WT Dees
04-07-2008, 12:36 PM
Owner, who now has to sell, put a solarium on his home last spring that included covering over part of his vinyl siding on the side of the home. The patio which has a surface of paver stones surrounds the three sides of the solarium. Summer's heat warped and "melted" a lot of his siding within the solarium so the place looks like it's out of science fiction movie. Seems his salesman did not tell him how hot these things can become even if some of the windows are left open. His thermometer that he put in there when the windows were closed had maxed out at 140 degrees so he doesn't know how hot it could have gotten. He said that even with the windows open and the outside temp around 80 or better it will still get absurdly hot on sunny days. It can hit 90-100 on a cloudy summer day with temps of 75-80.
Additional info: windows are double paned, there are awning style windows with crank openers about three feet up from the floor, the floor is ceramic tile, the frame is bronze metal, no signs of water or air leakage.
He's looking into shades and/or awnings to cut down the heat. He had some questions that I could not answer.
1) Do all solariums do this?
2) Is it typical for them to be sold or quoted without any shading? How effective will shades or awnings be?
3) Was this a manufacturer's defect or are there companies that can ensure that they have the insulating ability without resorting to the extra costs of shades and awnings?
Additional info: windows are double paned, there are awning style windows with crank openers about three feet up from the floor, the floor is ceramic tile, the frame is bronze metal, no signs of water or air leakage.
He's looking into shades and/or awnings to cut down the heat. He had some questions that I could not answer.
1) Do all solariums do this?
2) Is it typical for them to be sold or quoted without any shading? How effective will shades or awnings be?
3) Was this a manufacturer's defect or are there companies that can ensure that they have the insulating ability without resorting to the extra costs of shades and awnings?