There’s no doubt that a sunroom is one of the smartest investments you can make when you’re looking to expand the footprint of your home. It strikes the right balance in that it’s a permanent addition to your home without requiring the expensive costs associated with a full building extension. The fact that most sunrooms can be built directly onto a deck or a patio is definitely a cost savings for most homeowners, and building onto these outdoor structures gives you an idea of how big your sunroom can be. Even better is that with the all season sunroom, you can create a new space that is usable all year round, and one that gives you a front row seat to the beauty of a Calgary winter.
Why Choose An All Season Sunroom
The most obvious way to winter proof your sunroom for a Calgary winter is to invest in an all season sunroom right from the very beginning. There are two main benefits of an all season sunroom compared to the three season model. The first is that there is often an intentional gap built in between the outer and inner walls of the all season sunroom. This means that you can fill it with insulation even once the build has been completed, and this extra layer will help retain any internal heat that you generate in your sunroom.
Secondly, an all season sunroom can be connected to your home’s existing HVAC system. You’ll need to find a separate contractor who will help to talk you through the various heating options, but you’ll find that your heating costs may actually decrease in winter as you spend more time in your sunroom than in the rest of your home, and it’s considerably cheaper to heat one room than a whole house.
How To Winter Proof Your Sunroom
Whether you’re looking for additional ways to help protect your all season sunroom against the winter weather, or looking at how to make your three season sunroom more efficient, you can easily undertake some of these upgrades to winter proof your sunroom for a Calgary winter:
- Weather strip the windows – the easiest sunroom winter proofing step to take is to install weather strips around the outside of each of your windows. This will stop snow, ice and the infamous Calgary wind from getting in and causing internal damage to the window frame.
- Keep the gutters clear – another easy winter proofing step for your sunroom is to keep the gutters clear. This means getting out in the fall before the first snowfall and getting all the leaves and debris out, and then scooping out the ice chunks after each snowmelt.
- Stay on top of snow removal – finally, while your sunroom roof will be strong enough to hold up under even the heaviest Calgary snowfall, it’s a good idea to clear off the worst of each snowstorm to prevent snow and ice from melting and slipping under the shingles into the beams of your sunroom.
