New Orangeries – Seeing Is Believing!

Strangely nowadays many property owners in England still sadly get taken in by slick conservatory glazing salesmen who offer them what at the time appears to be “an offer they can’t refuse” as long as they order a new orangery there and then, only to find out in time that the deal for their orangery is not as good as they were led to believe. Why on earth would any right minded property owner want to sign up to ten thousand pound plus of expenditure on a new double glazed orangery or conservatory without seeing first hand the quality of the products they are buying, and what these expensive structures actually look like.

Buying a double glazed orangery or conservatory sales persons who represent double glazing companies without any orangery showrooms is to be frank an enormous risk. It is unwise to commit to a contract without knowing exactly what you are going to get. For example how are you going to know that the new orangery or conservatory you are going to get will be what you ordered? Consequently, detailed specifications and product quality are vital to ensure your new glass extension achieves sufficient thermal efficiency and longevity. Also important is the quality and workmanship of the orangery installation, as well as the level of customer service and aftercare.

Insist on a fully broken down specification and schedule of works before ordering an orangery. You also need to be certain that the orangery company you choose are going to put in sufficiently deep foundations that are  i) deep enough and robust enough for your particular property’s soil conditions and ii) compliant with Building Regulations, assuming you are having an orangery that requires these to be applied for and approved. The last thing you want in several few years time is your brand new orangery coming away from the original house, only for you to then discover that your installer is no longer in business or is blaming the movement on the original dwelling as having supposedly “moved”, rather than the orangery. It is wise therefore to do comprehensive research and select an orangery partner with an established reputation who has a showroom, plus can provide you with up to date reference sites and customer testimonials.

There are real benefits of dealing with a company with established showrooms is that they are open throughout the week and at weekends, so if you have any concerns that the orangery supplied is not exactly as ordered, you have somewhere to be able to go to compare any differences in quality, finish or aesthetics.

Modern orangeries, and indeed conservatories need to be professionally designed and built so you can use them throughout each day and night. For this to happen there needs to be a properly insulated base, at least one opening roof vent, ideally reflective roof glass, plenty of opening windows with a lockable night vent facility to allow a 24/7 airflow in warmer months, cavity filled insulated walls and high specification double glazed sealed units with toughened safety glass throughout. The glass units are often where orangery builders cut costs, by only supplying standard glass, as legally an orangery not requiring Building Regulations (unlikely) is deemed as a temporary structure, so as such does not need to have energy rated windows by law.

By visiting an orangery and conservatory showroom you will be able to see the products being sold, as well as check out the energy rating certificates for the double glazed aluminium or UPVC or timber windows you are considering. If your subsequent order clearly states what the specification is to be, you’ve then got a legally binding orangery contract you can fall back on if any part of the new structure you get is not what you ordered. The sealed units for instance to achieve thermal efficiency, and be able to be used all year round should have a toughened low iron 4mm wide outer pane, a warm edge spacer bar between the two panes filled with 90% Argon gas for insulation and a softcoat 4mm toughened inner pane.

So not viewing new orangeries before ordering can be a costly error, as well as cause you unwanted hassle and stress.