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FEBRUARY 2014 PRO INSTALLER
PRO PRODUCTS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
Giving
homeowners
the living space
they need
Howard Hirst, Liniar Sales Director, explains why the conservatory
market has a lot of growth potential in 2014…
“Reports predict the UK will need
another one million homes by
2021 . Even though the new build
market’s recovering, that’s a lot of
houses! And according to research
by LV= home insurance , the average UK family home has shrunk by
two square metres in the past 10
years.
“The research found we’re building the
smallest homes in Western Europe: figures
from RIBA show Irish homes are 15% bigger; in the Netherlands they’re 53% bigger
and houses in Denmark are a staggering
80% bigger. RIBA says the average new
build UK home is 8% smaller than the recommended size with just 4.8 rooms.
“But the number of people living in
‘multi-generational’ homes is going up.
Adult children can’t afford to move out.
Faced with expensive care bills, grandparents move in. Since 2008 there’s been a
14% rise in multi-generational households,
putting more pressure on families’ living
space.
“Unsurprisingly, the research found more
families have modified their homes to add
more room – one in five since 2008. But
traditional extensions are expensive and
normally require planning applications.
What people need is an affordable way of
adding extra space – space they can use all
year round.
“For people looking to extend their
homes, conservatories are often the
answer. They are the most cost effective
way to add space. But window companies
might be wary of selling conservatories.
Ten years ago the market stagnated and
conservatory roof companies stopped
investing. Consumers became disillusioned
with conservatories that didn’t live up to
the promise. Draughty, leaky conservatories that were too hot in summer and too
cold in winter didn’t appeal to anyone and
sales dropped.
“We are forecasting the conservatory
market to grow in 2014. The right conservatory is much more affordable than an
extension. In most cases, you don’t need
planning permission (although it’s advisable to check larger ones with the local
authority first). And forget the ‘sun rooms’
of the 80s and 90s – a well-designed conservatory with the right glazing is very versatile. It can be a play room, a home office,
a dining room or even a quiet living room.
Add a good looking bi-fold to the mix and
you get flexible living space that opens up
the side of a house, brings the outdoors in
or adds privacy when needed.
“We aim to supply conservatories that
fabricators want to make and installers
want to sell. The Liniar Zoom conservatory
roof is easy to fabricate and install. It’s
fully on-site adjustable so even if the walls
and base don’t quite align, you still get
a good fit. Liniar Zoom’s patented Glazing Stop eliminates glazing slip, which is
expensive to fix. In our climate, conservatories need to withstand the rain. Liniar
Zoom has a number of patented solutions
for leaks, and it’s BBA weather tested to
300 Pascals, the equivalent to 113 inches
of rain in 24 hours and a Force 9 gale.
“We’ve also developed a new Energy Plus
twin-wall Top Cap to improve the roof’s
thermal performance. High performance
glass or polycarbonate keeps our