Aluminium roof

[Fevs]

Hi chaps,

We are in the process of trying to replace a sloped, reinforced, broken, leaking, wire glass roof on a 1973 extension to our 1860 house. We are keen to have an aluminium orangery roof in place, instead, and have been quoted what was more than we have in the budget for doing it. However, our builder has had a quote for half the price, but from an installer using UltraFrame which from I can make out is ali and PVCu? Really not keen on this option as from what I can see, it will still look like a plastic roof but with some sort of aluminium coverings on some parts. Pretty sure we know what we will do, but just wondering if anyone had any experience of installing Ultraframe on an old house? Would rather find the extra cash if possible for the full aluminium frame, as I guess you get what you pay for, at the end of the day. Unless I have read the Ultraframe spec wrong? Does anyone had any thoughts on this?

 

[Lime]

No experience of Ultraframe either but it sounds like an unsatisfactory solution and one which will be ever-present everytime you look at it... and look at it you will!

 

[AMc]

We have a big vinery which we rebuilt as the original wooden Victorian one was beyond repair.
It's constructed using painted softwood and the roof use a system called capex from exitex.com on top of wooden rafters.
The wood is structural but fully enclosed from the elements. The capex system is made of rubber seals on the rafter, that holds the glass underneath with another rubber seal held in place with powder coated aluminum strips screwed down on top to sandwich the sealed units and a capping strip slid in place to cover the screws. The top surface is all glass and powder coated aluminium so it "maintenance free". The rafters will need a coat of paint every few years.

I had an unheated porch with wired glass roof that the builders managed to damage. It was much cheaper to replace this with clear toughened glass than wire. We put this in place with the surplus capex from the main vinery roof.
If it's a heated room then I would take the opportunity to put in double glazing, it will make a dramatic.

We got a quote for replacement of the whole structure from an ali company who advertise in the weekend papers, but they were a hell of a lot more expensive than the solution I used with a joinery company providing the windows and rafters, my carpenter fitting the parts and glazing the roof with Capex with the help of a couple of trusted labourers.

 

[Fevs]

Thank you both for your comments and advice. We decided to talk to the first company and explain that we really liked their product and their exemplary reputation but that the quote was more than we had allowed, (due to some confusion in details of a previous job of theirs we had been told about). They have been brilliant and reduced their profit margin and advised on ways we could reduce the cost further if we so wished. We might be on bread and water for the next two years to pay for it :wink: but you are right, we will be looking at a double glazed but beautiful roof that will blend in with the rest of the building and not be viewing something we regret for years. Thank you.

 

[JoceAndChris]

It sounds like you made a great decision - lucky building, and you! Would love to see some pics.

 

[Fevs]

I'll post pictures when it's finally in. We are looking at at least mid-December, possibly early next year, before it is delivered and installed. But the wait will be worth it. It does feel like the right decision.