We are looking at using 'polycool - Solar Control Inserts'
http://www.polycool.co.uk/ to help
control the temperature all year round for our conservatory roof.

The product looks good, but before I go ahead and buy, I'd be
interested to
hear from anybody who has had personal experience of the product, and
how
effective it proved to be.

Any pros and cons? Any alternatives?

Many thanks in advance,

Peter.

I've been meaning to post about these for a while so this is the
perfect opportuinity.

We have a large lean-to conservatory (approx 5.5m x 4.5m) which
suffered from glare and heat issues during the summer and was basically
unusable. I looked at various remedies such as blinds, vents, aircon
etc and after much deliberation took the plunge and went for the solar
inserts approach.

I ordered the inserts from http://www.casupply.co.uk/ as they were the
cheapest, don't take any notice of polycool's claim that their product
is superior, research revealed that the inserts were of the same
construction. I self-installed the inserts, it wasn't too difficult -
the first insert took about 30 mins of struggling but then once I got
the knack and had done a few more I was banging them in in about a
minute. Bear in mind though my roof was 5m long so by the time I got to
the top of the channel with an insert there was a fair amount of
resistance, on a shorter roof (say up to 4m) you wouldn't have any
trouble at all. I did take me the best part of two days but like I say
the roof was about 25m2, plus I gave the ends of the channels a
thorough clean as water had got into the ends and they were a bit
mossy, and a few other bits of maintenance while I was at it.
Essentials for the job - a can of silicon spray to reduce friction when
installing the inserts, and the correct breather tape for the bottom
end bars to make sure you don't get condensation in the channels.

So the crucial verdict: yes the SWMBO and I are well pleased with them.
I did the roof in April and all through the summer the conservatory
stayed nice & cool, even when the temps hit 35 degreesC in July it
really wasn't any warmer than the rest of the house plus the awful
glare went totally. We used the conservatory all summer which was a
first.

The only downside I can mention is light reduction. It's hard to
estimate but I would say the inserts reduced the light levels by up to
~25%. Not really a problem during summer but the lounge that opens into
the conservatory is slightly darker and this is more noticable on dull
grey days. That said it was well worth a slight light reduction in one
room to be able to use the conservatory all year round rather than
having to shut it off half the year cos it's roasting.

Total cost was about £500 so quite a cheap solution when
self-installing. I did contact Polycool who worked out about 33% dearer
for self-install but would supply and do the installation for about
£400 more which seemed reasonable if you don't fancy the job yourself.
They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Regards,

MH

Mary Hinge wrote:

They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Just got a leaflet from them yesterday - 30% off from 1st Oct to 30th
Nov.

MH

On 2006-10-15 10:05:59 +0100, "Mary Hinge" said:


Mary Hinge wrote:

They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Just got a leaflet from them yesterday - 30% off from 1st Oct to 30th
Nov.

MH

30% off of what?

This is completely meaningless.

If the intended selling price of something is £700, the list price can
be set to £1000.

The vendor can then discount by 30% and achieve his target selling
price and intended margin.

The only people taken in by that one are the gullible customers and
certain dimwitted people trying to collect enquiries for the product.

I had a conversation with a lady who probably spends most of her
Sundays in the vestibule of a Do it All handing out leaflets on double
glazing and trying to make appointments for sales people.

Her opening gambit was was I interested in double glazing - "50% off"
she proudly announced.

"50% off of what?" I asked.

"50% off!" she replied.

"50% off of what?" I asked.

"It's 50% off!!!" she replied.

"From what though?" I asked.

"But it's 50% off until the end of the month!!" was the answer.

I could see that this conversation wasn't going to go anywhere, so I
asked her what would happen after the end of the month.

"Then we'll have our autumn sale".

"What's that likely to mean?" I asked.

"I don't know", she said, "but last year it was 50% off!!"

"50% off of what?"

etc.


I was very much reminded of the lady in the cafe in that famous
travelogue "Bal-ham, gateway to the South". Whatever the customer
asked, the answer was always the same.....

"It's off" (She sounded rather similar as well).

Andy,

The OP expressed an interest in purchasing from Polycool, possibly
because they do not wish to self-install. I was merely relaying
information that may be of use to them.

