More light: we make a transparent polycarbonate roof

Envision an area that is abundant with natural light, with the sun’s rays softly penetrating and fostering a calm atmosphere. This is the appeal of a transparent polycarbonate roof, a cutting-edge fix that makes any building seem airy and bright. Polycarbonate panels, in contrast to conventional roofing materials, provide a special combination of resilience and transparency that lets light through while providing weather protection.

Transparent polycarbonate roofs offer a flexible way to optimize natural lighting, whether you’re improving a patio, greenhouse, or even a pergola. These panels are simple to install and maintain because they are sturdy but lightweight. Because they are available in a variety of hues and patterns, you can adjust the UV protection and light levels to suit your needs.

The superior thermal insulation qualities of polycarbonate make it a valuable roofing material. By minimizing heat gain on hot days and decreasing heat loss in cooler weather, it aids in temperature regulation. This energy-saving feature may result in lower heating and cooling expenses in addition to making the space more comfortable.

Of course! This is a succinct thesis statement for your article: "Homeowners can maximize indoor natural light while maintaining long-lasting protection from the weather by installing a transparent polycarbonate roof. This piece examines the advantages, installation procedure, and upkeep guidelines for installing a clear polycarbonate roof, emphasizing the material’s usefulness, visual appeal, and practical benefits for contemporary roofing solutions."

What polycarbonate to cover the roof: a review of three types of material

To cover the roof can, use polycarbonate:

• monolithic;
• profiled;
• Sotov.

Furthermore, the characteristics of these polycarbonate varieties differ so greatly from one another that they appear to be entirely distinct materials at first glance. They thus employ them for various purposes.

Monolithic polycarbonate

Midway through the 20th century, monolithic polycarbonate—a polymer—was developed as an exceptionally robust material. And this evolution has become truly revolutionary: glass has a true alternative for the first time in thousands of years, and transparent roofs in arbors and terraces have evolved from a luxury item to a focal point of architecture.

Even without considering that monolithic polycarbonate is less expensive than glass, choosing it for a roof nonetheless makes a lot of sense because of its qualities. This content:

1. It passes the light well – Its translucent reaches 90%. For comparison, the average translustment of glass is 89-91%, more only in special enlightened glasses-up to 95%.
2. Confronts even very strong blows – a sheet of 10 mm thick withstands a small -caliber bullet hit. Therefore, monolithic polycarbonate on the roof will not break the hail or icicle falling from the cornice.
3. Does not burn, does not spread or support combustion.
4. Does not distort the contours of objects – through an even continuous sheet of monolithic polycarbonate, the light passes about the same as through a single glass.
5. Easy to cut and bended, Moreover, the minimum bending radius is only 430 mm.
6. Chemically inert to solutions of salts, weak solutions of acids, fats, alcohols.
7. Resistant to temperature drops and can be operated in the range from -50 ° C to 120 ° C.
8. Durable -the warranty service life of polycarbonate on the roof is about 15 years, the real one is at least 2-3 times more.
9. It retains heat well -thermal conductivity of monolithic polycarbonate is only 0.21 W/(m · ° C), while in glass-1-1.15 W/(m · ° C).
10. It absorbs noise – up to 23 dB.

The roofs of public, administrative, and commercial buildings are made of monolithic polycarbonate because of its strength, dependability, and transparency. Aboveground pedestrian tunnels, anti-aircraft lights, and vandal-resistant public transportation stops are all made from this material. Since bent glass is costly and challenging to transport, it is particularly frequently used to create arched and domed structures. The following picture shows an example of a polycarbonate roof of that type:

Glass is still widely used, despite all of the benefits of monolithic polycarbonate. And he faces stiff competition even in the polymer roofing coating market. And all because of this material’s shortcomings:

1. Relatively high price. Polycarbonate coating on the roof costs less than glass. But compared to other roofing materials, including copper, it is many times more expensive.
2. Forms drops under the influence of fire. Monolithic polycarbonate does not burn, but at a very high temperature – about 600 ° C – it begins to melt with the formation of hot drops. If there are combustible materials under the roof of polycarbonate, then the hit on them of hot drops can lead to fire.
3. Low resistance to aromatic hydrocarbons, alkalis, chlorine. This means that for cleaning the roof from polycarbonate, organic solvents and most of the everyday products cannot be used.
4. Flaw and yellowing over time. The life of monolithic polycarbonate, especially Tolstoy, is limited not by the physical destruction of the material, but how long it will maintain acceptable transparency.
5. Complex installation. The device of the roof of monolithic polycarbonate is a task for specialists, since a powerful frame frame must be made for this material.
6. Greater weight Compared to other roofing materials from polycarbonate. The flat polycarbonate sheet has a relatively small bearing capacity. Therefore, it is better to cover the roof with polycarbonate with a thickness of 6-10 mm, depending on the snow load and the size of the plates. And such a polycarbonate weighs 7.2-12 kg/m 2 .

