When looking for a cost effective method for extending a home many people look to conservatories as the obvious solution, it being far cheaper than an extension. However, few may realise that there is a new form of conservatory on the market called a Loggia that effectively bridges the gap between the two and has a significantly lower U-value than traditional conservatories.
A U-value is also known as the ‘overall heat transfer co-efficient’ and is the measurement of heat loss in a building material or a floor,
The higher the U-value, the worse the thermal performance of the component. Or to put it another way, the lower the number, the better insulated it is against the environment. A lower U-value is obviously desirable and is becoming increasingly important as energy gets increasingly expensive.
So the fact that a Loggia has a much better, or lower U-Value than a traditional conservatory is not a surprise, as the Loggia is a much more advanced option to the traditional conservatory, produced with cutting edge materials and design philosophies.
Firstly, a Loggia uses significantly less glass than the traditional conservatory. Energy efficiency was not as important as it now is, and the amount of energy required to heat a conservatory and compensate for the heat loss through the glass was considered a good investment. Now the rules have changed, energy has become much more expensive and it is no longer seen as feasible to heat an outdoor space to an acceptable temperature, so the traditional conservatory is falling out of favour.
The Loggia comes with columns on each corner, and potentially more throughout the structure, that separate the glass and leave a much smaller glazed area to release heat. Also, the Loggia columns themselves are twice as efficient as traditional cavity wall and 10 times more efficient than conservatory glass, The columns are superinsulated with a core of Styropor carbon-enriched EPS, which gives exceptional insulation performance, as well as strength, and the design of the Loggia insures gaps are kept to an absolute minimum to ensure the snuggest fitting Loggia that loses as little heat as possible.
You can even specify full height columns with integral steel structures that are anchored to the foundations for absolute structural integrity. This all helps to keep the seals tight and prevent cold air getting through the Loggia walls and into your private space.
The end result of all this technology is that the Loggia column has a U-Value of just only 0.15W/m2oC, way better than a glass conservatory and a quantum leap forward for this kind of outdoor space with real structure.
