1. Is a building permit required?
Yes. A building permit is necessary and mandatory. Whether you’re planning to add a Three Seasons or Four Seasons sunroom to your house, any permanent extension (i.e. which you will not dismantle come winter time) to your home requires a building permit.
2. What is the difference between a Three Seasons sunroom and a Four Seasons sunroom?
A Three Seasons sunroom is not insulated and therefore cannot be used in winter. By contrast, a Four Seasons sunroom is fully insulated with thermal glazing and a thermal barrier which allows you to enjoy your sunroom all year-round.
3. Are foundations necessary?
Yes. Whatever your project, your sunroom must be installed on foundations. Several types of foundations are available: screw piles, concrete columns or a full foundation. In any case, the foundations must always be built below the frost line. For screw piles and concrete columns, their quantity will vary depending on the size of the project, in accordance with the National Building Code (NBC).
4. Does it get hot inside a sunroom during summer?
No. Today’s glass is specifically designed to counter the effect of heat in your sunroom, despite its exposure to the sun. For the roof, we simply use reflective glass.
5. Does it get cold inside a sunroom during winter?
No. It does not necessarily get cold in a sunroom during winter, if the proper type of glass is used. A triple glazed energy efficient glass filled with Argon gas will keep the cold out.
6. Does a triple glazed sunroom necessarily have triple glazed opening windows and doors?
Yes. If the sunroom is made of triple glazing glass, then the opening windows and doors must also be triple glazed. Otherwise it would be incorrect to call it a triple glazed sunroom if all the components of the project are not.
7. Is a waterproofing membrane necessary at the base of a sunroom?
Yes. In accordance with the National Building Code (NBC), a waterproofing membrane must be installed at the base of all windows, same goes for sunrooms.
8. Is it possible to remove the supporting wall (i.e. the wall separating the house from the sunroom)?
As long as the proper type of glass is used (a triple glazed energy efficient glass with Argon gas) there is no problem in removing the wall that separates your house from your sunroom, thus creating a wide open space.
9. Are blinds necessary at the ceiling?
No. As long as the proper type of glass is used, it is not necessary to install blinds at the ceiling. After all, it would defeat the very purpose of a sunroom: enjoying an entire sunroom that lets in the natural light! You can of course choose to install blinds for privacy and intimacy purposes.