Adding a conservatory to your home is a fast and cost effective route to extending your living space and can often be achieved without the need for planning permission. In a tough housing market conservatories are proving an affordable home extension for many homeowners unable to move up the property ladder into larger properties but who still require additional living space.

You can choose from many different styles of conservatory including the popular Edwardian, Victorian and Gable Ended styles. Although white conservatories are still the most popular choice there are also many colour options now available such as cream, black, blue and green woodgrain finishes that enable you to create a truly individual addition to your home.

Whether you need a dining room, children's playroom, home office or simply somewhere to relax and enjoy your garden a conservatory is probably the most economical and easiest route to adding more living space to your home.

If you want to add maximum value to your home whilst also making it attractive to future buyers it is important to consider the conservatory specification carefully and not to simply take the cheapest price which will normally only provide a very basic specification. There is little point in adding a low specification conservatory as a solution to extending your home if it's too expensive to keep it warm in the winter and it's too hot to use during the summer.

These three main elements should be considered carefully before you purchase:

To help retain your valueable heat in the colder months and minimise your fuel costs the double glazing in the windows, doors and roof should always include a Low E glass which will reflect heat back into the conservatory. Many suppliers still only offer this as an extra cost option and some don't offer it at all but without Low E glass your heat simply escapes through the glass to the outside substantially increasing your fuel costs.

Unless your conservatory faces North you will need to consider controlling the climate inside to maintain comfortable levels during hot summer days. If you are specifying a polycarbonate roof there are several options available designed to reflect direct sunlight and provide shade from the sun. If you are selecting a glass roof there are a growing number of innovative solar control glass products available which usually also provide a self clean coating. Currently available in subtle tints of blue, green and grey these help reduce glare and more importantly reduce solar gain considerably which will help to maintain a pleasant environment inside the conservatory.

Selecting a conservatory built from high quality window, door and roof profiles will differentiate your conservatory from the cheap and basic specification conservatories available and help to make your property more appealing to future buyers. Selecting a glass roof can also help to provide a quality feel to the structure and substantially improves sound insulation.

Increasing the living space in your home is proven to add value to your property but it is important to ensure that the added space will be useable all year round. Extending your home with an energy efficient, high quality conservatory is much faster and cheaper than a brick built extension. Taking care to select the correct specification will help to provide a permanent extended living space that can be fully utilised throughout the year.