If money is not an issue or a stunning roof that is visually identical to glass is required, monolithic polycarbonate roofing is the best option. Furthermore, only this material may be installed on the rooftops of capital buildings and private residences. It is preferable to use different kinds of polycarbonate to create a roof in all other situations.

Profiled polycarbonate

Monolithic polycarbonate is too costly and difficult to install to be considered a mass roofing material. Profiled polycarbonate is an effort to address these two issues. and very prosperous.

This polycarbonate roof material operates based on the same principles as corrugated board. There and there was a thin sheet of material with trapezoidal corrugations that gave it a wave-like shape. The sheet cannot bend when under load thanks to these waves, which act as stiffeners. Consequently, profiled polycarbonate can withstand up to 350 kg/m 2 with a thickness of no more than 2 mm. With the exception of the Far North and mountainous regions, this is more than sufficient for the great majority of Russia’s regions.

An excellent roofing material for arbors, awnings, verandas, and related structures is profiled polycarbonate. This content:

1. Lasting – his shock viscosity 163 kJ/m², so the blow with a football or tennis ball for him and the problem, like a regular hail.
2. Easy – depending on the thickness weighs from 1.17 to 2.9 kg/m².
3. Very easy to install – The technology of roofing with polycarbonate is almost no different from the technology of laying corrugated board.
4. Inexpensive Even compared to budget roofing materials – from 450 rubles per m 2 .
5. Misses up to 90% sunlight with a slight distortion of the image.
6. Bent, although the minimum radius is quite large – from 4 m.
7. Coincides in the profile with some brands of corrugated board, including C20 and C21, so these materials can be used on the roof together.

Aside from different kinds of polycarbonate canopies, greenhouses and light-transmitting inserts are made for production buildings like barns, warehouses, and farms. How does a polycarbonate roof like this one appear in the picture?

The cost of lighting the space is significantly decreased by the light windows in the roof. If they are properly designed, then enough natural light can enter in the afternoon through transparent inserts to allow for work.

Profiled polycarbonate is hardly ever used for the roofs of private residences or public buildings. The truth is that the profiled material has drawbacks of its own in addition to the drawbacks common to all polycarbonates, such as melting when droplets form, low resistance to petrochemistry and alkalis, and gradual loss of transparency. This content:

• practically does not interfere with heat loss;
• poorly suppresses noise;
• It breaks through a very strong blow;
• serves no more than 30 years.

Can a polycarbonate roof be installed on a private home with these kind of flaws? Of course not. For capital buildings, the coating that can withstand a large hailstorm is unacceptable, even without accounting for thermal losses. Even though there is little chance that such a city will collapse.

Cellular polycarbonate

From this family, cellular or cellular polycarbonate is the largest material. It was created in Israel during the 1970s for use in greenhouse construction. Since then, cellular polycarbonate has no rivals in this market. The explanation lies in a special pairing of attributes:

• Very small weight – less than 1 kg with a sheet thickness of 4 mm;
• relatively high strength – The thinnest sheet is capable of absorbing a blow to 21 N · m;
• It holds heat well – the heat transfer resistance of cellular polycarbonate is from 0.23 to 0.79 m 2 · ° C/W;
• It is easily bending with a radius less than a meter for thin sheets;
• installation Cellular polycarbonate roofs Very simple due to special mounts;
• Extremely low price – from 150 rubles per 1 m 2 .

The peculiar structure produced a material that was both light and solid at the same time. Two to four thin sheets arranged parallel to one another with partitions in between make up cellular polycarbonate. In other words, the material is literally airy, with air taking up the majority of the sheet volume. Additionally, the partitions serve as dampers, preventing damage to the material even when it takes fairly heavy hits.

Winter gardens, greenhouses, and greenhouses are good uses for the best cellular polycarbonate. However, this is a poor decision for the roofs of houses and canopies because cellular polycarbonate:

• attracts dust due to severe electrification;
• It can “bloom” if dirt gets inside the cells;
• On average, it serves no more than 15 years;
• may occur due to difficulties in sealing;
• misses less light than other types of polycarbonate, and distorts the image.

To put it plainly, a cellular sheet makes the roof muddy and frequently dirty rather than transparent. In other words, the decision’s entire aesthetic value is gone. However, this did not stop the mass materialization of cellular polycarbonate. Its frank affordability made it Russia’s primary awning coating.

Types of polycarbonate roofs and their features

Polycarbonate roofs are rarely complex in shape because they are typically used on arbors, terraces, and other small buildings. Typically, there are four different structures’ roofs:

• flat;
• single -shoe;
• gable;
• arched.