In this instance the 30% off seems reasonably genuine, in my case they
had previously quoted and if I was prepared to purchase during a slack
period (not many people out there looking to cool their conservatory in
November I would imagine) then a 30% reduction would be applicable to
my previous quote. In the end I went to CA supply as they were still
the cheapest (just).

My impression of Polycool is that it is a one-man operation so maybe
Mrs Polycool insists Mr Polycool offers a reasonable discount in the
quieter months so that Mr Polycool isn't hanging around the house all
the time getting under her feet and messing up the carpets.

Of course you could argue that it's more a case of pay 30% more in the
summer, but then again that might not be best thing to do from the
marketing standpoint.

It should be noted that if you are prepared to self-install then
http://www.casupply.co.uk offer the best price *all year round* for the
same product. Marvellous.

Regards,

MH

Hi,

I have just taken advantage of polycool's winter discount of 30%. It
ends soon so hurry if anyone wishes to get a cheaper deal.
Mary, many thanks for your comments.

Peter.

"Peter" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I have just taken advantage of polycool's winter discount of 30%. It
ends soon so hurry if anyone wishes to get a cheaper deal.
Mary, many thanks for your comments.

Peter.

Me?

I've never heard of polycool!

Mary

"Peter" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I have just taken advantage of polycool's winter discount of 30%. It
ends soon so hurry if anyone wishes to get a cheaper deal.
Mary, many thanks for your comments.

Peter.

# Spam glorious Spam ... nothing quite like it #
Resolve never to darken 'Polycool' and.or 'Peter';s doorstep.

OTOH:

Polycool's website does invite people to 'register' and they promise to send
a brochure and DVD for their product .... How much would it cost them to
send such a package to readers ... I'll bet they'd thank 'Peter' for his
efforts!

--

Brian

"Brian Sharrock" wrote in message
...

..

# Spam glorious Spam ... nothing quite like it #
Resolve never to darken 'Polycool' and.or 'Peter';s doorstep.

OTOH:

Polycool's website does invite people to 'register' and they promise to
send a brochure and DVD for their product .... How much would it cost
them to send such a package to readers ... I'll bet they'd thank 'Peter'
for his efforts!

--

Brian

Well, don't jump to conclusions. I was puzzled but remembered that I
directed someone from another ng to this group, saying how knowledgeable and
helpful MOST people were. It might have been Peter, I can't remember.

I'd like to think that this group DID welcome newcomers, no matter what the
perceived first impression was.

Mary

In message .com,
Peter writes
Hi,

I have just taken advantage of polycool's winter discount of 30%. It
ends soon so hurry if anyone wishes to get a cheaper deal.
Mary, many thanks for your comments.

Looks like another spamming git to avoid

If you / they can give a 30% winter discount, why can't they do it in
the summer too ?

POLYCOOL - looks like another company to avoid


--
geoff

The message
from raden contains these words:

If you / they can give a 30% winter discount, why can't they do it in
the summer too ?

Like that insurance company that's currently advertising on the telly.
Claims that if they're not cheaper they'll drop their prices by up to
£100 and give you £50 on top.

So that's them off the list then!

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

Guy King wrote:
The message
from raden contains these words:

If you / they can give a 30% winter discount, why can't they do it in
the summer too ?

Like that insurance company that's currently advertising on the telly.
Claims that if they're not cheaper they'll drop their prices by up to
£100 and give you £50 on top.

You'd be surprised how many idiots fall for it...all the company has to do
is give you a quote of £200 more than it normally costs, then 'give' you
£150 back and hey presto! - they've only ripped you off to the tune of £50
*and* stuck to their word

The wrong Mary, this was aimed at the joke Mary (me, you need to be
familiar with spoonerisms for the name to make sense, and be juvenille
;o))

This is not spam, i suppose some of you may not be seeing the while
thread as this was bought up in September, if you want to see the whole
thread then look in google groups:

http://tinyurl.com/y7zyxd

and you'll see I've also mentioned over (cheaper) suppliers than
Polycool etc. The whole discussion is about solar inserts in general
which can be bought from any number of suppliers.

Peter hope the Solar Inserts work out well for you, though now you have
them I bet next summer is a complete washout!!!

