Dear All

We are thinking about getting a conservatory & would welcome any
advice or info anybody could give us.. I have read what is already on
the site & it has been very useful so far..

We are in Manchester , so if you've had any experiences with any
companies in the area that would be even better.

Thanks

Gwen & David

On 1 Apr 2003 03:41:23 -0800, Gwen wrote:

Dear All

We are thinking about getting a conservatory & would welcome any
advice or info anybody could give us.. I have read what is already on
the site & it has been very useful so far..

We are in Manchester , so if you've had any experiences with any
companies in the area that would be even better.

Thanks

Gwen & David

Had a great conservatory put in a few years ago by century seal, who then
got the contract for the windows as it was so good ( and very cheap as I
laid the Concrete base myself ). We are near wigan, and it is a north
facing conny. Not too hot, but good enough for bringing seedlings on and
great toms !! Beware the cowboys, we had one quote that had the seals on
the example panels he brought to us on the outside of the glass, and if
they are on the outside burglars can remove the glass with a simple twist
of a knife ! Another suggestion, don't accept the first few prices - shop
around for deals, get written quotes and hold a price auction with the reps
- you will be surprised to know that the average mark-up on a conny is
about 300%, so there is a lot of bargaining room. The opening windows are
the expensive bit if you are going for upvc, so the less of them the
better. Ignore the fancy colored "stained" glass panels, they are 50% of
the glazing cost in my opinion !! Get Pilkington "K" glass if you can. warm
in winter, cooler in summer ( if you need it !! ). Get the correct security
locks on the doors, it can affect your house insurance if you don't !
We had several tries at designs, and found the practical designs were all
square or rectangular - round or octagonal look nice but you get a lot of
"dead space" in the corners, as well as being more expensive to build.

In article , Gwen
writes
Dear All

We are thinking about getting a conservatory & would welcome any
advice or info anybody could give us.. I have read what is already on
the site & it has been very useful so far..

We are in Manchester , so if you've had any experiences with any
companies in the area that would be even better.

Thanks

Gwen & David

Watch,

1) The Guarantee. Question as to whether 'you' or the Conservatory
carries the guarantee. A good Guarantee is the conservatory itself and
you can pass that on if/when you sell within the 10 years.

2) The thickness of the gap between the glass. New guidelines have just
come in and has to meet certain standards as far as the guarantee is
concerned.

3) Just 'who' is going to put the base down. You, the Conservatory
company or a sub contractor 'for a price'?

4) Delivery dates. Erection/construction dates and ask them for details
of work they have done in your area.

5) Who is going to take away any rubbish and if it is to be you after
everything is done, who pays for the skip. (If there is that amount of
rubbish)

6) Get an assurance, that once they start, they will be on site all the
time until it is finished and that they are not going to shoot off every
other day to finish another job.

7) Payment. NOTHING is paid up front. Payment is only made on
satisfactory completion.

8) Ask for a computer image printout of the conservatory with both a
Brick Wall Base and a UPVC Panel Wall Base.

9) Make sure that the bolting mechanism for the doors is such that they
cannot be sprung out for forced entry.

10) If you are having double doors, make sure the centre post is fixed
to one door, the 'slave' door. One door, the 'Master' can then be used
as a normal door, but when you want both open, you have a complete
opening without a post stuck in the middle. (My doors give a 7ft clear
opening.)

11) Make sure that the Plastic they use is '1st Generation' Plastic and
not 2nd Generation or re-cycled plastic. That goes yellow after a short
time.

12) Depending on the size and width, there may be tie bars in the roof
to walls to stop the splay out action. Ask about them because they can
be unsightly.

13) Get at least 3 Quotes :-))

but before you do any of that, read, read and read again about them:-))

Mike

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Forthcoming reunions. Royal Navy Social Weekend Sussex May 2nd - 5th.
H.M.S.Collingwood Association Chatham May 30th - June 2nd
British Pacific Fleet Hayling Island Sept 5th - 8th
Castle Class Corvettes Assn. Isle of Wight. Oct 3rd - 6th. Plus many more

In article , Mike
writes

1) The Guarantee. Question as to whether 'you' or the Conservatory
carries the guarantee. A good Guarantee is the conservatory itself and
you can pass that on if/when you sell within the 10 years.


Just found the following.

Contract Number 4993

'Dear Mr and Mrs Crowe.

Re Installation at the above address

We trust that the units installed by our Company on 25th November 02 are
to your satisfaction.

In the event of you moving house please pass this Guarantee on to the
new owner, as we can only react to a service call on receipt of a
contract number.

etc

etc.

The windows/units are insured, not the householder.

Not a lot of people know that fact and I only discovered it myself a
short while ago. A 'Cheaper' company might only insure 'you'.

Mike

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forthcoming reunions. Royal Navy Social Weekend Sussex May 2nd - 5th.
H.M.S.Collingwood Association Chatham May 30th - June 2nd
British Pacific Fleet Hayling Island Sept 5th - 8th
Castle Class Corvettes Assn. Isle of Wight. Oct 3rd - 6th. Plus many more