| 1) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The Conservatory must be single
storey |
| 2) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The conservatory must be situated
at ground level |
| 3) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The conservatory must be less
than 30m ² in floor area (measured internally) |
| 4) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The conservatory must be separated
from the original house (or other building) by a combination of
window(s), door(s) or walls. (See Example 1) So that they can be
closed off from the original house when not in use. |
| 5) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The conservatory design must
have at least half the area of the walls formed of windows |
| 6) |
Conservatory Building regulations:
The conservatory must have at
least three quarters of the area of the roof formed of glazing,
polycarbonate sheets or similar translucent material |
Providing all of the above conservatory building regulations
can be met then an application to build the conservatory is currently
not required and neither will the building control department of your
local council need to inspect it. (See Example 1). Please note – being
subject to conservatory building regulations is a separate issue from
conservatory planning permission. You should always check to see if planning
permission is also required before going ahead and building a conservatory
Conservatory Building Regulations Update
It should be noted that there has been discussion about
making all conservatories subject to conservatory building regulations
and it could be that in the near future all conservatory building
projects will be subject to specific conservatory building regulations.
If Conservatory Building Regulation Consent is required,
what conservatory building regulations apply?
Energy Conservation Conservatory Building Regulations
The most common situation where conservatory
building regulations apply and consent is required is shown
in Diagram 2 above. With a layout such as this, the “conservatory” is
not separated from the house and under the conservatory building
regulations has to be considered as an Extension.
Clearly, heat and energy will be more rapidly
lost from the building with this arrangement. Because the
UK Government is committed
to reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions at UK
power stations, Conservatory Building Regulations now place
limits on
the amount and type of glazing in conservatory extensions
(and also new buildings).
Conservatory Building Regulations advice is available
from DirectConservatories4U
The most common situation where conservatory
Building Regulation consent is required is shown in Diagram
2 above. With a layout such as this, the “conservatory” is
not separated from the house and under the conservatory building
regulations
has to be considered as an Extension.
Clearly, heat and energy
will be more rapidly lost from the building with this arrangement.
Because the UK Government
is committed to reducing energy consumption and carbon
emissions at UK power
stations, Building Regulations now place limits on the
amount and type of glazing in conservatory extensions (and
also new buildings).
To meet the Regulations in this case, there is a choice:
| 1) |
To provide your local building control department
with calculations that show the amount of glazing in the windows,
doors and roof of the conservatory/extension, together
with the amount of glazing in the windows, doors and any roof lights
in the original house, do not exceed 25% of the
floor area of the conservatory and all floors of the house added
together. The new windows and doors in the Conservatory/extension will
need to meet the current U values. Examples of types of glazing
which will meet this are given in Table 1 below. |
| 2) |
To provide Building Control with calculations or
plans that show the amount of glazing in the windows, doors and
roof of the ‘conservatory’/extension do
not exceed 25% of the floor area of the ‘conservatory’/extension.
Often, this can be difficult to achieve. The new windows and doors
in the ‘conservatory’/ extension will
need to meet the current U values. Examples of types of glazing
which will meet this are given in Table 1 below. |
Table 1
| Material of the frame to the Window, door
or roof light |
U Value required |
Example which meets Regulations |
| Wood |
2.0 |
e.g. Double glazing with low E glass and 12mm air gap |
| PVC-u |
2.0 |
e.g. Double glazing with low E glass, Argon gas fill and 16mm air
gap |
| Metal (e.g. aluminium, steel) |
2.2 |
e.g. Triple glazing with low E glass and 12mm air gap |
Structural Alterations
Whether or not the conservatory is exempt, Building Regulation
approval will always be required where it is necessary to
form a new or wider opening in the original house wall, (see Diagram
2). This is because carrying out this type of work is a structural
alteration and your local building control department need
to check that the beam or lintel that is used to support
the
wall above the opening is of adequate size and properly fire
protected.
Safety Glazing
Whether or not the conservatory is exempt, glazing in some
of the windows and doors will need to be either toughened or
laminated
safety glass to meet British Standard 6206. Generally, the
locations, which need safety glass, are doors and side panels
and also where the glass in windows is within 800mm of floor level.
Other
Regulations
Where a “Conservatory” is treated
as an extension, as well as energy conservation,
there are additional regulations, which will also apply. These
include:
| 1) |
Foundation design. (Raft foundations
may not be suitable – check with your local building
control department) |
| 2) |
Fire spread across the boundary. (Large
amounts of glazing are not permitted on or close to
the boundary – check with your local building
control department. |
| 3) |
Preventing damp. (Cavity walls with
damp proof courses and floors with damp proof membranes) |
| 4) |
Drainage (Surface water from gutters
and down pipes will need to discharge to a proper drain
and not simply into a rainwater butt) |
| 5) |
Ventilation of adjacent rooms. (Diagram
2 shows the Dining Room window enclosed but in order
to comply with building regulations we believe that
the dining room and living room would need to be made
into one room (open plan) with ventilation then being
provided by the Living Room window) |
For a Conservatory that is exempt, energy savings can
be achieved by:
| 1) |
Fitting energy efficient lamp-holders
which can house compact fluorescent bulbs |
| 2) |
Fitting an independent thermostat in
the Conservatory to control energy consumption if fixed
radiators / heaters are installed. |
| 3) |
Fitting independent on/off switches
/ isolators to radiators / heaters to ensure energy
is not wasted when the conservatory is not in use during
the winter. |
Image and Content Credit: www.Conservatories4UK.com