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Exposed roofs and temperature control
Corien Jonker of Johannesburg writes
We have a 36m² Airbnb studio with an exposed roof. While it looks beautiful, the downside is that it's difficult to keep warm (read: expensive) in winter as the heat accumulates under the roof. In summer, it gets very hot because the roof is corrugated iron, which has already been painted white in an attempt to deflect the sun.
When we renovated the studio, two windows were installed right below the roof to allow warm air to escape in summer. We also added 75mm insulation between the steel roof and the ceiling plates.
We're looking for the best ‘electricity-friendly' way of heating and cooling the space. We have considered a fan that would push the hot air down in winter but could also be used for cooling the