Welcome to Planet South Lakes Blog

Home-owners across Lancashire and Cumbria are looking to conservatories, orangeries and other home improvements as a faltering property market forces movers to stay put and improve their homes.

The recent credit-crunch and well-documented fall in house prices has meant that many simply cannot afford to move home and are forced to seek home improvements to enhance their living space.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors recently reported that housing transactions are at their lowest point since 1978. According to research from Sainsbury’s Bank, this has led to 21% of homeowners contemplating improvements over the next 12 months as opposed to moving house.

Reports suggest that 5.3 million homes are planning some form of structural work – of these, 1.2 million are looking to build a conservatory.

As one of the most versatile ways to improve your home, conservatories are cool in summer, warm in winter and can be used all year round. They can be used for entertaining, as an elegant dining or casual sitting room. A conservatory could also make the perfect home office environment, a playroom for the kids, or even a kitchen.

It is this versatility which makes conservatories one of the most popular forms of home improvement.

In addition to this, erecting a conservatory could save the hassle of moving home, which studies show to be one of the most stressful experiences that most people face in life.

A spokesman for Planet South Lakes, specialists in conservatories & orangeries across Lancaster, Kendal and Barrow-in-Furness had this to say.
“Conservatories are a great way to add extra living space and improve the value to your home. If you are not in a position to move, then a conservatory is certainly something you should consider.”

“We are expecting to be very busy over the next 12 months and beyond, as more and more people experience the benefits of our conservatories.”

For further information on Planet’s Conservatories & Orangeries, freephone 0800 612 2255 or contact us online.

It would be an obvious point to make that having new uPVC doors and uPVC windows fitted would provide several benefits to your house as a whole. The addition of these new features would undoubtedly increase the value of your home and the good news is that they do not have to detract from the external styling of the property either. In fact, by adding something like a porch, conservatory or orangery you not only compliment the building but also add more room and in many cases a touch of elegance to your house.

Energy efficiency is also another good reason for having new uPVC windows or uPVC doors fitted. This measure helps to save the environment by reducing your carbon footprint but it can also save money in your pocket by reducing energy bills.

The one overriding feature that I believe is the most significant point to take into consideration, though, is the added security features that modern uPVC doors or uPVC windows have to offer.  Not only do you benefit from the most modern and sturdy of materials but the equipment is likely to be fitted with good locks and bolts and even something as seemingly insignificant as internal beading can prove to be a useful addition to security.

Here we will look at some of the more significant features that modern uPVC doors and uPVC windows have to offer.

Internal Beading
At the end of the day a double glazed window is not designed to survive a sustained attack. After all, the emergency services need to gain quick access into your home if need be, but the idea of having modern windows fitted would be to deter the opportunist thief.  Older double glazed windows had the beading fitted on the outside of the glass, meaning that a potential burglar could pop out the plastic seal around the frame with a screwdriver and literally remove the entire unit.

Nowadays internal beading is fitted pretty much as standard which takes away this option.  If somebody wanted to break into your house with modern uPVC windows fitted they would literally have to smash the glass thus creating a lot of noise and bringing the attention of the neighbours to the fact that something was wrong.

Fire Safety
Having new uPVC windows fitted opens up the opportunity to make the house safer in the incidence of fire as well as improving the security of the property.  If you use a company that offers a bespoke design service you can make sure that they run through all the features and benefits of fitting windows within certain areas of the property that would allow for a quick escape during the rare instance of a fire in the home.  By having new windows fitted you are not only benefiting from all the points above, but it could also be the difference between life and death for you and your family.

Modern Locks and Bolts
Older doors in particular only have one lock that clicks into the frame at the middle of the door, making it easier for an intruder to force his way into the property.  The newest doors however have things such as multiple locking points, barrel locks with an anti drill design and anti-lift pins and hinge protectors, literally designed to prevent a would be burglar from lifting doors (especially in the case of an older conservatory or sliding patio door) right off their hinges.  These many added security features of modern uPVC windows and uPVC doors have evolved over the last 20-30 years of trial and error.

