One simple way of improving your garden’s look and feel and create extra space for your home is by building a garden room. Most homeowners use the additional space as a garden office, outdoor gym or a family entertainment spot. Garden houses are simple structures that you can make using different materials like wood, glass, polycarbonate panels and many more. Nowadays, most homeowners use polycarbonate panels to build such rooms, thanks to their lightweight, toughness and cost-effectiveness.
Polycarbonate is a transparent or translucent building material. Since the material is common nowadays, you must have seen the material in some buildings in your neighbourhood as it is mostly used as an alternative for glass in engineering. This guide will help you understand the different polycarbonate sheets and the benefits of a polycarbonate garden room over rooms made of other materials.
Choosing the Right Polycarbonate for you
The market is full of varieties of polycarbonate sheets with different characteristics. Each type of polycarbonate sheet is manufactured to meet different user needs in terms of design, colour, shape and durability. You can choose your best polycarbonate sheet from the below options.
Multiwall Polycarbonate
Multiwall polycarbonate is one of the most popular varieties and is mostly used to construct conservatories and garden offices. As its name suggests, this type of polycarbonate comprises several layers combined to offer optimal thermal insulation. The material is perfect for a living space as it will save heating and cooling costs. It is available in different thicknesses and finishes.
Solid Polycarbonate
This single-layered polycarbonate sheet is perfect for areas where natural lighting is paramount. They are lightweight and can allow up to 90% sunlight penetration. Most people use these polycarbonate sheets for greenhouses, but you can also use them as the roofing material for your conservatory or garden office. Like other polycarbonates, solid polycarbonates are also available in different colours and thicknesses.
Corrugated Polycarbonate
Corrugated polycarbonate is the cheapest type of polycarbonates. The corrugated sheets will still provide the benefits of solid polycarbonates, including durability and resistance to impact. Homeowners requiring transparent garden rooms can use this polycarbonate to take advantage of natural lighting and a clear view of the outdoors.
Why you Should Choose Polycarbonate Panels Over Other Materials
Better Insulation
If you want to enjoy natural lighting from your additional space, you must choose between glass and Polycarbonate panels. Most people select polycarbonate panels over glass because it has better heat retention properties. Since polycarbonate panels will retain much of the heat, your polycarbonate garden room will maintain a high temperature that keeps the room warm, even when it is cold outside. Therefore, you will avoid heating and cooling and eventually reduce your energy bills.
Durability
Since polycarbonate materials are stronger than glass, they can withstand the impact of natural forces and human activity for a long time before they get damaged, including strong winds, hailstones, rocks, football impacts and many more. Such material is the perfect choice for homes where there are children who regularly play outside.
Unique Designs
Unlike other rigid materials like glass and wood, you can manipulate polycarbonate panels to form different sizes according to your house design. For example, you can buy tinted polycarbonates to minimise the amount of light entering the room. The manufacturers also produce polycarbonate rooms in different designs, sizes and shapes.
Lightweight
The weight of the material you use for your additional room in your garden can determine how easy it is to transport the materials and install them. Though the weight of a polycarbonate panel depends on its thickness, the materials are always lighter than most of the other materials used in the construction of garden rooms. For example, a 10mm glass panel weighs around 9.3kg which is more than twice the weight of a polycarbonate panel of the same thickness and size. The material’s lightweight makes it easier to work with, plus you will also not need additional structures to support it.
Safety
The safety associated with polycarbonate is another reason why most people prefer this material when building their outdoor rooms. Polycarbonate is safer than glass as it is immune from breaking and shattering. You can comfortably let your children play in a polycarbonate house without supervision because the material is strong enough to survive common accidents.
Better UV Protection
Since plastic is thicker than glass, polycarbonate panels will provide better UV protection than glass. The panels will transmit around 88% of the light, which is only slightly lower than clear glass thus eliminating the need for additional lighting during the day.
Quick Installation
Another reason why you should choose polycarbonate panels is their quick installation. Unlike glass that requires special handling, working with polycarbonate panels is easy, thanks to their lightweight and robustness. Assembling a polycarbonate room can take only a day, plus you can do it yourself if you have the required tools. On the other hand, a glass room will need more time and professional help due to the material’s fragility.
Polycarbonates are Cost Effective
Though they may be slightly costlier than traditional materials, polycarbonate panels can help you save a lot in heating, cooling and lighting. Their lightweight also makes it cheaper to build a small garden house as you will require less structural support materials. Carrier charges may also be lower, plus the maintenance cost will be lower since they are durable and easy to clean.
Special Thanks Umme Dhaboor Dhaboor for providing the image.