Tiled and solid conservatory roofs

You can put a tiled roof on most existing conservatories, but not by tiling over the old one. The glass or polycarbonate roof comes off completely, and a lightweight, insulated “warm roof” is built on the existing frames in its place. Whether yours can take one depends on the frames, the base and the house wall, which the installer’s survey and building control both check.

LABC, the body for council building control teams in England and Wales, describes the lightweight composite solid roof as the preferred option for many homeowners. It says most existing conservatories can support the extra load, and names weak foundations and unreinforced window and door frames as the usual pitfalls.

How a lightweight tiled roof is built

A tiled conservatory roof is a factory-made kit, cut and numbered to the survey measurements and assembled on site. The build-up varies by system, but the published installation guides for Guardian, SupaLite, LEKA and Ultraframe follow broadly the same order:

1. The old roof is stripped out. The glass units at the top of the side frames are usually removed so the new roof can be fixed down through the frame heads.
2. A ring beam is fixed around the top of the frames, and a wall plate is fixed into the house wall.
3. Rafters, ridge and hips go up on props, with tie bars where the design needs them to stop the frames spreading under snow.
4. A deck goes on, then insulation, a breathable membrane, battens and the lightweight tiles or slates.
5. Inside, more insulation, battens and insulated plasterboard go up, wiring for spotlights is run, then the ceiling is skimmed.
6. Gutters, fascias and soffits are fitted, and building control inspects and issues a completion certificate.

“Lightweight” is the key word. These roofs use synthetic, composite or stone-coated steel tiles, not concrete or clay. LABC says a typical glazed conservatory roof puts less than 10kN/m on the frames and a lightweight composite solid roof is only likely to add about 0.5kN/m. Makers publish weights from 38kg/m² (Ultraframe’s UltraRoof 380) to under 46kg/m² (SupaLite). One comparison site puts Eurocell’s Equinox at 67kg/m², a figure Eurocell does not publish itself.

On warmth, a new roof in England has to reach a U-value of 0.15 W/m²K. Most systems claim 0.15 as standard, several offer 0.12, and LEKA quotes figures from 0.10 depending on specification. The best roof glass is about 1.0, so a solid roof loses several times less heat.

Can you just tile over the existing roof?

Some firms sell a “clad-over” or “wrap-over” roof, where insulation and a new covering are fixed over or around the old roof instead of replacing it. SupaLite and LEKA both warn that this adds weight to a structure built for something lighter and can overstress the walls, and PanelX says it can cause condensation and heat loss problems. It does not avoid building regulations either.

If one quote is far cheaper than the rest, check that the old roof is actually coming off. If you want to line the existing roof from inside instead, that is a different product with lower performance, covered on our conservatory roof insulation page.

What the installer and building control check first

The survey decides whether your conservatory can take a tiled roof and what extra work it needs. These are the checks the LABC guidance and the makers’ installation guides describe:

• Steel in the frames. Frames built for polycarbonate may only be reinforced for that load. A pilot hole or a magnet shows whether there is a steel core. If not, new frames or structural posts are needed.
• The base. A trial hole is dug in most cases to confirm the foundation.
• Signs of movement. Cracks between the conservatory and the house, or in the dwarf walls, have to be dealt with before a heavier roof goes on.
• The house wall. It must be sound and properly fixed into. Guardian’s guide specifies drilling into brick, not mortar, for box gutter fixings. Out-of-plumb walls are packed with shims, and existing damp should be investigated.
• Roof pitch. Every system and tile has a minimum. Equinox goes down to 5 degrees only with its SlateSkin sheet tiles, and SupaLite’s ExtraLight Shingle is approved to 10 degrees.
• Doors. The LivinRoof building control certificate requires bi-folding doors to be bottom supported, not top hung. Ask how yours will be treated.
• Electrics. Ceiling lights need an electrical certificate, and building control checks the insulation and vapour barrier are not broken around them.

Our guide to whether your conservatory can take a solid roof covers the structure in more detail, and the building regulations guide explains the approval route.

Tiled roof systems installers will offer you

Most installers fit one or two branded systems. The figures below are each maker’s own published claims, not our tests.

Two things the table does not show. First, the guarantee usually runs through the installer who fits the roof. Trustpilot reviews of Guardian, which ExpertSure reports has the largest installer network, include owners left without a usable guarantee after their installer stopped trading, so an insurance-backed guarantee is worth insisting on. Second, some systems have gone: Ultraframe phased out realROOF in 2017, and Synseal’s Celsius solid roof disappeared when Synseal and then its buyer failed, leaving owners with no manufacturer to claim against.

Does a tiled roof make the conservatory darker?

Yes. The light that came through the roof is gone, although the side windows and doors still let plenty in. The room that often suffers most is the one behind: several MoneySavingExpert posters warned that rooms borrowing light through the conservatory became noticeably darker. Roof windows, glazed panels in a hybrid roof and recessed spotlights are the usual answers.

Who a tiled roof suits, and who it does not

A tiled roof makes most sense if you want to use the room every month of the year, if it overheats in summer or roars in the rain, and if the frames and base are sound. Difficulty regulating the temperature was the top conservatory regret in an April 2026 Which? survey, named by 24% of members, and a solid roof is the most direct fix.

It suits less well if:

• rooms behind the conservatory depend on it for daylight and you do not want roof windows;
• the frames, windows or base are near the end of their life, when a full rebuild may be better value (see new roof or new conservatory);
• you mainly want to keep the sky view, where solar control glass is the alternative;
• your budget is below the roughly £7,400 a medium tiled roof starts at.

Questions to ask before you sign

When you get quotes, ask each installer the same questions so you can compare like for like:

1. Which roof system is it, who makes it, and which tile?
2. Who submits the building control application, to which body, and will I get the completion certificate?
3. How have you checked my frames for steel, and will you dig a trial hole?
4. Are posts, tie bars, frame reinforcement or box gutter supports needed, and are they in the price?
5. What is the insulation build-up and U-value? Please put it in writing.
6. How is condensation controlled: vapour barrier, taped joints, trickle vents?
7. Who does the plastering and the electrics, and will I get an electrical certificate?
8. Which guarantees apply (maker, workmanship, insurance backed, deposit protection), and who honours them if you stop trading?

Keep the written specification with the completion certificate. Since 6 August 2026, EPC assessors must record a conservatory whose roof has been replaced as an extension, and without visual or documentary evidence of the insulation they record it as uninsulated. Our tiled roof cost guide shows what a full price should include.