DIY Conservatories - DIY Conservatory Supplier in the UK

1. Work out the size of your conservatory foot print. Although obvious the size of your conservatory will affect the style you pick. E.g. if you are limited on space stay away from the designs with angled corners like the Victorian conservatory or you won’t get your conservatory furniture inside
2. Survey the proposed site. Look around for manhole covers for drains etc. But also stand in the garden and look back at the house and see if there are any toilet over flows or drain pipes that you need to tell the conservatory designer about.
3. Decide on your budget. As with every purchase getting the most for you money if paramount. But don’t be fooled by cheap conservatory prices always check the conservatory specification against the price.
4. Select you conservatory Style. These can vary and don’t be afraid to ask for something special if that’s what you want. At diy conservatory quote we can draw and design and advise you on all aspects of the conservatory design process.
5. Conservatory Colour. Generally the rule of thumb is match the conservatory to your house or bungalows window colour. We offer white, rosewood, light oak or rosewood on white. We stay away from coloured conservatories as getting the ancillaries to colour match is difficult despite what the companies selling them say.
6. Conservatory door position One of the most important considerations when designing a conservatory. The natural temptation is to put the doors, when looking back at the house, middle and centre. Now if you stop and think about this it immediately drives a walkway corridor straight through the middle of the conservatory. The best place is usually on one of the sides.
7. Conservatory Roof Type. Generally there are two roof types of conservatory roof. Glass or polycarbonate. If you are new to all this here is a quick and easy guide to roofs. Polycarbonate roofs are cheaper than glass roof. If you are going for a polycarbonate roof make sure you get as thick as you can. Certain high street diy stores are selling 16mm roofs our standard is 25mm but you can upgrade to 32mm. If you decide on a glass roof you instantly are opting for the quieter option if it rains but make sure you don’t lose all your heat from the building. Select a high performance glass and you won’t be disappointed.

8. Conservatory Glass type. This is all about heat loss and what you are using your conservatory for. If you want to use your conservatory all year round you need to select a low emission heat saving glass like Pilkington k glass. This glass reflects heat back into the room whilst allowing the suns warming rays to pass through and heat the conservatory as well.

9. Conservatory Ventilation. Make sure that you have enough opening windows to get a cooling breeze passing through the building even with the doors shut. We see a lot of customers asking for all top opening windows as they are totally unaware that with a dwarf wall you can have large mid-opening vents.

10. Preglazed Window Frames The latest thing on the market. If you have never glazed a window or toe and heeled a door then you could be in trouble. Knowing how the pack the frames correctly to give adequate drainage is a must. Also who is picking up the bill for any broken or smashed glass whilst glazing ? You !

At Diy Conservatory quote we are constantly looking for ways to improve your conservatory experience. No other systems company offer Konnect technology that allows you to factory glaze the internally beaded windows and then Konnect them together. This unique patented system also has the benefit of being reinforced from the bottom of the frame to the top creating an extremely secure and drill hole free structure. Our 70mm internally beaded frames also carry the highest specification 28mm toughened glass safety units. IF you are fed up with unreliable builders why not take a look at our durabase system that can be erected on average in just 4hrs. With no skips and no mess the durabase is ideal for uneven ground , carrying through terraced houses or just because the local builders are too expensive or unreliable.

