http://www.teksupply.com/webapp/wcs/...tNumber=105206

A 60' long x 12' deep lean-to sunspace might have

1 105206 $269 60'x6'4" vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends, and
2 104419W $339 12'x30' awnings.

That's $1265, ie $1.76/ft^2.

A 30' version might have

1 105197 $189 30'x7' vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends, and
1 104419W $339 12'x30' awning.

That's $846, ie $2.35/ft^2.

On an average 30 F January day near Phila, the small one might gain
2x8x12x0.9x415 = 71.7K Btu/day from the endwalls plus 7x30x0.9x1000
= 189K Btu from the south wall and lose 6h(70-36)402ft^2/R1 = 82K Btu
through the walls. With bubble wrap foil beneath, the roof might lose
6h(70-36)360ft^2/R3 = 24.5K Btu, for a net gain of 154K Btu, the heat
equivalent of about 1.5 gallons of oil burned at 80% efficiency.

A dark mesh curtain (eg 80% black greenhouse shadecloth) behind
the glazing could make it more efficient and and comfortable.
How can we airseal it?

Nick

On 3 Nov 2006 08:01:26 -0500, wrote:

http://www.teksupply.com/webapp/wcs/...tNumber=105206

A 60' long x 12' deep lean-to sunspace might have

1 105206 $269 60'x6'4" vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends, and
2 104419W $339 12'x30' awnings.

That's $1265, ie $1.76/ft^2.

I wonder if my little town would allow a lean-to
like that, there is a group of people trying to get control
of city council and force people to keep up and upgrade
their property, with a $500 fine if a citation is issued.

A 30' version might have

1 105197 $189 30'x7' vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends, and
1 104419W $339 12'x30' awning.

That's $846, ie $2.35/ft^2.

I could put two of the big ones on my SW wall,
one above the other.

On an average 30 F January day near Phila, the small one might gain
2x8x12x0.9x415 = 71.7K Btu/day from the endwalls plus 7x30x0.9x1000
= 189K Btu from the south wall and lose 6h(70-36)402ft^2/R1 = 82K Btu
through the walls. With bubble wrap foil beneath, the roof might lose
6h(70-36)360ft^2/R3 = 24.5K Btu, for a net gain of 154K Btu, the heat
equivalent of about 1.5 gallons of oil burned at 80% efficiency.

What roof? Does a lean-to have a roof?

Rather than bubble wrap, could I get the same
effect if I raised the CO2 level in the lean-to up to
about 50 percent?

A dark mesh curtain (eg 80% black greenhouse shadecloth) behind
the glazing could make it more efficient and and comfortable.
How can we airseal it?
Nick

I have a sample of black chrome plated copper
from the 1970s, if that were still available, it might
increase the air temperature quite a bit.

Try to think of a way that I could make it
look enough so that nobody would object, I might
even want to make it so that I could work in the
sunspace on cold days.

I could do a lot more work on my cars and
even do some cut vinyl applications on vehicles if
I had a sunspace, but there are a lot of catch 22s,
I would be allowed to do more if I could get the
property zoned commercial, but that might cause
me to lose my old age homestead exemption on
the real estate tax.
It would be nice to put a sunspace on the
SE wall, so I would have some heat earlier in
the day, but it faces the street.

If there is some design that looks good,
it would be worth extra money to DIY install
wood or plastic ducts on the house with .065 in
thick glazing, with white louvers on the outside
to block the heat on warm days, and maybe
the white louvers could be made to look like
weather board or vinyl siding when closed,
and look more like a conventional house.

I would also be interested in ducting,
a fan and filters to be able to pull warm air
from the attic on cool days, it burns me up
to think that my car stays warmer than the
house from the sun, even with the heat on
in the house.

Joe Fischer

I wonder if my little town would allow a lean-to
like that, there is a group of people trying to get control
of city council and force people to keep up and upgrade
their property, with a $500 fine if a citation is issued.


It is for people like that, that the short stake was invented.

http://www.teksupply.com/webapp/wcs/...tNumber=105206

Alternatively, a 30' long x 12' deep sunspace might have

1 105197 $189 30'x7' vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends,
8 4'x12' $50 pieces of Dynaglas clear corrugated polycarbonate, and
1 308' $154 2x4 frame

That's $1061, ie $2.95/ft^2.

On an average 30 F January day near Phila, it might gain 2x8x12x0.9x415
= 71.7K Btu/day from the endwalls plus 7x30x0.9x1000 = 189K Btu from
the south wall plus 12x30x0.9x620 = 200.9K Btu from the roof and lose
6h(70-36)762ft^2/R1 = 155.4K, for a net gain of 305.5K Btu/day, the heat
equivalent of about 3 gallons of oil burned at 80% efficiency.

The roof might have a silver tarp cover in summertime.

Nick

In article ,
Goedjn wrote:

I wonder if my little town would allow a lean-to
like that, there is a group of people trying to get control
of city council and force people to keep up and upgrade
their property, with a $500 fine if a citation is issued.


It is for people like that, that the short stake was invented.

I thought rope was invented for them

--
Free men own guns - www.geocities/CapitolHill/5357/

http://www.teksupply.com/webapp/wcs/...tNumber=105206

Alternatively, a 30' long x 12' deep sunspace might have

1 105197 $189 30'x7' vinyl panel,
2 105192 $159 12' clear gable ends,
8 4'x12' $50 pieces of Dynaglas clear corrugated polycarbonate, and
1 308' $154 2x4 frame

That's $1061, ie $2.95/ft^2.

Two caveats:

1. If the glazing is flexible and the airpath to the house has 2 one-way
lightweight passive plastic film dampers, one near the top to let warm
sunspace air flow into the house and one near the bottom to let cool house
air flow into the sunspace during the day, this can act as an air pump on
a windy night: a wind gust pushes the glazing in, which makes cold air flow
into the house, and then it stops and the glazing expands and sucks warm
air out of the house. So maybe it's better to use motorized dampers with
2 thermostats in series, one that turns on when the sunspace is warm and
one that turns on when the house needs heat.

2. The sunspace needs a vapor barrier on the ground, eg plastic film under
a rug or some mulch (which is dustier), but even then, a single layer of
glazing can end up with a reflective layer of frost inside for most of
a cold sunny day. David Delaney's solution seems promising: put 1/4" black
dots on a 6" grid inside the glazing. I can imagine doing that with a 1'x2'
stencil and a paintbrush on a roll of flat polycarbonate. Or maybe wrap
a 2" x 1' paint roller with a plastic sleeve with 3 1/4" holes in it.

Nick