Cheers,

Andy

"Mary Hinge" wrote in message
oups.com...
The wrong Mary, this was aimed at the joke Mary (me, you need to be
familiar with spoonerisms for the name to make sense, and be juvenille
;o))

Right, thanks for explaining that :-)

Mary

Mary Hinge wrote:
The wrong Mary, this was aimed at the joke Mary (me, you need to be
familiar with spoonerisms for the name to make sense, and be juvenille
;o))

This is not spam, i suppose some of you may not be seeing the while
thread as this was bought up in September, if you want to see the whole
thread then look in google groups:

http://tinyurl.com/y7zyxd

and you'll see I've also mentioned over (cheaper) suppliers than
Polycool etc. The whole discussion is about solar inserts in general
which can be bought from any number of suppliers.

Peter hope the Solar Inserts work out well for you, though now you have
them I bet next summer is a complete washout!!!

Cheers,

Andy

Thanks m8. I didn't expect to be accused of spamming.
The replies are like a football newsgroup which has lots of abuse.

I'll be fitting the kit when the weather gets drier...here's hoping

Thanks again.

No problem - good luck and hope it all goes well for you )

On Tuesday, 10 October 2006 16:41:09 UTC+1, Mary Hinge wrote:
I've been meaning to post about these for a while so this is the
perfect opportuinity.

We have a large lean-to conservatory (approx 5.5m x 4.5m) which
suffered from glare and heat issues during the summer and was basically
unusable. I looked at various remedies such as blinds, vents, aircon
etc and after much deliberation took the plunge and went for the solar
inserts approach.

I ordered the inserts from http://www.casupply.co.uk/ as they were the
cheapest, don't take any notice of polycool's claim that their product
is superior, research revealed that the inserts were of the same
construction. I self-installed the inserts, it wasn't too difficult -
the first insert took about 30 mins of struggling but then once I got
the knack and had done a few more I was banging them in in about a
minute. Bear in mind though my roof was 5m long so by the time I got to
the top of the channel with an insert there was a fair amount of
resistance, on a shorter roof (say up to 4m) you wouldn't have any
trouble at all. I did take me the best part of two days but like I say
the roof was about 25m2, plus I gave the ends of the channels a
thorough clean as water had got into the ends and they were a bit
mossy, and a few other bits of maintenance while I was at it.
Essentials for the job - a can of silicon spray to reduce friction when
installing the inserts, and the correct breather tape for the bottom
end bars to make sure you don't get condensation in the channels.

So the crucial verdict: yes the SWMBO and I are well pleased with them.
I did the roof in April and all through the summer the conservatory
stayed nice & cool, even when the temps hit 35 degreesC in July it
really wasn't any warmer than the rest of the house plus the awful
glare went totally. We used the conservatory all summer which was a
first.

The only downside I can mention is light reduction. It's hard to
estimate but I would say the inserts reduced the light levels by up to
~25%. Not really a problem during summer but the lounge that opens into
the conservatory is slightly darker and this is more noticable on dull
grey days. That said it was well worth a slight light reduction in one
room to be able to use the conservatory all year round rather than
having to shut it off half the year cos it's roasting.

Total cost was about £500 so quite a cheap solution when
self-installing. I did contact Polycool who worked out about 33% dearer
for self-install but would supply and do the installation for about
£400 more which seemed reasonable if you don't fancy the job yourself.
They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Regards,

MH

Mary - have you noticed any difference in heat retention in the winter? I am thinking of getting new polycarbonate roof with this inserts and would like to have an idea of how much heat they retain in winter before I buy.
Thanks

On 06/06/2019 15:50, wrote:
On Tuesday, 10 October 2006 16:41:09 UTC+1, Mary Hinge wrote:
I've been meaning to post about these for a while so this is the
perfect opportuinity.

We have a large lean-to conservatory (approx 5.5m x 4.5m) which
suffered from glare and heat issues during the summer and was basically
unusable. I looked at various remedies such as blinds, vents, aircon
etc and after much deliberation took the plunge and went for the solar
inserts approach.

I ordered the inserts from http://www.casupply.co.uk/ as they were the
cheapest, don't take any notice of polycool's claim that their product
is superior, research revealed that the inserts were of the same
construction. I self-installed the inserts, it wasn't too difficult -
the first insert took about 30 mins of struggling but then once I got
the knack and had done a few more I was banging them in in about a
minute. Bear in mind though my roof was 5m long so by the time I got to
the top of the channel with an insert there was a fair amount of
resistance, on a shorter roof (say up to 4m) you wouldn't have any
trouble at all. I did take me the best part of two days but like I say
the roof was about 25m2, plus I gave the ends of the channels a
thorough clean as water had got into the ends and they were a bit
mossy, and a few other bits of maintenance while I was at it.
Essentials for the job - a can of silicon spray to reduce friction when
installing the inserts, and the correct breather tape for the bottom
end bars to make sure you don't get condensation in the channels.

