I am looking to put a conservatory onto my house for use all year round.
At a guess the size will probably around 3m x 4m.
As I would like to keep heating costs in winter as low as possible, I am considering if a polycarbonate or glass roof is more efficient? This is further confused by the range of polycarbonate inserts, and reflective glass that is also avaliable. From googling, it appears that rain noise is also an issue for some.
Has anyone done the calculations on the differences of thermal efficients between various roofing materials.
I plan to put the conversvatory onto its own heating zone, so that the area can be left unheated when unoccupied. I asked a previous question regarding heating options, which seems to advise against underfloor (gas) due to the long response time of this method of heating? Yet, a number of website still promote ufh for conservatories. Other websites suggest the use of a a/c unit, as a reverse heat pump. Whilst this is more efficient that electricity I understand that using gas is still more cost effective. At the moment I am considering a fan convector as this should provide the quickest heat up time, and benefits from using gas for heat. Does anyone have any other options? or would a combination be a better choice.
Lastly, as the conservatory will be built onto the existing back door (with cat flap), I need to provide access for cats into the conservatory. Has anyone got a cat flap in a UPVC door? I assume I would have to have a panel door to the same height as the dwarf walls to fit this? Alternativly I have though about building the cat flap through the dwarf wall, most cat flaps seems to have accessories to facilitate this.
Anything else I should think of before I get quotes!