A process of developing technologies that would beat the ever increasing ingenuity of the burglar has led to the development of ever more secure locks and bolts to be added.  A burglar tends to be opportunistic and will deliberately seek out a soft target.  The best way to send out a message to them is to have new windows and doors fitted so they do not even give your property a second glance after noticing how the fittings look rock solid from the outside.

To explore your options the best step forward would be to book a session with a company that offers a bespoke design service.  There are a few good companies out there that offer this and not only will you be able be able to come up with a plan that suites the style of your building, takes into such external factors like a risk assessment of your property to determine the weak points but will also take into consideration your budget.

The real benefits of Planet’s ‘A’ Rated Windows

Choose Planet’s NEW ‘A’ Rated Double Glazed Windows – we guarantee you won’t be disappointed!

Planet South Lakes have been running a few slightly cheeky radio ads in their local area to good effect. Due to many request from our customers to hear the adverts again, we have added a selection of the most popular and requested adverts for you to play.

Simply click on the graphic to listen to the most requested adverts (we’d love to hear which advert you like the best):

Three little pigs…sausage sandwich!

CLICK HERE to listen to more adverts

Planet South Lakes latest Radio Advert is now being aired on Bay Radio and Lakeland Radio. If you would like to listen to the advert – simply click on the banner below…

or Sing…

So, tell me what you want, what you really, really want…

I’ll tell you what I want what I really, really want….

Yeah, tell me what you want, what you really, really want…

I’ll tell you what I want what I really, really want….

Yeah, tell me what you want, what you really, really want…(music stops)

I will if you shuddup for a minute!!

Sorry.

Sing…
I really want Planet Windows, doors, orangeries and conservatories….

So tell me what you want, what you really, really want?….Oh don’t start that again!

A NEW action plan designed to boost the economy of Cumbria will be presented to keynote speaker Lord Mandelson and delegates at the Cumbria Economic Summit 2009 on Friday (February 20).

The Cumbria Sub Regional Action Plan contains 20 priority regeneration projects that will either progress or be completed over the next three years, and in the long term could create more than 11,000 new jobs.

The Action Plan, along with the Cumbria Economic Strategy, has been produced by economic development agency Cumbria Vision and partner organisations in the public and private sector to set a clear direction for the County’s economic renaissance.

The documents will be presented to Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and around 250 delegates from public sector organisations and local, national and international businesses who will gather at Sellafield Visitor Centre for the summit. The Cumbria Economic Summit 2009 is being staged by Cumbria Vision and the Northwest Regional Development Agency to showcase achievements to date and outline plans for the future.

Roger Liddle, Chair of Cumbria Vision, said: “This is a tough time for business in Cumbria: there’s no hiding place from the impact of the most severe global recession since the Second World War. However, as a County we can weather storm better than many other places by concentrating our efforts on our unique strengths: using our skills in energy and nuclear to help the nation meet the looming challenges of energy security and climate change; and raising the quality of “Destination Cumbria” as a place to live, work, visit and invest.

“Our Action Plan focuses our efforts on projects that will advance those aims. From now on we need focus, drive and action. We need to take the emphasis away from strategy and plough ahead with delivery on the ground.”

The Sub Regional Action Plan aims to improve the economic performance by building on Cumbria’s two unique strengths – energy and “destination” – but recognises their full potential will only be realised with support from other sectors. These include education, skills and research; business, enterprise, and employment; investment in infrastructure and the rural economy.

Major regeneration projects contained within the Action Plan include the development of Carlisle Airport; Penrith New Squares; a new hospital for West Cumbria; nuclear new build at Sellafield; improvements around Lake Windermere; The Waterfront Barrow-in-Furness residential and business development; and the new K Village premises in Kendal. This year will see the Energus skills and training facility open to students, a key project contained in the £2 billion Britain’s Energy Coast™ Masterplan for West Cumbria; while work will be completed on the Waterfront Business Park, part of the £200 million The Waterfront Barrow-in-Furness development.