So the crucial verdict: yes the SWMBO and I are well pleased with them.
I did the roof in April and all through the summer the conservatory
stayed nice & cool, even when the temps hit 35 degreesC in July it
really wasn't any warmer than the rest of the house plus the awful
glare went totally. We used the conservatory all summer which was a
first.

The only downside I can mention is light reduction. It's hard to
estimate but I would say the inserts reduced the light levels by up to
~25%. Not really a problem during summer but the lounge that opens into
the conservatory is slightly darker and this is more noticable on dull
grey days. That said it was well worth a slight light reduction in one
room to be able to use the conservatory all year round rather than
having to shut it off half the year cos it's roasting.

Total cost was about £500 so quite a cheap solution when
self-installing. I did contact Polycool who worked out about 33% dearer
for self-install but would supply and do the installation for about
£400 more which seemed reasonable if you don't fancy the job yourself.
They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Regards,

MH

Mary - have you noticed any difference in heat retention in the winter? I am thinking of getting new polycarbonate roof with this inserts and would like to have an idea of how much heat they retain in winter before I buy.
Thanks


she's become unhinged in the 13 years since the original post.

Maybe, but I have to also wonder about how they work and if one could
utilise the energy they either reflect or insulate, since it has to be quite
a lot I'd imagine.
Brian

--
----- --
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Andrew" wrote in message
...
On 06/06/2019 15:50, wrote:
On Tuesday, 10 October 2006 16:41:09 UTC+1, Mary Hinge wrote:
I've been meaning to post about these for a while so this is the
perfect opportuinity.

We have a large lean-to conservatory (approx 5.5m x 4.5m) which
suffered from glare and heat issues during the summer and was basically
unusable. I looked at various remedies such as blinds, vents, aircon
etc and after much deliberation took the plunge and went for the solar
inserts approach.

I ordered the inserts from http://www.casupply.co.uk/ as they were the
cheapest, don't take any notice of polycool's claim that their product
is superior, research revealed that the inserts were of the same
construction. I self-installed the inserts, it wasn't too difficult -
the first insert took about 30 mins of struggling but then once I got
the knack and had done a few more I was banging them in in about a
minute. Bear in mind though my roof was 5m long so by the time I got to
the top of the channel with an insert there was a fair amount of
resistance, on a shorter roof (say up to 4m) you wouldn't have any
trouble at all. I did take me the best part of two days but like I say
the roof was about 25m2, plus I gave the ends of the channels a
thorough clean as water had got into the ends and they were a bit
mossy, and a few other bits of maintenance while I was at it.
Essentials for the job - a can of silicon spray to reduce friction when
installing the inserts, and the correct breather tape for the bottom
end bars to make sure you don't get condensation in the channels.

So the crucial verdict: yes the SWMBO and I are well pleased with them.
I did the roof in April and all through the summer the conservatory
stayed nice & cool, even when the temps hit 35 degreesC in July it
really wasn't any warmer than the rest of the house plus the awful
glare went totally. We used the conservatory all summer which was a
first.

The only downside I can mention is light reduction. It's hard to
estimate but I would say the inserts reduced the light levels by up to
~25%. Not really a problem during summer but the lounge that opens into
the conservatory is slightly darker and this is more noticable on dull
grey days. That said it was well worth a slight light reduction in one
room to be able to use the conservatory all year round rather than
having to shut it off half the year cos it's roasting.

Total cost was about £500 so quite a cheap solution when
self-installing. I did contact Polycool who worked out about 33% dearer
for self-install but would supply and do the installation for about
£400 more which seemed reasonable if you don't fancy the job yourself.
They give discounts of up to 30% during the winter (around nov-feb
IIRC) so that would be the best time to purchase.

Regards,

MH

Mary - have you noticed any difference in heat retention in the winter? I
am thinking of getting new polycarbonate roof with this inserts and would
like to have an idea of how much heat they retain in winter before I buy.
Thanks


she's become unhinged in the 13 years since the original post.