Sunroom - Sun room - Solarium

 There are numerous different building products that are used in any one build of a sunroom. Most are wanting to take an existing concrete slab and add on to their home for more room and add functionality. It does start with the concrete slab that must be in good condition or you are asking for headaches down the road. 

Once the slab is poured then you're ready to forward with the plan. Always make a plan or you plan to fail. You have to decide its size and what type of roof design you're going to want to use. Most roof design around here are either a cable roof or single slopped (shed) roof design and what are those buildings look like. Is it going to be sticked framed or are going to use SIPs (structural insulated panels) that comes from the sunroom industry and now is becoming more and more mainstream we within the wall or roof framing industry. 

Things to consider when building a sunroom is just like a standard room edition. 

Budget - 

Size - 

Architectural & Engineering - Plains and Permits 

Surface - Type of surface to be built on. 

Type of roof - Cable or Single sloped design - 

Framing & Walls - Doors and Knee walls.

Glass - Windows & Doors - Transom

See high performance glass section within to learn more. 

Exterior Cladding - Brick, Smart board, OSB plywood, Vinyl siding, Aluminum etc. 

Insulation - Spray foam or baton insulation.

Electrical - Wall, Roof, lighting, heat and air

Lighting - license electrical contractor

Heat and Air - Done by a heat and air contractor.  

Interior cladding - Sheetrock or other cladding surfaces. 

Painting - Done by a painting contractor.

Flooring - Tile, carport, wood etc. 

The windows used in a sunroom build are most important. It can a difference between using the sunroom and not. The heat and the sun rays can pernitrate though standard glass glazing's.  With the more advanced glass glazing they are specially design with several different coating that can block some of the heat and the UV rays from entering the structure making it more livable.  There are many different coatings applied to different glazing depending on what regional territory of the country that you're at.  Here in Oklahoma, we are in a warmer clement, so we want to keep the heat out of the structure, so we use a glass with a lower in the solar heat gain for cooling purposes.  Double or Triple silver coatings on the flat glass that we can't see helps with the flat glass in reflecting the sun's rays. There is also an argon gas that is filled between the window glass glazing that will help the glass performance in any sunroom applications.  

There are just a limited few number of glass manufactures that build all the glass for every window manufacturer offering in the industry. 

 A window manufacturer will offer different glazing options when purchasing a window and that is supplied to them from a glass manufacturer. Then the window company will cut the flat glass as needed and build a window to your order size and specifications. 

Any window installed below 30 inches must be made of tempered glass. The glazing on the window surface is most important when building any Sunroom.  It can make the difference between using the Sunroom or not using it because it gets too hot.   

 There are truly endless possibilities with numerous different construction and building materials when building any sunroom.  Glass solarium kits are normally for certain purposes and are susceptible to the hail that we get within the region. Also, the more glass the more heat will enter the area even using the best high-performance windows of today. Roof and wall insulation and windows are really important when building any room, but it can make the difference between using the added room or not. 

Window performance is everything in a sunroom build. The National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) operates a voluntary program that tests, certifies, and labels windows, doors, and skylights based on their energy performance ratings. The NFRC label provides a reliable way to determine a window's energy properties and to compare products.

The NFRC label can be found on all ENERGY STAR® qualified window, door, and skylight products, but ENERGY STAR bases its qualification only on U-factor and solar heat gain coefficient ratings, which are described below.

Windows, doors, skylights can gain and lose heat through:

• Direct conduction through the glass or glazing, frame, and/or door
• The radiation of heat into a house (typically from the sun) and out of a house from room-temperature objects, such as people, furniture, and interior walls
• Air leakage through and around them.
• 
  

These properties can be measured and rated according to the following energy performance characteristics:

• U-factor is the rate at which a window, door, or skylight conducts non-solar heat flow. It's usually expressed in units of Btu/hr-ft2-oF. For windows, skylights, and glass doors, a U-factor may refer to just the glass or glazing alone. NFRC U-factor ratings, however, represent the entire window performance, including frame and spacer material. The lower the U-factor, the more energy-efficient the window, door, or skylight.
• Solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC)
is the fraction of solar radiation admitted through a window, door, or skylight -- either transmitted directly and/or absorbed, and subsequently released as heat inside a home. The lower the SHGC, the less solar heat it transmits and the greater its shading ability. A product with a high SHGC rating is more effective at collecting solar heat during the winter. A product with a low SHGC rating is more effective at reducing cooling loads during the summer by blocking heat gain from the sun. Your home’s climate, orientation, and external shading will determine the optimal SHGC for a particular window, door, or skylight. For more information about SHGC and windows, see passive solar window design.
• Air leakage
 is the rate of air movement around a window, door, or skylight in the presence of a specific pressure difference across it. It's expressed in units of cubic feet per minute per square foot of frame area (cfm/ft2). A product with a low air leakage rating is tighter than one with a high air leakage rating. Note that air leakage also depends on proper installation of a window, which is assumed in all ratings.