Should You Buy a Sunroom? Our Readers’ Top Question Answered

Choose the best sunroom to extend your indoor floor space

Get expert help from Classic Home Concepts.

Sunrooms add a clean, bright place to catch up with friends and reconnect with nature. But should you buy a sunroom? 

Yes! However, the type of sunroom you need will depend on where you live and when you want to use it.

Types of Sunrooms

Many homeowners don’t realize that they can choose from several different types of sunrooms. Some sunrooms perform better than others in severe weather. A few prove more affordable as long as you don’t need to use them throughout the year. 

Take a look at the most popular types of sunrooms in Springfield, MO, below. 

Standard Sunroom

Sometimes called a solarium or conservatory, a standard sunroom functions as a glassed-in sitting room with lots of natural light. Usually, you will find one attached to a home with access from inside the house. A sunroom often has a doorway to the yard as well. 

However, a sunroom rarely shares a home’s central climate control system unless it qualifies as a four-season room.

Four-Season Room

Some homeowners choose to build a four-season room because standard sunrooms do not function well during heatwaves and blizzards. Of all the different types of sunrooms, the four-season room has the most insulated windows. As a result, you can heat or cool a four-season sunroom to enjoy it all year long.

Three-Season Room

If you don’t mind closing up your sunroom during the winter, the three-season room proves more affordable than the four-season room because its construction requires less expensive glass. You can still entertain guests in spring, summer, and autumn. Then, use the money you saved to escape winter with a Florida vacation. 

Screened-In Porch

The screened-in porch is an American classic. It also happens to serve as the most popular type of sunroom. As a result, it also enjoys more popularity than any other type of sunroom. However, the use of patio enclosures remains limited because their windows remain open throughout the year.

Attached Greenhouse

One home improvement trend that often reemerges once involves building an attached greenhouse. This type of sunroom may cost more than the others due to its glass roof. You can design an attached greenhouse to provide the exact amount of light and humidity needed to grow your preferred plants.

Best Location for a Sunroom

Figuring out the perfect place to build your sunroom will maximize your enjoyment of it for years to come. For example, if you live in the northern reaches of the Midwest, you will want to build your sunroom on the southern side of your house. That way, it can catch as many rays as possible, allowing you to use your sunroom well into fall and early on in the spring.

Homeowners in the Deep South should consider facing their sunrooms toward the east or west to enjoy partial sunlight and moderate heat gain. If the primary purpose of building your sunroom involves getting in touch with nature, you may even wish to construct your sunroom facing north in warmer climates.

East Coast homeowners often place their sunrooms facing east to enjoy the early morning sun. Similarly, West Coast residents tend to build their sunrooms on the west side of their homes. If you feel unsure about where to construct your sunroom, consult with our home improvement experts at Classic Home Concepts for valuable insight into sunroom strategies.

Common Sunroom Materials in Missouri

Choose materials that suit your local weather conditions, estimated budget, and personal taste. Homeowners can build a beautiful new sunroom with a few different kinds of materials. Explore your primary options below before deciding on sunroom materials.

Vinyl

Vinyl serves as the most popular material for framing sunroom doors and windows in Missouri because it offers the best overall combination of affordability, durability, and insulative qualities. However, vinyl doesn’t possess the strength to hold heavy glass, so the vinyl supports usually contain metal reinforcements.

Wood

Homeowners love wooden sunrooms because of their natural tones and classic appeal. However, wood costs more than the other materials commonly used to build sunrooms, and it requires the most maintenance. You often see wood used for the frames of screened-in sunrooms.

Aluminum

As one of the most versatile building materials, aluminum once represented the cutting edge of sunroom technology. Aluminum’s affordable cost and lightweight and anti-corrosive properties allowed it to take over the sunroom industry. Today, aluminum still serves as a popular sunroom material in places with severe weather. 

Cost of a Sunroom

The cost of a sunroom will depend on its size, your home’s location and the materials used. In Springfield, MO, a high-quality sunroom of average size will cost a minimum of $20,000. However, spacious, wooden luxury sunrooms can sometimes cost over $100,000. 

Consider some of the following factors that affect the price of a sunroom.

Building Codes

Local regulations significantly impact the overall cost of adding a sunroom. If you live somewhere with lots of restrictive measures, you will end up paying more than other homeowners for the same sunroom. 

Electrical Systems

If you intend to install a heating and cooling system in your new sunroom, hiring the electrician and applying for permits will increase the overall cost of your sunroom. Our experienced team at Classic Home Concepts can help you obtain the licenses you need.

Preexisting Infrastructure

Homeowners that can build a sunroom on existing foundations end up saving lots of money on their sunrooms. The savings only grow if that foundation already has some type of flooring or electrical infrastructure installed.

Classic Home Concepts | The Best Sunroom Company in Springfield, MO

Increase the value of your home and bring more natural light into your life by building a new sunroom. At Classic Home Concepts, our sunroom experts create gorgeous home additions that will stand the test of time. Contact us to share your sunroom ideas with one of our friendly representatives and receive a fair quote in Springfield, Missouri.