beyond. Also, these rooms were once used to house exotic plants that would never survive in the harsh outdoor north European environments. Today conservatories have a variety of purposes and can be viewed simply as additional living space is to have a unique construction that add to the pleasure and enjoyment of the home’s inhabitants.
Enclosed is important:
Unlike many temperate climates where verandas and patios provide outdoor living area access to accompanying homes, the same architectural selection is not practical in northern climates. Although many homes in the UK have outdoor living areas, these are typically limited to the warm months of the year. Furthermore, verandas and porches would possess solid roofs that are designed to provide the maximum amount of shade that allows for a cooler environment.
Conservatories are totally enclosed room additions that possess more than 75 percent translucence allowing for the maximum amount of natural light that filters into the space provides. Since the UK is well known for its incredibly predictable environmental wind, rain and snow, use of a room addition with a translucent construction allows its inhabitants the opportunity to enjoy the view outside its walls despite what the weather conditions are!
Modern design is affordable use:
These rooms used to be constructed of quite heavy and expensive materials such as wrought iron and single pane glass making their construction and use limited to the wealthy classes. These same substances for use in construction of these types of rooms also meant that they were very expensive to heat and required a great deal of the labour-intensive maintenance to prevent rotting.
The past several decades have seen several advances in both design and material usage that no longer include substances that rot or provide little, if any insulation. Techniques such as double glazing and the use of PVC have provided lower maintenance costs and greater insulation for these uniquely designed rooms.
But, are there differences between conservatories and orangeries?
Typically, the large difference between the two is that more glass is used in the construction of an orangery. Furthermore, a conservatory will more than likely employ a frame that totally uses PVC with glass panelling and a translucent roof whereas orangeries are constructed resembling half a conservatory with another half brick construction. The philosophy behind orangery construction is providing an extra added amount of privacy not available in a conservatory construction.
Orangeries are therefore usually more expensive to build. However, both styles can be designed in a vast variety of styles to suit individual tastes from complementary structures to meet the existing architectural requirements or modern designs which employ up to date viewpoints about what is trendy and chic today!
In any event, the addition of conservatories will add greatly to the function of many homes as well as to their value. This is especially true if you design and construct the conservatory to be used year-round, which would be an attractive element of your home comes time for resale. how much to replace conservatory roof