Lanai Acrylic Windows

[ducati1974]

Does anyone regret having had acrylic sliders installed on their lanai? I'm worried that I might miss the wide open feel of the screens only. The sliders only give you 50% opening max. Conversely, do others feel it was absolutely the right move?

[getdul981]

That is a good question. I would like to add to the question if it's OK. Is acrylic better or worse than glass? I've read that you need to have low-e glass if you go that route. Do they make low-e acrylic?

[Pturner]

Hi ducati,

First, welcome to TOTV! It's a wonderful community and I hope you will continue to post. You ask a good question.

We have not installed the acrylic sliders, but I feel very confident that I would miss the "outdoors" of our lanai. Even when we have been down this summer, we've eaten breakfast and read the paper on the lanai. With ceiling fan on, it was quite pleasant in the early mornings and late evenings. During the moderate weather of most of the year, I really love hanging out in the screened lanai.

However, that's just me. People who do install the sliders no doubt use it more often. It's a relatively inexpensive way to add indoor square footage, so I can see the advantages.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

[jaspal]

I have also thought that I would like the acrylic installed on my lanai. We have a lanai 29' x 12'. Curious what this would cost & who to use.

We will use our lanai during the months of November - May mostly. During he cooler months it would be nice to be able to still use the lanai.

Thoughts on this would be welcomed.

[ducati1974]

Our lanai is 28X9 and I've had 3 quotes $4500 to $5700 for acrylic sliders.

[Hancle704]

We had the acrylic windows and found they were hard to clean. Removed them and replaced with glass after a few years. They are sliders and we were sorry we went with acrylic initially.

[jaspal]

I have heard that by putting glass that it increases your taxes.
True or false.

I never thought about the cleaning of acrylic but I can now see that they might be a problem.

[mac9]

We enclosed our lanai with low e glass sliding doors. There is a raise in your taxes only if you put heat/air conditioning vents out there too. We opted not to put the vents in and have no problem keeping it cool with the regular house system.

[jaspal]

We enclosed our lanai with low e glass sliding doors. There is a raise in your taxes only if you put heat/air conditioning vents out there too. We opted not to put the vents in and have no problem keeping it cool with the regular house system.


What is the cost difference to put glass instead of vinyl?

[LB]

What is low-e glass

[iandwk]

What is the cost difference to put glass instead of vinyl?

I know there are some out there who like vinyl, but we decided against it after looking at several pre-owned homes for sale that had vinyl installed. All, not some, but all of them had places where the vinyl had pulled loose from the frame. Also in the heat of the day, the lanai smelled like plastic. The unit we rented this summer while house-shopping had vinyl. It had the same problems. We determined to not buy a house with vinyl enclosed lanai. This also brings up a point about eventually reselling your house. It will sell better with glass or acrylic.

I would recommend glass if you can afford it. Acrylic is not as easy to clean and glass affords better insulation.

[getdul981]

What is low-e glass

Low-e glass blocks a lot of the sun's UV and heat.

[784caroline]

WE just completed our lanai in Low E glass AND added heat AC. The tax increase is insignificant compared to the benefits of glass vs acrylic....and remember you are already paying taxes on the screened in lanai at a reduced rate. The added initial cost of glass vs acrylic is also not that much more especially for what you get.

The glass windows you buy in florida MUST meet Florida huricane standards and resist winds up to 110 MPH. Acrylic is only 70 MPH an in fact it is recommended you take tehse windows OUT if a major storm is approaching. REMEMBER we do live in FLorida and at some point in time WILL (not might) get hurricanes.

LOW E Glass windows offer better heat and sound insulation. They are much heavier than acrylic and therefore the frame the glass windows will be installed on "should be" sturdier than acrylics. This point should always be checked when you meet with prospective contractors..and donot accept a response that "we will build a frame to whatever county code requires"!!!! That contractor (or salesman) does not know what he /she is talking about. Remember the window is only as strong as the frame or installation itself.

You can buy tinted and/or tempered glass to provide you better comfort and sense of security..tempered glass especially if you live on a golf course. If your lanai has a western exposure to any degree, you need LOW E windows and again not all windows are created equal..there are cheap windows out there so be careful....you get what you pay for.

Life expectancy of glass windows should not be a problem...acrylic will eventually get scratchy or even discolored.

Finally a room done in glass (to me) simply looks better and you can do alot more in terms of decorating. We actually removed our sliding glass doors, "arched" the entrance way, and added to our family room sq footage by adding low e glass sliders over 20in tempered glass transom windows...reallly changed the entire appearance of the room. This should also help resale value.

[Mudder]

We had acrylic for about 6 years at our house in Tampa. We had the ones that open vertically, there are usually 4 panels which you can push up or push down, really whatever you want. We loved them, we had sun all afternoon and it was very nice in the winter months. We would eat out there, watch TV out there, etc... also you can see out but people can not see in so there is a bit of privacy. Never had a problem cleaning them. In Pasco county if you put glass in , it does raise your taxes, not sure about these counties.

[Vinny]

The only people I personally know with enclosed lanais did so because they have numerous family visitors and need more indoor space. Personally I have no children and infrequent visitors (when they do come I direct them to a local hotel. After 20 years of hosting house guest I have had my fill) so there is no problem with indoor space. If I do sit in the lanai it is for the fresh air and breeze and not the sun. If I were to do anything it would be to extend the lanai roof out more to give me more room shaded from the sun. I would never consider enclosing it as it does not fit in with my lifestyle.

[jaspal]

Thanks for your excellent suggestion. I have not thought about the difference until now.

I would love to have ours enclosed with glass so we can use the lanai all year.

[ducati1974]

I'm beginning to re-consider installing Acrylic. I, like you prefer the wide open screens- the downside to me is that when it rains water comes in. How do you deal with this? The thought of having to wash all those windows & deal with the maintenance is not appealing not to mention the reduced air flow & "outdoor" feel. Did you do any kind of finish on your floor such as tile or coatings? Thanks for your input.