Conservatories can be a lovely part of the home, connecting the indoors with outdoors and providing a lovely calming room for homeowners to relax or spend time in. However, homeowners often find that they are far too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter, and these temperature fluctuations also bring other issues with them, such as condensation, mould, and damp. These problems can mean that conservatories are unusable, and often-times they’ll be used only as storage or shut off during the extreme temperatures to keep the temperature fluctuations from effecting the rest of the house. Many homeowners will set about to find a way to upgrade their conservatories and reduce these issues and create a more usable space.
When looking into upgrading a conservatory one of the main options that comes up is to replace the conservatory roof. There are many different conservatory roof replacements options and the primary consideration for homeowners when looking into replacing their conservatory roof is normally always how much it will cost.
The cost to replace a conservatory roof will depend on the replacement product chosen as well as the size of the conservatory but may also be affected by the current state of repair of the conservatory frame. Some conservatory roof replacement options can be fairly heavy and the framework may require replacing or reinforcing which may add to the cost of replacing the conservatory roof.
Other factors that may influence the cost of the conservatory roof replacement include the ease of access and how long the work will take. If the work site is particularly hard to reach or dangerous, it may be necessary to fit scaffolding or the labourers may take longer to complete the work, both of which will increase the price to replace the conservatory roof.
But ultimately the main influences on the cost to replace a conservatory roof are which type of roof, or roofing materials is selected by the homeowner and the size of the conservatory roof being replaced.
Polycarbonate
Of all the options, polycarbonate can be the cheapest way to replace a conservatory roof. Polycarbonate is cheap to produce and easy to instal so is relatively low cost in terms of labour. However, this low cost conservatory roof replacement comes with its issues. Overtime polycarbonate can degrade and is more prone to scratches, cracks and leaks. It can also discolour which can look unsightly and has a shorter life-span than other options, meaning that it will need to be replaced more often, costing more in the long run. It also doesn’t have good insulating properties so although it’s a more reasonable cost to replace the conservatory roof initially, over time homeowners will spend more money on heating and repair and replacement in the future.
The cost of polycarbonate will generally vary depending on the thickness and although it can be purchased from hardware stores from around £35 a square metre, ranging up to £50+ a square meter the main cost to replace a conservatory roof with polycarbonate panels will be the labour costs. Generally, homeowners can spend between £2000-5000+ to replace a conservatory roof with polycarbonate panels depending on the size of the conservatory.
Tiled
Tiled roof can be a more costly option to replace a conservatory roof with. More often it takes longer to install as new framework needs to be fitted and there are more materials required. This option is longer lasting than polycarbonate however, but more intrusive to install as it takes longer and requires fitters entering the home and possibly removing the current conservatory roof. Depending on the roof size, the cost to replace a conservatory roof with tiles can be anywhere in the region of £250-£900 per square metre, meaning that a 4mx4m conservatory upwards of £14000. This option can help to better insulate the conservatory and may be more aesthetically appealing than glass or polycarbonate, however this option may require planning permission or to be checked for planning regulations which can have an additional cost so it is important for homeowners to consider this and the extra cost when replacing their conservatory roof.
Glass
Glass, similar to polycarbonate, was a popular choice for conservatory roofing when conservatories had to be transparent however now that conservatory roofing can be replaced with a solid roof it is becoming less popular as homeowners opt to replace their roofing systems with more insulating materials. There are however some options that are reasonable insulators which some homeowners opt for. This can include glass with solar film, blue tinted glass, as well as different glazing thicknesses. The cost to replace a conservatory roof with glass can vary from £3000 to over £8000 depending on the various factors. A glass conservatory roof may not provide as good a level of insulation as insulating panels or tiled roofing however.
Insulated Panels
Green Space Uk’s thermotec panels are becoming a very popular choice of conservatory roof replacement. Made up of high efficiency condensed insulation encased between two layers of powder-coated and baked aluminium, these panels have a U-Value that is 3 times lower than solar glazing, and 7 times lower than standard 16mm polycarbonate. This means that they are better at restricting the flow of heat in and out of the conservatory through the roof than most other comparable products. These means homeowners can treat the room like any other room in the house, heating it as usual in winter and opening doors and windows in the summer to create a comfortable temperature and a space that can be used year round as these panels make the common methods of temperature control much more effective.
This option can be a more costly conservatory roof replacement because the panels are made bespoke to fit into the current framework of the conservatory so each panel is measured, designed, cut and produced to simply slot into the conservatory and replace whichever old roofing system was in place. Because installation is so easy however, the cost of making bespoke panels is often balanced out with shorter labour requirements and costs.
Ultimately this option also depends on the size of the conservatory and how many panels are required with the cost to replace a conservatory roof with insulating panels usually in the same price bracket as tiled roofing. Although more expensive initially, “Modern conservatory roofs that use more substantial materials have been proven to save homeowners an average of £200 per year on utility bills.” - Checkatrade.
