The Ultimate Guide to Designing Your Sunroom

Sunrooms are beautiful additions to the home. They let in a lot of natural light making the house look more spacious and bigger. They inspire creativity in decorations and provide the ideal room for artistic expression such as reading books, artwork or just lounging. If you have room for a sunroom and are wondering where to start, here are a couple of tips.

Use your patio

You can use your patio to create more functional space in the house by installing a screen room. Screen rooms are extensions of your existing patio, deck or balcony space. The great thing about turning your extra patio space into a sunroom is you get a room that you can use all year round, not only during summer. You can do this by installing single pane glass windows and doors to create a three season sun room, which offers protection from changes in weather for most of the year.

In case you want to make the room functional all year round, you will need to install energy efficient double panned glass windows and doors. These insulative windows will help keep the cold out and lock the warmth in especially during winter and vice versa during hot summers. You can use the room at any time of the year by setting up insulation and a HVAC system for heating and cooling in winter and summer.

Size

The sunroom size is determined by its use. If you need a small nook, a home office or a pet area, you only need a couple of square feet to create the ideal space. However, if you want a lounging area, dining room or living area, you will need to make a greater financial commitment to it. Remember you also need to buy new furnishings to decorate the room too.

Location

You need to very selective about the location of the sunroom in relation to the sun, especially depending on its use. If you do not want to receive too much direct sunlight then a north-facing sunroom will work great. It will help to minimize the amount of heat absorbed in the room, especially in warm climate zones. East facing sunrooms catch the morning sun while it remains shaded during the hot afternoon. This is a great position for people who are early risers or plan to use the room more in the mornings. West facing sunrooms receive the most light later in the afternoon while south facing sunrooms receive sunlight all day long and are extremely suitable for cold climate areas.

Sunroom materials

Aluminum is great for structural support in the sunrooms. This lightweight and low maintenance material is very cost effective. Unfortunately it is not a good insulator and this is why it is only suitable for screen rooms that do not have HVAC systems. Vinyl is the most durable, strong and efficient material to use for structural support in sunrooms. Finally, the type of glass you use should be double or triple panned if you want to install a HVAC system and maintain a high level of energy efficiency.

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Furniture Ideas for Your New Sunroom

A sunroom is a great way to enjoy the outdoor weather and experience all year round without necessarily being exposed to the actual elements, especially when temperatures get a bit extreme. Sunrooms made of materials such as double and triple glazed glass windows and siding in particular have great insulative properties and weather resistance. You can decorate your sunroom with furniture for various occasions.

Reading area

You can transform your sunroom into a reading, relaxation or board game area where one can get away from the distractions of the TV and enjoy a relaxing day with a full view of the outdoors. A simple couch, a couple of bookshelves and the natural lighting make for a great relaxation area.

Fan and fireplace lounging area

Most sunrooms are often built without heating and air-conditioning. If you want to use your sunroom as a lounge area all year round, you can install a fan and a fireplace. The fan will help keep things cool in summer while the fireplace will warm it up during winter. You can even turn this into the family room.

Dining area

Instead of using the patio area as the outdoor dining area, set up the picnic table in the sunroom. You don’t have to worry about rodents snatching food from the table or other bugs making a mess of the place. Enjoy the safety of being in an enclosed environment while enjoying all the natural light and fresh air that makes an outdoor summer lunch so much fun.

Wicker furniture

Wicker furniture is great sunroom furniture. It often comes in hues of natural earth colors giving the sunroom a more earthy and outdoorsy feel. You can go with a complete dining set, a day bed and couch, ottoman and glass top tables. Resin wicker in particular is an all weather material that is great for patio and sunroom furniture. This material is not discolored by UV rays and the furniture maintains its attractive color for years.

Indoor plants

Fuse the indoor with the outdoors using potted plants. When well executed, it makes it difficult to see the borders between the indoors and outdoors in the sunroom. You get to enjoy the feeling of being outdoors with the safety and comfort of being in a weather resistant glass enclosure. Couple this up with the wicker furniture or wooden framed furniture along with some refreshments to sip on and you have a comfortable and relaxing environment to lounge the day away.

Beach house

Give your sunroom the feel of a beach house with bright colored framing such as white. Couple up white resin furniture with bright pillows and throw cushions around the room. Tropical styled fans and vases with bright flowers and large leaves give the entire room a tropical and coastal feel. Great part about it, you can change the flowers and the colored cushion covers with the change of seasons to give the entire room a whole new look without much effort on your part. 

