ABSTRACT
One of the success stories of the 1980s was the resurgence in popularity of the conservatory, based largely on special designs and systems of aluminium extrusions. Whereas the standard garden greenhouse is made of mill-finish aluminium, the standard conservatory mainly embodies white-painted aluminium. Many designs utilize single-glazing only, but a number of more sophisticated ‘up market’ systems now incorporate both double-glazing and thermal-break extrusions. Detailing of design is facilitated through the ease of producing custom-made sections by extrusion and by the relative cheapness of making the required dies. As a result, inbuilt features now include drainage channels, gutters, concealed wiring tracks and weatherseal gasket fixings.