Level roofs In southern regions with low snowfall, small buildings made of polycarbonate are a good fit. In this instance, moisture removal requires a minimum slope of 0.5–1.5%. However, if a lot of snow falls, it will need to be cleaned up because the snow mass gets bad on flat roofs.

Lift the roof. Even on small slopes, the snow practically never stays on polycarbonate, making it far more practical. Furthermore, the pitched roof composed of monolithic and profiled polycarbonate cleans itself every time it rains by washing away dirt and small debris from the material’s surface.

The most basic and popular type of pitched roof is the single-toe roof. The most common ways are terraces, awnings fastened to the house, and verandas. They also form a single-sided roof on independent buildings, but usually with a slight slope. A strong wind directed towards the high edge of the roof has the potential to tear off the roofing if the slope is made too steep, giving the structure an unbalanced appearance.

Gable roof Reduce the frequency. It is hard to seal the horse she owns. Steel skating strips are frequently used to decorate horses on monolithic and profiled polycarbonate roofs, which detracts from the overall aesthetic appeal. Even though these materials have specific skating elements, they are pricey and not always available for purchase. There is never a problem when using cellular polycarbonate because manufacturers are always available for use with the skate profile, which is frequently used for it. However, the skate node is not the most dependable—not even with a unique connecting element.

Independently standing structures frequently have polycarbonate arched roofs that are chopped. The arched roof is spacious, elegant, and the snow just rolls off it if the radius of rounding is small, nearly without putting any weight on the foundation or roofing. When hail hits an arched roof, it hits much harder than it does on a flat slope.

The relative difficulty of building the frame is the only disadvantage of the arched structure. It will need to order finished farms or pipe bent with the required radius before installing a polycarbonate roof. Of course, you can bend pipes yourself, but not everyone is up to the challenge of this labor-intensive task.

DIY polycarbonate roof: step by step and detail

As we mentioned earlier, it is preferable to work with experts when installing monolithic polycarbonate. You need a great deal of experience to cut and lay this material correctly and, more importantly, to cook a frame for it. Cellular and profiled sheets are an additional item that can be installed independently. What you need to know about this and how to make a polycarbonate roof at home are detailed below.

DIY Polycarbonate flat

Cellular polycarbonate is not often used to create a flat, transparent roof; however, in the first season, a very gentle roof made of this material may start to flow. You need to seal the roof on multiple levels to stop this from happening. While it is far simpler to create a polycarbonate flat roof with a fully sealed profile. This aids in the water flow by facilitating the overlaps of the sheets above and the embossed form. As a result, think about installing a profiled polycarbonate flat roof.

The frame of the frame is where work starts. He uses either wooden boards and beams or metal profile pipes.

Two sections are required for profile pipes:

• 80 × 80 mm for Mauerlates – horizontal beams on which the crate will be based;
• 60 × 30 mm or more for rafters and crate.

If you plan to build a wooden frame, you will need two beams measuring 100 by 100 mm or a board measuring 150 by 50 mm for the rafters and Mauerlat, in addition to a beam measuring 60 by 60 mm for a crate.

Here’s how to create a polycarbonate roof frame step-by-step:

1. Mauerlates are laid on racks from two opposite sides of the buildings strictly horizontally and fixed on racks or walls. The metal profile is fastened with welding to the supports or embedded, a wooden beam with corners and self -tapping screws to the racks or on studs or wire to the wall.
2. In the same way, the rafters are attached to the Mauerlates with a narrow side down. Typically, a step of the rafters is taken equal to 1.5 m. On wooden rafter boards for better fixation, it is advisable to make cutting out of a third or quarter of a height.
3. Fix the crate across the rafters. Her step depends on the load on the roof and the thickness of the polycarbonate:

Whatever material the frame is made of, it needs to be either glued to the crate on top of the foil or painted with a lighter shade of white paint. By doing this, polycarbonate will be shielded from overheating and have an extended lifespan.

Following paint drying, the roof is covered in polycarbonate:

1. Sheets begin to lay down from the bottom from the side opposite the direction of the prevailing wind.
2. Mount polycarbonate by the logo up – this is how the side protected from ultraviolet radiation is indicated.
3. For fastening polycarbonate, holes with a diameter of about 10 mm are pre -drilled in it. This is necessary to compensate for the temperature expansion. In addition, an attempt to screw a self -tapping screw directly into the sheet often ends with its cracking at the place of fastening.
4. Polycarbonate sheets are laid with a transverse overlap at least 200 mm and longitudinal overlap in one wave.
5. Cades should be at least 50 mm, a maximum of 200 mm.
6. In places of adjacent polycarbonate, a gap of at least 3 mm is left to the walls and other structures.
7. The places of overlap are necessarily glued with a special sealing ribbon: in the center of the transverse overlap and along the crest of the wave with a longitudinal overlap.
8. Profiled polycarbonate is attached into a comb through a wave into each bar of the crate, observing the chess order.
9. The sheet in the places of transverse overflows is attached to each wave, in places of longitudinal-with a step of 300-400 mm.
10. For fastening, use self -tapping screws with self -metering gasket. Optimal-with metizes that the manufacturer of profiled polycarbonate produces, but roofing self-tapping screws with an increased diameter of EPDM laying are also suitable.
11. When screwing self -tapping screws, they should never be squeezed: the gasket should be tightly pressed to the surface of the sheet, but not squeezed out of the puck with a roller.

