There’s no better time than today to turn your home into your dream home. Adding a sunroom will enhance your home by bringing the beauty of the outdoors indoors. But before you call just any central California home improvement contractor, you must first make sure that you have the following important questions answered:

Do you have a view of the outdoors that you would like to showcase indoors?

Whether your view is the serene ocean off the San Luis Obispo coast, the towering mountains east of Porterville, or the wondrous city lights of Bakersfield, there’s a sunroom design that can be customized to showcase any landscape. Or, perhaps you have a landscaped yard or swimming pool that would make a lovely backdrop to your kitchen, bedroom, or bathroom.

Step outside and walk around your home to see which side of your house offers the grandest views. Having one or two location options for your new room addition will help you decide on a model of sunroom, conservatory or solarium and its dimensions.

What is your reason for building a sunroom?

As they say, there’s a reason for everything. It is important to know why you want to build a sunroom, aside from the fact that you want to realize your dream home, because it will help you determine many other important considerations.

Do you want to have a room where you and your family can relax, sun bathe, and star gaze? Do you want a impressive room addition for entertaining or meeting with clients? Or how about the ultimate home gym or serene location for meditation?

A sunroom can be customized for any use so it’s a good idea to figure out your reason for adding living space and how you are to use it before you speak to a sunroom designer.

What type of sunroom are you looking at?

There are plenty of sunroom designs and, chances are, you haven’t seen them all. Before finalizing on what type of sunroom to install, it is important to look at the choices that are available for you. You may also consider your sunroom installer’s recommendation as they have done a lot of sunrooms and know which one works for which home. Choose from or even customize the design of Studio Style Sunrooms, Cathedral Style Sunrooms, California Style Sunrooms, Solariums, and Conservatory Style Sunrooms. With each sunroom style, there are even more features to choose from so make sure that you look closely at all sunroom designs to find which one appeals you most.

Who to install your sunroom?

Finally, it’s time for you to decide which contractor to get for the installation of your sunroom. Once you have decided on the type of sunroom you want to install, it is now time to choose the company a company to for the installation service.

From Bakersfield to Fresno, you’ll find hundreds of contractors ready to offer you their sunroom specialties, but you want a contractor who is licensed, experienced, and will assist you with your city’s codes and permitting process. When you think you’ve found a company worthy of your investment, ask them for references, look for online reviews of that company (both positive and negative), and find out if the sunroom company offers any specials or a free estimate.

Sunshine Sunrooms and Patios is the no.1 choice for Central California residents, serving cities like Porterville, Kern City, Visalia and Fresno. Sunshine’s sunroom experts can handle tasks right from designing and engineering high quality sunrooms to making sure that your room addition fits California standards. Contact us today so we can have your sunroom installed as soon as possible!

Whether you’re planning a newly built sun room addition or have been enjoying your sunroom for some time, understanding how to care for your sunroom will keep your enjoyment alive  for a lifetime. Proper care of the construction of your sunroom doesn’t mean calling a contractor or sunroom installer; many maintenance tasks can easily be done by you, saving you thousands of dollars. 

Maintaining the Sunroom Frame:

• Wood Interior Sunrooms: Regularly paint or stain wood to prevent dry rot.
• Metal Sunroom Frames: Wash metal sunrooms down with a pressure washer on an annual basis.
• Vinyl Sunroom Frames: Wash using a soft cloth or bristle brush and a mildly abrasive cleaner such as Ajax. Stay away from cleaners containing chlorine bleach, liquid grease remover, strong soaps, and detergents containing nail polish remover and furniture polish. These cleaners can damage the surface appearance of the vinyl.

Leak Monitoring & Repair:

Carefully examine the frame of your sunroom at least once every six months – especially during the rainy season. Look for any holes or gapping caused by extreme weather. If you see such holes, contact your sunroom installer or manufacturer as these repairs may be covered in your sunroom warranty. Next, carefully examine the caulking around sunroom’s windows. Any gapping in the caulking can be easily repaired by you with a couple of tubes of silicone caulking. Again this examination should be done once ever six months or so.

Cleaning Sunroom Windows & Glass:

Clean your sunroom windows using a window cleaning solution like Windex or create your own solution by combining drops of dish soap and water into a spray bottle. Another great window cleaning solution consists of a 1/4 cup of vinegar, 1/2 tsp. dish soap and some warm water. Using a squeegee, lint-free rag, or sheets of newspaper, whip away dirt and grim from the inside and outside of your sunroom windows. Do this as often as you like or at least after each season. Keeping your windows clean gives your sunroom a brighter, more refreshing atmosphere.

Cleaning a Glass Roof:

Your first objective to cleaning a glass roof is to remove dead leaves and debris off of the glass. Use an extension pole with a brush attachment, or a push broom can work just as well. Gently brush all debris off the glass. Then fill a bucket with window cleaning solution (see above for different solution recipes and suggestions) and warm water. 

Use a water-fed extension pole with brush attachment. Turn on the water, dip the brush in the cleaning solution and gently scrub the windows, working from the far end back toward the edge. The water will feed through the brush and react with the solution, cleaning the glass. Once you have cleaned the glass, remove excess water with a squeegee. Attach the squeegee to the extension pole and pull it back across the glass, using overlapping strokes. Check your work periodically from inside the sun room and, using a microfiber cloth attached to the pole, wipe clean any spots or streaks.

Clean your sunroom’s glass roof as often as you’d like to be able to have light shine through the glass.

For more sunroom cleaning tips, contact your sunroom’s manufacturer. A representative should be able to answer all your sunroom maintenance and care questions.

Imagine opening a door in your home and having it lead you into an inviting sunroom. The stars sparkle down at you through the glass roof.  In one end of the sunroom a babling fountain is surrounded by a sofa and cozy chairs. In the other end of the sunroom sits a bubbly, pre-heated hot tub. You get to choose: recline on the sofa or sooth your muscles in hydrotherapy. The sunroom is yours. The hot tub is yours. The choice is yours.

Or…

Imagine opening a door in your home and having it lead you to an inviting covered patio. The patio cover above is insulated and equiped with elegant cieling fans, keeping the air cool and comfortable.   In one corner of the patio a barbeque grill sizzles and sears your favorite foods. In another corner rests a steamy hot tub beckening your body to partake of its healing hydrotherapy. The patio cover keeps your hot tub clean and protected from the elements and lets you enjoy year-round grilling. Home sweet home.

Again the choice is yours! What’s your home improvement desire?  Would you like a sunroom or a patio cover, an indoor or outdoor hot tub? A fountain or barbeque?  Have Sunshine Sunroom & Patio Co. custom build your sunroom or patio dreams!  

You’ve decided why you want a sunroom and what it will be used for…now, where will it be attached and what will it look like from the outside?

It’s not unusual for a sunroom or conservatory to appeal to you yet not look good on your home. That’s why it is really important to look at as many sunroom and conservatory photos as possible to find the style that not only appeals to you but also compliments your home’s architecture.

There are hundreds of different sunroom and conservatory styles to choose from. These options become even more entangled when custom design ideas are suggested. But don’t worry. Sunshine Sunroom and Patio Co. are experienced sunroom designers and installers; we can help you find the perfect sunroom or conservatory for your home and budget.

Below are some more sunroom and conservatory images that provide helpful style ideas for your very own custom built “Dream Room”. Contact us for more ideas and sunroom information.

Studio Sunroom Design

Cathedral Sunroom Design

California Sunroom Design

Solarium Sunroom Design

Conservatory Designs