Removable Temporary Sun Room on Front Porch
 

Hi everyone, I'm not really sure where to put this...

We have a south facing front porch that recieves a TON of sunlight in the late fall/early spring and winter. I'd like to devise a system to install temporary "windows" around the whole thing to capture that heat and am looking for suggestions.

I don't really want to use glass. I've looked at Lexan but, man, is it expensive. Plus, the height is over 8' so I couldn't use standard 4x8 sheets.

I've considered building frames with plastic but "clear" poly is not really clear but rather cloudy.

I've pondered a type of roll up "shade," like one would have in front of an interior window, with snaps to attach to the posts when pulled down but don't know what to make it out of.

Considerations:
-Cost
-Crystal Clear (so no normal "clear" poly )
-Removable
-Durable (High winds here occasionally)

I look forward to hearing the communities ideas!

Thanks!!

What about trying to nab some used windows off craigslist or something? Should be pretty cheap.

Unfortunately, no clear glazing material is going to be incredibly cheap.

You are in pinball country. You could probably get used playfield glass it would have some scratches in it but it is tempered. It is common practice to replace used pinball glass when you buy a used pinball machine. Lots of times they will give away the old glass. Maybe an outside the box way to save money. Clist is also good place as stated above.

Have you made any progress on this wewantutopia?

No I haven't. I'm just brainstorming and planning. I'm rebuilding our front porch next year and I want to incorporate this into the design.

I really don't want to use rigid material (glass/poly). I remember reading about UV stable ultra clear plastic used for greenhouses but I can't remember what it was called.

It's called 4 year greenhouse film, due to its 4 year warranty. 6 Mil, UV stabilized. Don't buy the crap at Lowe's or HD, it's not the same as the commercial grade. If you were wondering, you're better off buying a whole roll. The money they charge you for a custom cut is outrageous. A 50 foot roll is around $100.

Another idea is to use Suntuf panels. They are more durable than greenhouse film, but would take more effort to install and remove. Made of the same stuff as 2 liter bottles. Much clearer than PE film, same light transmission value.

Awesome thanks! I found just some high transparancy stuff that is 16 mil: here. I' like it to be wider than 54" but I only just started looking.

I am invisioning plastic like this incorporated into a roll up shade (like you'd see on interior windows) with snaps istalled around the perimeter. The other half of the snaps would be istalled on the porch posts and floor. This way it could be rolled down in the late fall snapped in place the unsnapped and rolled up in spring.

What do you guys think?

edit:

Well, I since this plastic is really clear vinyl I started searching for clear uv vinyl and found that something that I'm looking for already exists! Clear vinyl winter curtians! Theres tons of stuff on the web. Videos too.

This one: Clear Plastic Vinyl Patio Curtains & Walls - YouTube

is kind of like I'm pictureing just implemented differently. Sorry, a hyperlink to the video screws up the formating of this post.