Screened porches are a hot commodity here in the Piedmont Triad area. But the rise in the popularity of three and four season rooms continues to grow as well. With this in mind, many Winston Salem and Greensboro homeowners are looking to convert their existing screened porches into 3 or 4-season rooms, and even into sunrooms.
Archadeck of the Piedmont Triad receives numerous inquiries to convert of one type of outdoor living space into another. We want to share the differences and benefits of each and what is involved in the conversion of your screened porch into a multi-season outdoor room.
Screened porches, also referred here in the South as “sun porches”, are a covered porch that has screened openings instead of windows. The screen serves as a barrier from bothersome insects and inclement weather. Having a screen porch offers homeowners the opportunity to have an outdoor room without exposure to the harsh elements and bugs. Screened porches offer superior protection from the sun and heat on those humid North Carolina summer days. Screened porches can be outfitted with a plethora of amenities much like an interior room. Ceiling fans, recessed lighting, and even a place to mount your outdoor TV are often requested among homeowners building a screen porch.
3-season room upgrade with Eze-Breeze windows
Upgrading your screened porch to a three-season room requires the addition of windows. You can convert your screened porch by adding sliding window conversions such as an Eze Breeze sliding panel system. Eze Breeze works by allowing you to control the amount of screen you leave exposed, from half screen and half sliding panel, to closing the panels completely and creating a room with the “feel” of a sunroom without the extra installations required in having a sunroom. With a versatile enclosure system, such as an Eze-Breeze season room, paired with a space heater you can make use of the screened porch up until late fall and early winter amidst our mild NC climate.
A 4-season room (also referred to as a sunroom), is a room that functions as an interior room but allows you to take in the vistas of the outdoors year round in constant comfort. Sunrooms allow comfort whether the temperatures outside are a balmy 100 degrees or there is snow on the ground. A sunroom in essence is a space that serves a dual function of a conditioned space that allows you the same views possible with less protected outdoor rooms. Sunrooms can become more complicated because they require the same construction fundamentals that an interior addition requires, such as HVAC systems, meaning they have to be insulated, heated and cooled. Converting a screened porch into a four season room requires the addition of insulation and insulated windows. Insulation will require reopening closed walls to add insulation to the knee walls, ceiling and underneath the floors. Adding insulation will ensure facilitation of a median temperature achieved through the addition of a HVAC system or other heating and cooling unit.
Upgrading to a sunroom
Choosing a sunroom does, however, open up a greater realm of interior finishing choices that you cannot get with other outdoor living structures.
Choosing the outdoor space conversion that fits your lifestyle is based on your individual needs and your economic objective. Archadeck of the Piedmont Triad can schedule a free consultation to discuss what would be involved in converting your screened porch into a 3 or 4-season room to assist you in choosing the right fit for you. All of these conversions still take advantage of the whole reason you wanted a screen porch to begin with – the freedom and views without the hassle of insects and the suns dangerous UV rays beaming down upon you and your family.
If you are considering converting your screened porch to a multi-season room, Archadeck of the Piedmont Triad would like to be your building partner. Give us a call for a free consultation at (336) 568-8230, drop us an email or fill out a contact form on this website. We look forward to your call.
