Rafter Lane

Sunrooms, screened porches and patio enclosures: what each one adds, what it costs, and why quotes differ so much.

Prices come from real contractor quotes and manufacturer list prices.

From covered patio to four-season room

Each step adds to the one below it. Only the last one reaches winter.

SheetL-0
Section through a four-season room, each layer numbered by the step that adds it Step 1 adds the roof over the slab. Steps 2 to 5 all change the wall opening: screens, then vinyl panels, then glass, then insulated glass. Step 4 also adds the knee wall. Step 5 insulates the roof, knee wall and slab edge and adds a mini split heat pump. INTERIOR GRADE 1 5 2 3 4 5 4 5 5

Each number is the step that adds that layer; the opening changes four times, from screens to insulated glass. Point at a topic to see its layers.

Patio Enclosures

Covering the patio you already have.

Screened Porches

Filling the openings: screens first, then vinyl panels.

Four-Season Rooms

Glass and a knee wall, then insulation and heat.

Or build it new: a glass room built from scratch rather than an enclosed porch or patio.

Sunrooms

A kit, a room framed on site, or a solarium with a glass roof.

  • Typical use
  • Some days, or set by the build
  • Not used

About this sheet

Drawing
Typical section, not to scale
Seasons
Typical use; shifts with your climate
Revision
Rev. 0, Sep 2026

New ideas

Concept images Idea images are AI-made concepts, not photos of real projects. About our images

All ideasby topic: Sunrooms, Four-Season Rooms, Screened Porches, Patio Enclosures

Where the numbers come from

Every range on Rafter Lane rests on contractor quotes that homeowners have posted and on manufacturer list prices, collected by hand. Each cost table says how many quotes it uses and when they were collected, so you can judge it for yourself.

Our method

Written by

Onur T. compiles Rafter Lane's cost data by hand, from contractor quotes homeowners post and from manufacturer spec sheets. The section drawings are made in code from those spec sheets, not generated.