Steve's Sunday Homes Articles -                      

Winnipeg Free Press  

What Direction Do You Face?

With the hot weather people have been wondering how much would they use a three-season sunroom since their decks are too hot now. Wouldn't a sunroom be even hotter? The answer is - yes and no. The two biggest factors in how hot a sunroom will get is the direction it faces and the overall design of the room.

Some people think the south is the hottest but it's actually the west side. Facing south, you get sun directly on the glass for a few hours in the morning and a few hours in the evening but during the hot summer months between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm (the hottest part of the day) the sun is almost directly overhead with the roof giving you shade, making it cooler than a deck. However, in the winter when the sun is much lower, you now get that solar gain which greatly extends your time outside (in your sunroom). Rooms facing east and west tend to be a little hotter than the south as the sun is rising and setting and the sun hits the glass more directly causing solar gain (with the west side being the hottest late in the day). Designs with as much screen as possible on these sides helps to reduce solar gain. Also screens right up to the ceiling are beneficial as hot air rises and will become trapped in these "dead air" spaces. During winter these rooms pick up solar gain and again greatly extend your “outdoor” living season. The north side is the coolest side of all and will not extend the season quite as long as the other three sides (without heat). Another interesting fact is that no matter how many windows with screens you have, opening all of them is not always the answer. Sometimes less is more - opening certain windows at certain times will actually improve airflow as you create a wind tunnel effect.

No matter what side you face, the positives outweigh the negatives, which is why every Glastar Sunroom System we build will bring us 3 to 5 referrals. If you would like more info, contact us at 940-3030 or visit our factory at 265 Sutherland Avenue for a tour. 

 

What is Flotation?

 Call 204-940-3030 for a tour of Manitoba's Sunroom Factory 

 @ 265 Sutherland Ave, Winnipeg, (2 blocks west of Main St.)