Mr breeze
I dont think you are going to have a SUN room on the north side of the house. The only time you are going to have sun is in the dead of summer. I have a sun room on the south side of the house and it is a big boon to me for starting seeds etc. I has windows enough and I use the sun to my advantage. Sometimes I have to use lighting on dark days and evenings after the plants are up and striving for light.
Best of luck - Bill

I had a glassed-in sun porch at my last house on the second floor - it was a 1895 Victorian house; they used the sunporch to sleep in during the hot summer months, and since the windows were so old, it wasn't exactly air tight. It was on the West side of the house and I used it to start my seeds in - worked like a dream. Unfortunately, it was hotter than you-know-what during the summer. If I had my pick of locations, I'd want it on the North side as well - my house plants always grow best there, and I always use lights on a rack for seed-starting anyway, so the reduced strength of light on the North wouldn't be a problem for me.

A friend of mine has a greenhouse attached to his home, and it faces South, I believe, but he has lots of shade trees on that side of the house. He loves having it there because it also serves to insulate his house in the winter from the chill.

My only concern would be with the construction (my husband is a renovation specialist) - but there are lots of things you can do to make it highly energy efficient. Make sure the company you hire has some experience with energy-efficiency; if they don't you can either do some research and tell them what you want as far as methods of efficiency, or go with someone else who is experienced in the area.

Make sure you keep us updated - maybe send us a pic when it's all finished!

Best of luck!
Ada

Mr. Breeze,

I think you could have your builder get some sort of building engineer or electrician to check the light on the north side of your house with a light meter and tell you what you'd have to do to ensure adequate light in the room for plants. You can always install fluorescent lights overhead to supplement the natural light, or you can have them put in skylights to let in extra light. Remember that the sunlight is significantly weaker in winter so it is likely you'll need some supplemental lighting.

I have a screened-in porch that I use for seedstarting, but it is on the west side of the house (a deliberate choice so it could shield the back of the house from the afternoon's hot western sun during the hot months). With sun coming in the western and southern sides, that porch gets over 90 degrees on some winter afternoons, and all we've done is cover the screens with 6 mm greenhouse plastic for the winter.

I think the north side is a great side because a glassed-in sunroom would barely be usable from April through September. Our screened-in porch is used a lot in milder weather, but in July and August, only the cats and dogs hang out there.

Dawn

Thanks for the replies.

Due to the orientation of the house and the location of the back patio, I have no choice on the location. Did I mention it will also be right up under three 50' oaks? So clearly light is going to be somewhat of an issue. However i'm prepared for that since I'm already using them in the house. I grow orchids and they are mostly types that grow in fairly deep shade in Africa and Madagascar, so ironically, the north side light might just be perfect.

Anyway, I'm really a lot more concerned about aspects of sunrooms having to do with temperature and humidity. I'm afraid that everything I do to both heat and cool it will eat up my humidity. This thing will be used essentially as a greenhouse. I call it a sunroom mainly because it will be attached to the house and (hopefully) very well insulated.

I think the reality will end up being that I'll require some type of external humidifier year round in addition to misters/foggers. I may be able to design into it, an opening that can accomadate a small swamp cooler. That may just be an excellent idea?

I guess my main confusion comes with what would be the best way to heat it? One or two small electric space heaters might be enough if it is insulated enough. Plus it should get some heat from the rest of the house. But I'm paranoid about losing power and i think i'd prefer something with natural gas. I think in an ideal world I would use a small gas powered hot water tank that feeds an under floor system. Anyway, any more thoughts? thanks!