With the long, hot summer we’ve been having it’s easy to see why you might be tempted to contact companies about conservatories in Manchester, or wherever you live, in a bid to ensure you’re always able to make the most of any good spells of weather.

That’s certainly a valid option if you have the space, and adding a conservatory to your home can give you extra living space, or more room for entertaining when you have friends and family round.

But the Express recently pointed out that conservatories aren’t the only way in which you can open up your home to the garden and ease the transition between inside and out.

According to the newspaper there are a few ways in which homeowners could make more of their outdoor spaces.

One option is to replace old French windows with folding glass doors. You could even remove part of a wall if you don’t already have access to your garden from your living room or kitchen in this way.

The beauty of these doors is that you can let fresh air circulate in your home, which could help to keep it cool on those particularly hot days.

If you’ve got your heart set on a conservatory, but you want to ensure that you can use the space all year round, you may be better off opting for a conservatory with a solid sunshade roof instead of one made of glass.

You can also have these installed in properties that already have traditional conservatories. As well as helping to keep the space cool during hot days, they also have an insulating effect once winter rolls around.

That means these rooms are typically much easier to use all year round, because they don’t suffer from the extremes of temperature that you may associate with a more traditional conservatory design.

By making sure that any decor you have in your conservatory complements that of the room it comes off of, you’ll easily be able to open the space up and use it for larger groups of people, or just to enjoy greater continuity as you move around your home.

If you’re hoping to get more use out of your conservatory this summer but are struggling in the heat, you may want to follow some of the advice recently published by the Yorkshire Post.

The news provider spoke to window styling company Thomas Sanderson about the options. One of the simplest ways to prevent too much sunlight from getting into your conservatory is to use window blinds and shutters.

Blinds are more versatile than curtains or shutters, and as you can also get specially designed ceiling blinds, they could be a godsend during hot days.

Another top tip is to make sure there’s plenty of air flow through the space. One of the easiest ways to do this is to open one or two windows, and possibly even a door, to allow hot air to escape and to bring a cooling breeze into your home.