These regeneration projects for Cumbria will feature in a series of video showcases and presentations from high profile speakers focusing on those industry sectors of most importance to Cumbria’s economy. Speakers joining Lord Mandelson this year include Dr Ian Hudson, Sellafield Programme Manager, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority; George Beveridge, Deputy Managing Director, Sellafield Ltd; Duncan Burt, Customer Services Manager – Transmission Commercial, National Grid; Simon Berry, Chairman and Managing Director of English Lakes Hotels Ltd; Beverley Blevans, Contact Centre Manager (Lillyhall) Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs; Dr Eunice Simmons, Dean of Science & Natural Resources, University of Cumbria; Cllr Tim Knowles, portfolio holder for Economy, Cumbria County Council; Andrew Tinkler, Chief Executive, Stobart Group; and Alistair Wannop, Dairy farmer and owner of Eden Golf Course.

There will also be speeches from Roger Liddle, Richard Greenwood, Chief Executive of Cumbria Vision, and Professor John Fyfe, international specialist in creating partnerships. Broadcaster Fiona Armstrong will compere the summit.

The Cumbria Economic Summit will also be an opportunity to hear about the main issues that are likely to be addressed by the Regional Strategy – the region’s first single integrated strategy which will bring together spatial, economic, social and environmental strategies to build a new long term vision for the prosperity of the North West region. It is currently being developed by the NWDA and 4NW, the Regional Leaders Forum, together with assistance from the Regional Strategy Advisory Group, which comprises of members of the public and representatives from the private, voluntary and community sectors.

Bryan Gray, Chairman of the Northwest Regional Development Agency, said: “While the economic downturn means Cumbria faces new challenges, these significant changes also present new opportunities. With unique strengths in energy and nuclear, Cumbria is in a strong position to continue to succeed in the global market. It’s clear that all of our partners in Cumbria have a shared vision and are determined to work together to ensure that the priorities we have identified become a reality.”

Cumbria Vision was established by the Northwest Regional Development Agency in 2005 to galvanise the public and private sector in Cumbria and create a single direction to the County’s significant regeneration agenda, which spans both urban and rural concerns.

Since then Cumbria Vision has helped to establish the University of Cumbria; completed the £40 million Rural Regeneration Cumbria programme to tackle the effects of the 2001 Foot & Mouth Disease outbreak, and progressed the Britain’s Energy Coast™ Masterplan –a £2 billion package of regeneration projects that build on West Cumbria’s nuclear expertise to create a hub for renewable energy production to serve both local communities and the UK. Other projects which have received substantial support include plans by Stobart Air Ltd to revamp Carlisle Airport, and ambitious proposals to bring a prestigious leisure and commercial development to Derwent Forest, near Cockermouth – one of the largest brownfield sites available for development in the UK.

Source: Westmorland Gazette – www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk

Planet South Lakes have decided to let in the New Year by launching a set of resolutions that are specifically targeted to anyone looking to buy any of their conservatories, windows or doors throughout the Lancaster, Morecambe, Barrow-in-Furness or Kendal areas.

Resolution number one
As part of their massive January sale they are promising to save customers hundreds of £’s on all Conservatories, Orangeries, Windows and doors with a £99 deposit, interest free until 2010 offer.

Resolution number two
All Planet South Lakes’ range of high quality home improvement products is available with up to 30% off.  Their excellent range of styles and finishes are designed to blend perfectly into the ambience of any home.

Resolution number 3
Totally secure, maintenance free Rockdoors from £775 fully fitted.  This is a possible saving of up to £324.  With Planet South Lakes, every one of their Rockdoors is tailor made for your home – manufactured to virtually any height and, as with all their installations, fitted to the highest of standards.

As with all Planet South Lakes’ Conservatories, Windows or Doors you are provided with the piece of mind of their 1 2 3 guarantee, which offers a £1000 security guarantee, 10 years manufacturers guarantee and an insurance backed guarantee as well as their bespoke online Quotation service.

Alternatively you can visit their Kendal showroom where you will be warmly welcomed into a friendly atmosphere giving you the chance to see a great range of beautifully finished PVC conservatories and a comprehensive display of windows and doors up close.