Conservatory Design
At DIY Conservatory Quote we offer the best conservatory design advice for your conservatories. Take a typical Edwardian Conservatory, this flat fronted design is the most spacious and its internal spaces give you the most room for your money.
When designing a conservatory the first thing to consider is what am I going to use this conservatory for?
If its going to be a dining room on the back of the house is it big enough to comfortably seat your table and guests with out being cramped. If its going to be a TV room do I need a glass roof to keep the noise of the rain down on cold winter nights.
Which direction does it face ? You will be surprised how hot your conservatory gets even on cloudy days. I open the doors on mine and take the chill off of the lounge quite easily. If its south facing do you need a heatguard polycarbonate roof to reflect some of that heat. Also within your conservatory design specification make careful consideration of the glass type in the frames that you want. As fast as a conservatory warms up they cool down with out Pilkington k glass to stop the heat escaping.
Another conservatory design factor is what style of conservatory do I want ?
The Victorian design conservatory tend to limit furniture positions unless they are really big. The Edwardian Conservatory, with no diagonal facets, is the easiest of all the diy conservatories to mark out and build. The lean to conservatory design is great in height restricted builds ie on bungalows but a box guttered conservatory is a great alternative with the box gutter bolting on the fascia
Door position on a conservatory is also key to maximising the space that you have available. A poorly positioned door can create a corridor through the centre of the floor dividing the Conservatory furniture so that a seating plan is difficult. If possible one of the best places for the door is on the side of the conservatory. A good position of doors is one frame away from the house this allows a little bit more flexibility with things like TV positions or allowing the doors from the house to fold flat back on to the house wall. But if you want the doors next to the house make sure that the conservatory designer fits all the doors with door restrictors as standard to prevent the wind from catching them and slamming shut.
Most conservatory designs come with double doors as standard but you can ask for additional separate doors to give your conservatory design more flexibility.
Don’t worry if you have height constrictions or are looking for a conservatory to attach to a bungalow. A Hipped back Edwardian Conservatory can be easily adjusted to fit on or under any soffit height. By contacting us for a price we then once agreed send out the relevant forms for you to fill in and guide you through the design process one step at a time.
Whatever your design choice at www.diyconservatoryquote.co.uk we will make your build as easy as possible with clear concise drawings and friendly help all the way to finished conservatory project.

Conservatory Kits
Conservatory kits are a great way to improve you the value of your home if done well. Conservatory kits can also be cheap and nasty and create an eyesore.
It is a common misconception that all conservatory kits are the same. Well let me tell you now they aren’t. Like everything there are good and bad and like everything in life you generally get what you pay for. What they are, is great way of adding space and value to your home.
So what should I look out for and what are the differences between the different types of supply only conservatory kits ?
Generally it’s not what the salesman tells you it’s important to know what he has not told you. When buying a conservatory kit make sure that you get at least 2 quotes. All diy conservatory kit companies will do this free of charge. Some of the better ones will supply you with a 3d drawing of your choice so that visualising the build is much easier. Always ask for a Conservatory Kit product specification. Below is my minimum recommendation
1. The conservatory kit is pre-glazed i.e. the window panels come out to you with the glass in and then are joined together using aluminium joiners. This prevents you smashing the glass when trying to glaze the frames. Don’t listen to the salesman that his unglazed conservatory is easy to glaze ask him to explain how the beading fits and he will soon run out of the room. He will have never glazed one in his life. Trust me I have and you have to match the glass to the aperture, mark and remove the glass, pack it correctly so that the drainage isn’t blocked and then put the beading back in. It’s a ball ache and he doesn’t want to tell you that. Do you know how to toe and heel a door so it doesn’t stick ?
2. That it is a 70mm System. This means that the conservatory window frames are at least 70mm thick some systems brought in from sunnier climates are 50 or 60mm these have lower insulation properties and so you build will lose heat rapidly
3. That the glass in the windows of the conservatory kit is 28mm and internally glazed. This is a great trick on low end cheap conservatory kits. Make the glass units thinner usually 20mm or 24mm and then externally glaze the product. This means that again you lose heat due to thinner glass units but more worryingly your glass units can be removed from the outside. They are less secure and easy to break in to as the beading can be removed from the outside.
4. The roof polycarbonate is at least 25mm easy this one just watch the high street diy superstores as some of their conservatory kits contain 16mm polycarbonate roof sheets
5. That the windows and doors are multipoint locking. A cheap alternative on the window locks are espags (roller cams) always ask for Shoot bolts these lock into the frame of the conservatory providing greater security and usually a second position night vent. Doors again multipoint locking with twin handles. You will be amazed how many companies offer you a conservatory kit with only one handle on one door. Well you didn’t ask for two did you!

Don’t let me put you off buying a Diy conservatory Kit they are great and easy to build just make sure you have printed off this document when the sales guy rings. Happy building!
This article was written by www.diyconservatoryquote.co.uk