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Why You Should Add a Swimming Pool Enclosure to Your Private Pool

Having your own private pool to relax in whenever you want is a great idea as it makes it quite convenient. However, you should consider getting a pool enclosure for the following reasons:

To reduce exposure to pollutants

You have probably experienced irritation in the eyes, mouth or even the skin due to too much chemicals in your pool. This is due to the exposure to pollutants and pathogens from the environment  that make it necessary to continuously tinker with pool chemicals to find the right balance. These chemicals can also be quite expensive. Adding a pool enclosure will reduce the exposure of your swimming pool to pollutants such as phosphates and other pathogens and reduce the need for more chemicals in your pools, saving you a lot of money too.

All year round swimming

Everyone who loves to swim always has that nostalgic feeling when the cold season comes around and it’s raining too much or the pool gets frozen over. If swimming is your thing, then a pool enclosure is the ideal way to make sure you have an outdoor living space all year round. You can find enclosures to obstruct harmful UV rays when it gets too hot in the summer or too keep your pool nice and toasty when winter comes around.

It’s good for your health

Swimming is good exercise regiment and you do not have to let the pounds pile on when the cold season comes around. The pool enclosure allows you to continue with your regular activities such as lap swimming, water weights and treading water which are all good for your health. You can also find pool enclosures that allow maintenance of an ideal temperature so your body does not have to acclimatize every time you want to take a swim.

Safety

This probably should have been the first reason why you need a pool enclosure. Pets, small children and trespassers can get into your exposed pool without any trouble risking injuries and accidents. Pool owners pay a higher premium for home insurance simply for owning a pool but an enclosure can help mitigate the risk and lower those insurance premiums in return.

Security

Your pool may be exposed to a lot of debris, dirt, insects and wild animals that could harm you when swimming. Reptiles such as snakes and gators, depending on where you live, are a real threat. The pool enclosure can also protect your home from intruders coming through your back yard depending on how it is designed.

Enhanced beauty of the home

Depending on the type of enclosure you choose, you can also add decorative value to your back yard. There are so many different styles and colors available so that you can find the perfect fit for your home. Look for the pool enclosure that fits your individual style and offers a high level of functionality to make your home both more pleasant and safe.

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Why You Should Install Vinyl Siding in Your Home

Vinyl is one of the most popular siding materials with good reason. Studies have shown that about 33% of all homes built in recent years used vinyl siding more than any other cladding material available in the market. Vinyl siding has greatly improved over the years and has the following benefits to offer when installed around the home.

Versatile and attractive

Vinyl siding comes in a variety of styles. There are different profiles, textures, colors and architectural rim among other accessories. The main advantage of vinyl style cladding is that is can mimic the look of various cladding materials such as wood, stone and slate and still offer amazing performance value as compared to these other materials. Vinyl also has improved color retention compared to other cladding materials since the color goes through the entire depth of the material.

Since vinyl accentuates the best features of the building, it is widely used for new construction as well as home renovations. It greatly improves the curb appeal of the home.

Durable

Vinyl siding is also quite durable compared to other materials. It can with stand high winds, extreme temperatures such as heat, cold and moisture damage which is often a problem for wood. This cladding material has undergone various tests and most manufacturers are confident in offering lifetime warranties on the product and installation. This is just a showoff how sturdy this material is.

Sustainable

Green home construction has become a concern for many homeowners who want to play a role in conserving the environment in whichever way possible. You will be pleased to learn that vinyl is a green option as it outlasts other exterior cladding material. This kind of performance is both economical and environmentally friendly. You can also find insulated vinyl siding as an additional feature to regular vinyl siding. It provides all the durability and longevity qualities of vinyl siding along with an additional benefit of energy efficiency. Vinyl siding can reduce thermal bridging and qualify a home for energy star rating.

Easy to install

Vinyl is amazingly lightweight and therefore quite easy to install. It can be installed over existing materials too. With such easy installation, you can save on labor costs too.

Easy to maintain

Since the color of the material runs through its depth, vinyl does not lose its color and you do not have to repaint it. All you need to do is clean it once in a while using water and mild soap. It is not susceptible to problems like rot, mold, moisture damage and insect damage making it require almost no maintenance at all.

Vinyl is affordable

It has the lowest total installation cost compared to any other cladding material available in the market today. It also has the lowest life cycle cost with minimum maintenance required. It is one of the best features to consider when making home improvements and recouping the cost during the home resale.

Vinyl siding also complies with the National Fire Protection Association requirements for insulating electrical and data cables making it extremely safe too.

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