How to reduce heat and light from polycarbonate roofing?

[ihocking]

My carport is very bright and hot underneath. What can I do to reduce the amount of heat and light?

 

[EricL]

Hello @ihocking 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about your carport.

I propose building a lightweight timber frame that you can screw under your existing carport roof frame and stapling the Coolaroo 3.66m Wide Graphite Heavy-Duty Sun Protection Shade Cloth 90% UV block onto it. It will reduce the amount of sunlight coming in and block off at least 90 percent of UV hitting your vehicle. 

Another option is to install Suntuf Sunlite 8mm x 610mm x 2.4m Solar Grey Twinwall Polycarbonate Roofing under your existing carport roof frame. It will reduce the sunlight coming in and help with reducing the temperature as well. Additional timber battens might need to be installed to provide mounting points for the poly sheet.

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[Dave-1]

Good Evening @ihocking 

I was thinking of shadecloth directy attached to the underside of the beams (if they are timber) if not then the lightweight framework that @EricL has suggested is the way I would go. I would make sure that the shadecloth is taught when you install it. So no sags will creep in.

Dave

[Nailbag]

Hi @ihocking 

Those couple of suggestions by @EricL are definitely worth considering, though with one exception. I would avoid adding any timber frame to your carport, which will add weight it wasn't designed for.

If you're ok with reduced light, you could simply staple shade cloth to the underside of the roof beam. Or utilise the specific shade cloth fasteners that hammer into place. I would avoid.

The 2nd solution and the more expensive option would be to replace the current poly sheets with tinted ones. Or a combination of solid roof sheets with insulating foil and have just one or two strips of tinted poly to allow natural light through.

Nailbag

[AlanM52]

Hi @ihocking,

Been waiting for responses to come in and I would like to add a couple of suggestions.

Retractable Shade Sail.

You could DIY with shade cloth plus...

The above.

Cheers

[ihocking]

Looks like a good option. I will need to check with my local store as it says it is unavailable there. Thanks.

[MitchellMc]

Hi @ihocking,

If you speak with the team at Special Orders, they'll be able to check for any available stock at nearby stores or order the product in for you if necessary.

Mitchell

[Dave-1]

Good Afternoon @ihocking 

@Nailbag's suggestion of replacing the polly sheets with tinted ones sparked an idea. Instead of replacement, you could layer another sheet over the top. and go double sheet, normal sheet, double sheet type deal. Note this does add weight overall but even two sheets could go a long way to culling the light intensity down.

Dave

[ihocking]

that seems like a very good idea. i will look into it. thanks

[Nailbag]

Hi @ihocking 

On the surface it's a good solution by @Dave-1 to consider. Just be aware that doubling the sheets can result in condensation and dirt over time being trapped between the layers. You also can't simply lay one layer over another without removing the screws. So, you will need to be very careful in ensuring the new fastener holes match exactly with the ones from the original sheets or you will have roof leaks. And then you may strike issues driving Clear-fix poly roofing screws through.

Nailbag