In the video, it is made very clear how to cover the roof with polycarbonate:

The pipe for the arc needs to be bent with the same radius first. Such a service is frequently available for instant ordering at the location where pipes are purchased, such as a metal depot or a construction hypermarket. Although you can accomplish this on your own using a pipeline, it is challenging to bend an arc with the same radius using common household tools.

Once the arcs are prepared, assemble the polycarbonate roof frame. Proceed in one of two manners:

1. Welding farms on earth. In this case, the farms are first collected first and then only install them on the supports. This method of installation of the frame is easier, since the number of work with the welding machine at altitude is greatly reduced. But you will need help with the rise and fixation of heavy farms before welding.
2. Step -by -step assembly of the frame. A more time -consuming installation method when farms are collected immediately at the construction. In this case, the frame can be fully boiled alone.

Whichever way the farms are installed, they are placed on Mauerlates and meticulously aligned to be precisely level. They are then fastened to the crate pipes after that. Similar to the minimum radius of rounding, the crate’s step is determined by the sheet’s thickness:

After finishing, the frame is cleaned, painted brightly, and primed twice. Following that, polycarbonate can be used to cover the roof:

1. The first to install connecting detachable base profiles-longitudinal fasteners that will hold the sheet in place. They are attached to each profile of the crate using bolts or metal screws. It is important not to squeeze the mount – the walls of the basic profile should remain vertical, and not bend inside.
2. On both sides of the base profile, the seal is glued.
3. Sheets of cellular polycarbonate are adjusted in width under the distance between the basic profiles, stacked with stiffeners (partitions) parallel to rafters. The marking should be on top.
4. Near the basic profile and along it, another sealing tape is glued to the sheets of polycarbonate.
5. The seal is pressed by the upper part of the detachable profile and, if any, a decorative lid.
6. Sheets of cellular polycarbonate are additionally fixed using self -tapping screws. They are screwed into each profile of the crate in three places: on both sides of the sheet directly near the base and one self -tapping screw is put in the center of the sheet.
7. After fastening from the sheet, the protective film is removed.
8. Protective end profiles are installed on polycarbonate.

It’s crucial to use compatible mounts and additional components when installing any kind of polycarbonate. This is because polycarbonate has a low chemical resistance, which makes it capable of destroying seemingly safe objects. For instance, moistened seals or PVC films release chlorine, which quickly corrodes polycarbonate.

Any space can be significantly improved by adding a transparent polycarbonate roof, which will let in more natural light and shield it from the elements. Polycarbonate, with its reputation for strength and low weight, is an excellent material option for individuals seeking to add color to their surroundings without compromising longevity.

Excellent light transmission properties of polycarbonate make it an excellent choice for roofing. Polycarbonate lets more light through than conventional roofing materials like metal or asphalt shingles, making the space underneath feel lighter and cozier. This can be especially helpful for indoor areas that prioritize natural light, such as patios and greenhouses.

Moreover, polycarbonate roofing offers exceptional resistance against weathering and impacts. They are a dependable option for many climates because they can tolerate hail, high winds, and temperature swings. Because of its longevity, investing in a polycarbonate roof will pay off in the long run by requiring little upkeep and offering peace of mind.

The flexibility in design that polycarbonate roofing provides is another important factor. It is available in a range of colors and transparency levels, so you can adjust the level of privacy and light diffusion to suit your needs. Polycarbonate offers options to suit various aesthetic preferences, whether you want a clear roof to maximize sunlight or a tinted one for shading.

Finally, choosing a clear polycarbonate roof will ensure longevity and adaptability while optimizing natural light in your room. Polycarbonate roofing turns out to be a useful and attractive option whether you’re remodeling an existing structure, building a new outdoor living space, or refurbishing a patio.

Video on the topic

Terrace with a transparent roof, how much monolithic polycarbonate costs.

KD.i: transparent roof of the terrace. Inexpensive and fast. h.1.

Installation of monolithic profiled polycarbonate

Profiled polycarbonate novattro

Cons and pluses of monolithic profiled polycarbonate.

Plastic slate/polycarbonate