Solid Roof Conservatory: When a Solid Roof Is the Right Choice

A solid roof conservatory is a conservatory with an insulated, opaque roof instead of a glazed one: tiled, slate-effect or a lightweight insulated panel system, usually with rooflights or a lantern to bring some light back in. It is warmer in winter, cooler in summer and quieter in rain than a glass roof, and it changes the character of the room from garden room to extension.

Whether that is an improvement depends on why you wanted a conservatory in the first place.

What is a solid roof conservatory?

It is a conservatory whose roof is built like the roof of a house: a structural frame, insulation and a weatherproof covering, finished with a plastered ceiling inside. The walls stay glazed. Light enters from the sides, and from whatever rooflights or lantern are set into the solid roof.

There are three families of solid roof. A tiled roof uses lightweight tiles or slates on a timber or aluminium frame and looks like part of the house from outside. An insulated panel roof uses factory-made panels and is the lightest option. A hybrid roof mixes solid sections with glazed ones, typically solid over the house end and glass over the garden end.

Is a solid roof better than a glass roof on a conservatory?

Better for warmth, worse for light. A solid roof stops the summer overheating and the winter heat loss that give older glass-roofed conservatories a bad name. It also removes the drumming of rain and the glare on screens. In return you lose the overhead light that made the conservatory feel like a garden room, and the room can feel like a corridor if the walls are the only glazing.

Modern glass changes the calculation. Solar control glazing on the roof cuts summer heat gain sharply, and low-emissivity coatings keep winter warmth in, so a new conservatory with the right roof glass does not suffer the problems a solid roof is usually bought to solve. Our guide to conservatory roof types sets the options side by side. On a new build we usually recommend glass, or a hybrid, unless the room is to be used as a kitchen or study where shade matters.

When is a solid roof the right choice?

When the room's purpose has changed. A conservatory built as a garden room and now wanted as a kitchen, a study or a television room needs shade, a plastered ceiling for downlights and a stable temperature. A solid or hybrid roof gives all three.

When the orientation is against you. A conservatory that faces south or west with no shade will overheat under any roof that is entirely glass. A solid roof, or a hybrid with the solid section over the seating, makes the room usable in July.

When the existing roof is failing. A roof that leaks, has discoloured or has lost its seals is a reason to replace it, and the replacement is the moment to decide between glass and solid. Our conservatory roof replacement cost guide explains what drives the cost of each.

What does a solid roof mean for the structure?

Weight. A solid roof is heavier than a glazed one, and the frames, the ring beam and the base of an existing conservatory were sized for the roof they had. Putting a solid roof on a conservatory that was not designed for it can overload the frames and, in the worst cases, the foundations. A structural check is not optional, and a conservatory built on a light base with standard frames is often not a candidate at all.

On a new conservatory this is designed in from the start. On our luxury conservatories, hardwood and thermally broken aluminium frames of the right section carry a solid or hybrid roof without difficulty, and the base is built for the load.

What does a solid conservatory roof cost?

The cost of a solid roof is set by four things: the type (a lightweight tiled roof usually costs more than an insulated panel system, and a hybrid adds the glazed sections and any lantern), the size and shape of the roof, the structural work the existing frames and base need to carry it, and the finishing inside, from plastering and electrics for downlights to redecoration. Building control fees sit on top. Our guide to conservatory roof replacement cost explains what drives the price of each roof type and what a quote should include.

A well-built tiled or panel roof is a long-life element: the covering typically lasts as long as a house roof, and the weak points are the junction with the house wall and the gutters, which should be checked like any other roof.

Does a solid roof affect planning permission or building regulations?

Planning, rarely. In England, replacing a conservatory roof is normally within permitted development unless the house is listed, and rights can be more restricted in conservation areas and Article 4 areas, and a new conservatory with a solid roof is judged on the same size and height limits as any other.

Building regulations, almost always. One of the conditions for a conservatory to be exempt is that it has a translucent roof. Fit a solid roof and the room is treated as an extension: the roof must meet insulation standards and the work needs approval, either through a competent installer's scheme or a building notice. This is a benefit as much as a burden, because the finished room is then a room, with the paperwork to prove it at sale.

How do you keep light in a solid roof conservatory?

With a lantern or rooflights. A well-proportioned lantern set into a solid roof brings overhead light back to the centre of the room and, in an orangery-style design, becomes the room's best feature. Our roof lanterns are made for exactly this position. Flat rooflights do the same job more discreetly. On a hybrid roof, keep the glazed section over the part of the room where you sit and look at the garden.

Colour matters too. A white or pale plastered ceiling reflects light from the side glazing; a dark ceiling swallows it.

Solid roof conservatory questions, answered

Can any conservatory have a solid roof?

No. The frames and base must be able to carry the extra weight, which needs a structural check. Conservatories with standard frames on light bases are often unsuitable, and the better answer is a new conservatory or orangery designed for the roof.

Is a tiled roof or an insulated panel roof better?

Tiled roofs look like part of the house and suit period property; insulated panel roofs are lighter and quicker to fit. Both perform well thermally. The choice is usually about appearance and what the structure can carry.

Will a solid roof make my conservatory dark?

It will make it darker overhead. Rooflights, a lantern or a hybrid roof with a glazed section restore most of what is lost. A room with glazed walls on three sides and a solid roof is still a bright room by the standards of the rest of the house.

Talk to our design team

A solid roof solves real problems, but on a new conservatory the better question is whether the right glass solves them first. If you are weighing the two, talk to us about your project and we will design the roof to the room, not the other way round.