When life was slower and simpler, many houses
had substantial front porches. These were places to relax, catch
up on the latest neighborhood gossip, or cool down on a hot summer
night.
But with the industrialization and inventions of the 20th century
the desire for front porches waned. By the 1930's, real porches
were being replaced by small entries or simple canopies for the
front door.
A modern variation on the porch is the sunroom or sunspace, conservatory,
greenhouse, or solarium. Although these all-glass enclosures are
seldom used as front porches, they serve some of the same purposes
as an enclosed porch. When used as a breezeway, a sunroom can also
link an addition or garage to the house.
Sunrooms have frames of aluminum or decay-resistant red cedar that
hold the glass panels. Glazing may be single-pane, but in newer, more
energy-efficient sunrooms, double-glazing is nearly always used. Sunrooms
generally rest on a concrete foundation and slab floor.
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