Ever since the advent of sheets of glass, people discovered that rooms enclosed with glass were warm, sunny places.  Such rooms could be used to grow plants during cold weather or serve as solariums for helping people to recover from illness. 

Until the late 1970's, the majority of these rooms were covered in a single layer of glass.  Generally, the seams between the sheets of glass were unsealed so that air could move easily from inside the room to the outside.  This provided large amounts of fresh air which with the plants needed.  And because of the great amounts of heat loss, the snow loads could be minimized meaning the structures could be relatively lightly framed.  At the same time, this large amount of heat loss meant that the rooms had to be heated during the cold weather months if they were to be used for growing plants.   Some of the heating systems produced high levels of CO₂ which the plants also loved.  And since fuel was relatively cheap for those who could afford the room in the first place, heating it was not a burden.  In summer, the roofs of many of the greenhouses were painted with a "white wash" which reflected much of the sunlight away, keeping the plants from burning.   The protective coating could be scraped off in winter.

 Many of these early rooms were framed in cyprus which was less effected by the moisture and needed little in the way of maintenance.  In the U.S., one of the earliest "kit" greenhouse companies was Lord & Burnham. Located on the Hudson River just north of New York City, Lord & Burnham crews traveled up and down the Hudson River Valley and beyond erecting handsome solar rooms on many of the mansions.

When the energy crisis struck in the late 1970's, sunroom technology raced to keep up.  A sunroom or passive solar greenhouse could be added to the south side of the house where it would gather a significant amount of solar heat which could be transferred to the house.  Double glazing reduced the heat loss through the glass, increasing the usable time for the space.  Various approaches were used to "break" the thermal link through the aluminum glazing bars.  Rooms built primarily for solar heating were single glazed, low "thermal-mass" affairs, designed to convert the light to heat and quickly transfer it to the house.  Keeping the "thermal-mass" low (plywood and thin tile flooring, light color back wall, few, if any, plants, etc.), the heat was not saved in the sunroom.  These rooms were like walk-in solar collectors with dramatic temperature swings.

As the extremes of the "energy crisis" subsided, sunrooms or solariums were recognized for the exceptionally beautiful spaces that they could be.  Carving out a large piece of the sky, there is only the seemingly delicate membrane of the glass separating the occupant from the vagaries of nature.  But even with the greatly expanded body of knowledge developed about taming the solar room environment, these rooms, if they are not carefully constructed, can still struggle with very uncomfortable, human conditions.

Sunrooms Vs Greenhouses

It is important not to be overwhelmed by enthusiasm for the beauty of the space, but to think clearly about how it will be used and why it is being added to your home.  There are three basic applications: greenhouses (places to grow plants), solariums (general purpose rooms with a few plants), and solar collectors (spaces for generating heat).

Construction details

Remember, despite the advances in technology, a sunroom, solarium or greenhouse is only a partially tamed living space.  The conditions are likely to be far more extreme in terms of temperature and moisture than a standard room addition.   This goes for all of the materials in the new space as well as for the associated materials in the old space.  (A former outside wall may now be inside and may be subjected to the moisture and chemical outgasing of a hot tub or spa.)  Start with a good foundation.

Foundations

Foundation options include continuous (creating a crawl space or slab), pier, wood, and full basement.  Since you are supporting a glass element, generally double glazing, the support must be particularly solid.  Gravity will seek to bring the two piece of glass to exactly the same point which can often break the seal between the panes.  We've all seen too many sliding glass doors or large window panes stained white.  This is because the seals have broken because the panes were not adequately supported.

If you are concerned about aesthetics, you will probably want a continuous foundation.  It will provide the continuous, uninterrupted line that matches your home.  Further, the continuous foundation will likely enhance the resale value of your home.

There are several types of continuous foundations including poured and block.  Consult with your contractor for the type that will best suit your application.  Make sure that it is well reinforced and has a solid footing to protect your glass investment.

A pier foundation will be more suitable to a hilly site and when cost is a serious consideration.

Adding additional basement space can be a major plus if there is the budget and the site for it.  An bonus to this approach is that a ventilation path can be set up to draw air from the basement to help cool the sunspace and to dry out the basement in the summer.

We can't emphasize too much the importance of a good foundation.  Do not skimp or cut corners to get a solid base for your sunroom investment.  

Floors

If your sunroom has a glass roof, don't put an expensive, indoor carpet on the floor.  The sunlight will eat it!  Indoor/Outdoor carpet will have much greater durability.  Dark colored tiles will absorb a lot of heat during the sunny hours of the day and give it back off to the space as the room cools.   (They will also be hot to walk on!)  Like everything else in the room, wood floors will be cooked and chilled by the swings in temperature.  Use wood flooring that could easily be used outside.

Furniture

Bearing in mind that everything in the space is in an extreme environment, don't fall for those beautiful pictures of household furniture located in the sunspace unless you are planning on redecorating regularly.  Indoor fabrics will fade and degrade quickly in the direct sunlight.  Unless you have a good shading system, stick with outdoor-type furniture - wicker's and metals with replaceable cushions.

For a list of articles that are of interest to those with sunrooms, sunspaces and greenhouses, please see Hot Topics.

For more information, a product brochure, or technical and pricing assistance, please contact us at 800-222-5932 or E-mail us at: sales@tamtech.com

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