Can you use a glass room in winter?

What a glass room does in winter

It takes the wind away. What makes an Irish patio unusable from November to March is wind, not cold. With the sliding doors shut, a glass room is still. A coat and a cup of tea are enough on many afternoons when the open patio would be out of the question.

It keeps the rain off. The roof drains to a built-in gutter and down the posts, and the glass sides keep wind-blown rain off the patio. The furniture stays dry, which means it stays out.

It warms up in sun. Glass lets the sun in and holds some of the warmth, the same way a car does. A south- or west-facing glass room on a clear winter day is noticeably warmer than the garden.

It is usable after dark. Optional LED lighting in the roof turns it into an evening space, which matters when it is dark by five.

What it does not do

A glass room has no insulation and no cavity. Once the sun goes, the temperature drops towards the outside temperature within an hour or so. It is not a place to sit in a T-shirt on a January night, and it will not keep plants frost-free on a hard frost. If you want a room that is warm all winter regardless of the weather, you need an extension; our comparison of a sunroom and a glass room explains the difference.

Heating a glass room

Most customers who want to use it on winter evenings add an electric infrared heater. It warms people rather than the air, so it suits a space that does not hold heat. Gas and solid-fuel heaters are not suitable in a closed glass room, and we check for boiler flues and vents at the site visit before anything is ordered.

Condensation

Single glazing will show condensation on cold mornings, especially after a damp night, the same as a car windscreen. It clears as the day warms. Leaving a door open a few centimetres overnight, or opening the doors for ten minutes in the morning, keeps it to a minimum. Opal polycarbonate roofs show it less than glass.

Looking after it from November to March

• Clear the gutter once the leaves are down. The gutter is built into the frame and is easy to reach from a step.
• Rinse the roof and doors with a hose and a soft brush after a storm. Powder-coated aluminium needs nothing more.
• Check the door tracks for grit so the doors keep sliding freely.
• Never climb on the roof. Clear the gutter and roof from a step or with a long-handled brush.

Choosing a glass room with winter in mind

If winter use matters to you, three choices help. Close in three sides rather than two, so there is no open face to the wind. Choose a solid third wall in aluminium and polycarbonate on the side the weather comes from. And have the electrics put in at the start, for lighting and a heater, so you are not running cables later. Our glass rooms page covers the options, and the veranda cost guide for Ireland shows what each adds.

See one on a cold day

The best time to judge a glass room is a cold day. Visit one of our showrooms between November and March, shut the doors and see for yourself:

• Dublin showroom, Park West
• Cork showroom, Charleville
• Galway showroom, Tuam Road
• Carlow showroom, The Carlow Yard

Ring ahead if you want to see a particular model, as the team may be out on site visits. Call 021 206 9240 or request a free quote.

Common questions

How warm is a glass room in winter?
In sun, well above the outside temperature. Out of sun, close to it. It is sheltered rather than heated, so a heater makes the difference on cold evenings.

Can I put a heater in a glass room?
Yes. An electric infrared heater, wired by a registered electrician, is the usual choice. Avoid gas and solid-fuel heaters in an enclosed glass room.

Will the glass get condensation?
On cold damp mornings, yes, like a car windscreen. It clears as the day warms, and leaving a door slightly open overnight reduces it.

Get a free quote

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