To be boxed in is a common feeling. It describes the experience of feeling restricted or limited in one’s options.
This is a feeling many homeowners experience when they embark on important landscaping projects, those that typically require a significant investment. Nobody likes to make mistakes, to build something that may solve one problem when, if it had been better planned, could have created multiple outdoor living options.
3 season and 4 season rooms, for instance, enable homeowners to enjoy an outdoor space over the course of multiple seasons. They give you the freedom to enjoy an environment that is more connected to the outdoors and typical interior spaces.
In their search for freedom and a greater connection with the outdoors, homeowners sometimes find it challenging to choose between 3 season and 4 season room. What are the important differences, the pros and cons of each option?
Read further to discover which seasonal room is right for you.
Plan For Highest Priority Activities
You must carefully consider how and when you will use your outdoor room. Those activities will begin to push it toward one option or the other, a 3 season or 4 season room.
Think about your family’s lifestyle today and for as long as you expect to live in your home. Certain activities may take a higher priority now, when your family is younger than they will in the future.
For example, if you want the space to feel a greater association with the outdoors, then a 3 season room will always allow you to feel the changes in the season, not just the colors, but the fragrances and ambient conditions.
4 season rooms, on the other hand, have a greater association with the interior. They are essentially a climate-controlled extension of your home, but often with a greater feeling of openness, often with more and larger windows.
Other core functional features of the two include:
3 Season Rooms
- Less protection, control, comfort, and accessibility to the home’s interior. 3 season rooms may be quite comfortable on colder days, provided there is abundant sunlight to warm the space through its windows.
- More freedom to experience the natural environment, for example, to soak in the cool temperatures and bright sunlight of a fresh autumn day.
- A casual outdoor living space that may feel like a screened porch off a lakefront cabin.
- Intentional feeling of separation from the main house
4 Season Rooms
- More protection, control, comfort, and temperature-control that seamlessly blends with the home’s primary interior spaces.
- A formal outdoor living space with carpeting or hardwood and similar upgraded finishes.
- Greater flexibility for incorporating technology that may not be weather-resistant.
- An intentional connectivity with the other rooms in the home.
When it comes to the function of your outdoor room, prioritizing is everything. Think about which activities you do the most and where you like to do them; indoors or outdoors. Be sure to eliminate from consideration any activities better served by interior rooms or by completely open outdoor spaces.
For instance, given the choice, do you prefer to dine indoors or outdoors? The former would be more aligned with a 4 season room and the latter more aligned with a 3 season room. What about an afternoon siesta? Do you enjoy napping with fresh air gently caressing your face or do you prefer a more traditional sleeping environment that a 4 season room would provide?
The most obvious differrence between 3 season and 4 season rooms is that the latter will have air that is heated and cooled along with the rest of the home. For this reason, its insulation, plumbing, and electrical requirements will be equivalent. 3 season rooms will be more economical by relying on sunlight, space heaters, and ceiling fans that buffer the seasonal living conditions.
Finally, consider the frequency of your desired activities. Are everyday activities as important as special, celebratory events? It’s very likely your answer is yes. Understanding that, you will have to reconcile your choice with the understanding that you’ll need to be flexible to changing in the weather with a 3 season room.
Being specific ensures you make the right outdoor room decision for the most important times of your life.
Design and Build To Support The Plan
The construction differences between 3 season and 4 season rooms directly tie into the amount of time you are able to use the space. 3 season rooms can be typically used April-November, and also in locations with more temperate winters. 4-season rooms can be used all year long, even on the most frosty Minnesota winter days.
Other core constructional features of the two include:
3 Season Rooms
- Require fewer structural changes as they can often be added to an existing deck or patio
- An exterior door separates the outdoor room from the main house
- Excavation of a foundation, installation of heating or plumbing systems, or insulation of windows, doors, or roof are not factors to consider when crafting a 3 season room
- More durable than a screened porch or enclosed deck
- Must follow the International Code Council’s building codes for Minnesota
- Materials for landscape carpentry can include: vinyl, resin, aluminum, wood, or composite wood and screens or energy-efficient glass for windows
4 Season Rooms
- More consider may be required to architecturally complement the home’s existing roofline and exterior
- Built to use your home’s current HVAC system all year long
- Designed with wall, floor, and roof insulation
- More durable than a screened porch or enclosed deck
- Must follow the International Code Council’s building codes for Minnesota
- Materials for landscape carpentry include foundational slab, electrician supplies, wood, and insulated, low-E, double-glazed glass for walls, and even the roof.
So there are no surprises when it comes to building the outdoor room of your dreams, we suggest hiring professionals who can guide you through the planning, design, and budgeting process, and has experience with landscape carpentry.
Architectural Landscape Design: Helping Make the Right Decisions
Here at ALD, our top priority is creating open spaces that are right for you. Our 3 season rooms and 4 season rooms are ideal living space extensions that serve as sanctuaries for chaotic lives. Our team of dedicated professionals will work with you to help make the right decision for your personal needs. Contact us today to get started on your outdoor room oasis. Let’s think outside the box, together.