Instead of spending more money on the interior of your home this year, instead of updating your cooker hood or changing the bathroom suite just because it's a year old, why not purchase a conservatory instead?

Many people believe that a conservatory can add a whole new dimension to your property; they can either add a room to your house or provide you with your own tropical garden heaven.

With the UK climate iffy at best, we can only dream of a room bathed in sunshine during the day where we can sit in the warmth and on chilly days, have a full view of the garden or scenery if you lucky enough to live by any without venturing outside.

Even better is to have the perfect spot for watching the sunset in the evening with one or two beverages of your choice. It's no surprise that conservatories are such big sellers in this country, for a fraction of the cost of an extension you can have a whole extra room, which can be used for many different functions. Many people whose homes were built without a separate dining room find a conservatory an economical way of getting one, with the added bonus of dining under the stars.

However you want to use your conservatory, before you pick up the phone and order one, there are a few things to consider making sure you really do get a room you will use all year round, and not one that becomes a stifling oven in the summer or an abandoned, chilly outpost in the winter.

The first thing you need to look at is choosing the right style. There are lots of designs available, from simple 'lean-to' arrangements to elaborate constructions with L-shapes or turrets. Among the most fashionable are double-height conservatories that create a lofty atrium, which great if you want to grow a tall orange or banana tree.

You can also have whole glass walls that will fold back or slide away, which you may have seen in some trendy cafés, so that the room really can be an extension of the garden. The best thing to do if you have internet access is to browse through the websites of several conservatory manufacturers to get an idea of styles, materials, and prices.

Second thing is to look into the best way to heat up and cool down the conservatory. Even if your conservatory is south facing, it will need proper heating if you want to use it as an extra room all winter, rather than a glorified greenhouse just for plants. Conversely, a south-facing conservatory in the summer is likely to get unbearably hot unless you have some way of cooling it down. It is better to position a conservatory on an east or west wall, but if a south wall is your only option, you may want to think about having a sunroom with a tiled roof to keep it from overheating.

Make sure there are plenty of windows you can open easily both to cool it down, and for ventilation to stop the room getting too steamy if you have lots of plants. You can have an air-conditioning unit incorporated in a conservatory design, or blinds specially manufactured for conservatories, or a ceiling fan, which looks particularly stylish with Edwardian or Victorian-style conservatories.

Some conservatory manufacturers use a special type of glass designed for the British climate, with a coating that cuts down the intensity of solar heat, while at the same time retaining warmth from heaters in the winter. Others offer a ventilation system which keeps air circulating all the time to prevent overheating. Make sure you get the best type of roofing for your conservatory. A local conservatory roofing manufacturer [http://www.specialisedltd.co.uk/conservatory-roof-manufacturers.asp] will be able to guide you down the right path and explain what the ideal system for your needs is.