A spokesperson from planet windows added;
“With all the great deals we have on offer we are trying to match the mood of the customer in the current climate.  Just because times may be hard at the moment, doesn’t mean that people still don’t take pride in the appearance of their homes.  We feel that these unbeatable savings will indicate that this is indeed the time to invest in the best for Conservatories, Windows and doors”

As more people are looking for ways to increase the value of their homes or improve their living space due to the well documented recent downturn in the housing market, you could do a lot worse than consider the possibility of installing a Conservatory or an Orangery.

But what is the difference between the two and what leads to their enduring fascination with householders? To answer these questions we need to go back into history and examine the structures’ origins.

The Conservatory did exactly what it said on the tin originally. The name came from a combination of Latin and Italian and was quite literally a place to store and preserve food and was traditionally thought of as an un-glazed structure. It was only later, with the introduction of glazed structures that they were used to house and protect plants from the cold weather, but even then we would understand them better if we thought of them to be more like greenhouses or glasshouses.

Over time it appears they evolved into the structure we know and love today that attach to the side of the house and which acts as a pleasant place to sit, not only in summer where they remain cooler than the rest of the house but also in Winter when they have the reverse effect of generally being warmer.

Probably the greatest example of a glass house from an engineering perspective is that of the crystal palace at the time of the great exhibition in 1851. Taking 22 weeks to erect and covering 19 acres it had 293,635 panes of glass and at the time was the largest enclosed space on earth. I think it is fair to say you would need a pretty large house to consider having a conservatory like that on the side.

Orangeries, although being similar in concept to the Conservatory do have some distinct differences. For instance they are generally found within the borders of a garden with an outer door, rather than being attached to the house like a modern conservatory is.

Some of the more elaborate Orangeries down the ages would resemble large glazed buildings in their own right and were a definite symbol of the elite, being incorporated within the garden design of the wealthier people who often had their own private exotic gardens. This popularity led to advancements in the construction technology making them bigger and better, leading to such innovations as under floor heating and windows that opened in the roof for ventilation.

Of course the original purpose of Orangeries is quite self explanatory. They were houses literally used to cultivate and grow exotic plants and fruits that the elite could show off but they would also quite often have fountains, grottos and areas in which to entertain guests when the weather took a turn for the worse. In modern times we are fortunate that we can now still take some of the original concepts, if maybe on a more modest scale, and build ourselves a place within the garden that we can use for social interaction or even somewhere to go and escape from the world.

Going back to the original point that was made at the beginning about building a glazed structure within the boundary of your home, to either improve your standard of living, your house value or indeed both. Whichever you decide upon will ultimately come down to such details as space and accessibility but the good news is that there are some companies, especially on the internet, that are happy to put together bespoke plans to suit your individual needs, rather than make you try to fit a pre-fabricated design into the space that you have available. If you are still unsure whether a Conservatory or Orangery is for you then take comfort in the fact that several hundred years worth of design and popularity is unlikely to be wrong.

Planet South Lakes have been running a few slightly cheeky radio ads throughout Barrow, Cumbria and Morecambe to good effect. One of the ads, though was deemed to be too ‘edgy’ by one station Abbey FM.

Planet South Lakes were quite rightly frustrated with the station, as Lakeland Radio and Bay Radio were happy to run the advert, so they pulled all other adverts from the Abbey station as a result…

or Sing…

All the Planet piggies travel in their little van, to find a better window company across the land, they found some windows that were beautiful and white, but they weren’t made to measure so they were a load of SFX!!!!!

Planet Windows are the best for you, for windows and for doors and conservatories it’s true, Planet Windows are the finest you can buy 0800 61 222 55…

They continued on their mission as across the land they sped, ignored the quality and went for price instead, they found a one man band, he reckoned he was it but he went bankrupt so his guarantee was SFX!!!!

Planet Windows are the best for you, for windows and for doors and conservatories it’s true, Planet Windows are the finest you can buy 0800 61 222 55…

Well another window company was almost in the frame, from a distance the quality could pass as being the same, but on closer inspection there was a little gap because the frames were rubbish and the glass was SFX!!!

Planet Windows are the best for you, for windows and for doors and conservatories it’s true, Planet Windows are the finest you can buy 0800 61 222 55…