Sunroom Contractor in Highland, CA - Rooms Built for Hot Afternoons
Lightline Redlands Sunrooms & Patios builds sunrooms, patio enclosures and patio covers for Highland homes, from glass rooms on an existing slab to full additions tied into the house roof, planned around the base and the summer sun.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
Services in Highland, CA
Four season sunrooms
A room you want to use in both July and January in Highland needs more than glass, because the summer sun will cook a thin-walled room by midafternoon. We build four season sunrooms with insulated walls and roof panels, and we pick the glass for the side of the house the room faces.
Sunroom additions
On Highland's older houses, the back wall and roof framing usually weren't built with an addition in mind, so the new room has to be tied in with care. We check the rafters and wall framing first, then match the roof pitch and flash it into the house so water runs off instead of in.
Patio-to-sunroom conversion
A lot of Highland backyards already have a slab patio, but a slab poured for a table and chairs isn't always ready to carry walls and a roof. We check its thickness, edges and slope before we build on it, and we add footings where the edge can't take the load.
Deck-to-sunroom conversion
Raised decks show up where Highland yards step down toward the street or the back fence, and most were built to hold people, not walls and glass. We look at the posts, beams and footings and reinforce or rebuild them before the room goes up.
Patio cover installation
For a west-facing yard that's too hot to sit in by midafternoon, a solid patio cover is often the simplest fix. We fasten it to the house framing, not just the trim board along the roof edge, and slope it so water runs away from your wall.
Screen room installation
If you mostly want summer evenings outside without bugs and blowing leaves, a screen room costs less than glass and stays cooler. We set it on a sound base, seal the tracks well and can frame it so it's ready for glass later if you change your mind.
Highland, CA properties and local conditions
Highland gets hot, and a glass room takes that heat all afternoon. Temperature records for the city from 1903 to 1967 show average July highs of 92°F and August highs near 91°F, and while that's old data, it fits what you feel on a back patio here in summer. So before I talk about glass, I look at which way the wall faces, how much afternoon sun it gets and where the hot air will go, because a room that's too warm to sit in by two o'clock isn't the room you paid for.
After the heat, the thing we check most here is the base. Highland mixes older wood-framed houses with newer stucco homes, and we see everything from thin slab patios and aging wood decks to yards that slope toward the foothills. I look at what's already there before I draw anything, because the room is only as good as what it sits on and the wall it ties into.
How a sunroom job runs in Highland
In Highland, the permit comes from the city, and the city's Building and Safety office reviews plans for residential additions and remodels before work starts. If the city treats your room as a new structure, it goes through the Planning Division first and then on to Building and Safety, so that's an extra step before we can set a start date. We take care of the permits the building office asks for, and the contract says in writing that we're handling them. Before you hire anyone, you can look up their state license, and since a contractor based outside the city needs Highland's Out of City business license to work here, it's fair to ask to see it.
The price here turns on the size of the room, whether it's a screen room or a fully insulated four season room, the shape of the slab or deck under it and how much work it takes to tie the roof into your house. The schedule turns mostly on plan review and on whether the base needs new footings before the walls go up, and your written estimate lists what's in it and what isn't, so you can see where the money goes. Highland's a short drive up from Redlands, and the older streets off Base Line often have narrow driveways and tight side yards, so we plan where materials get staged the same way we do on jobs in Colton and San Bernardino.
Your Highland sunroom, measured and written up
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day, and I'm usually the one who answers. I'll come out to your Highland house to measure, look at the base and the wall, and ask how you plan to use the room. Then you get a free written estimate showing what's in it and what isn't, with no obligation.
(909) 488-7044What happens when you call us about a sunroom in Highland
Call or send the form
I'm usually the one who picks up, and we set a time to meet at your house. It helps if you're home for the visit so we can walk the yard together.
Measure and check the base
I measure, look at the slab or deck and the house wall, and ask how you'll use the room. You get a written estimate that lists what's included and what isn't, so you know the cost before you decide anything.
Sort out the permit first
We handle the paperwork with Highland's building office before the build begins, and the contract says so. The start date waits on the city's plan review, so we give you a date once the plans clear.
Build, check, walk it together
Our crew lead runs the build day to day, and I stop by along the way to check the roof tie-in, the base and the tracks. When it's done, we walk the finished room with you.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a permit in Highland if a sunroom roof ties into my existing roof?
Yes, Highland's permit list covers additions and roof repairs, and a sunroom roof tied into your house touches both. Where the new roof meets yours, we plan the framing and flashing so it passes inspection and keeps water out of the wall. Homeowners and contractors can apply any time through the city's online permit portal, and on our jobs we file for you.
Does a sunroom contractor need a California state license?
Yes, under state rules, anyone building or altering a structure needs a contractor's license when the project requires a building permit. The license also applies when the job uses more workers or runs $1,000 or more in labor and materials across one or more contracts, which takes in just about any sunroom. You can look up any contractor's license, ours included, on the Contractors State License Board site.
How much can a contractor ask for a down payment on a sunroom in California?
In California, a down payment on a home improvement job can't be more than $1,000 or 10 percent of the contract price, whichever is less. Every other payment has to be listed in the contract and based on work done or materials delivered, and the state applies that to all home improvement projects.
How much does a sunroom cost in Highland, CA?
It comes down to the room's size, the kind of room, the base it sits on and how it ties into your house, so I'd rather give you a written number after seeing your yard than guess here. A screen room on a sound slab costs far less than an insulated four season room that needs new footings, and an older house may need framing work at the wall before anything attaches. Electrical, cooling and the glass you pick for the sun also move the number, and the estimate lists each one so you can weigh them.
What is the best way to build a sunroom on a sloped yard in Highland?
Start with what holds the room up, which can mean stepped footings, a raised floor frame or a retaining wall, and that's the first thing I look at on a slope. Highland lets a retaining wall up to 4 feet, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, go without a permit, but not when it carries extra weight behind it, like a building or a slope steeper than 2:1. City policy also calls for a footing and vertical reinforcement in every residential retaining wall unless it's specifically exempted, so plan on a reinforced wall under any room.
How do I keep a sunroom from getting too hot in Highland?
Choose the roof and glass for the sun first, because an all-glass roof facing west turns into an oven on a summer afternoon. We usually steer people toward a solid insulated roof with glass walls, low-E glass, which has a thin coating that turns back heat, and vents or a ceiling fan to move hot air out. A patio cover off the sunniest side helps too.
About Highland, CA
Highland sits between San Bernardino and Redlands, climbing toward the foothills, and it's mostly homes, with shops and offices along the main roads. The older part of town includes a historic district with early 1900s houses such as Craftsman bungalows, and newer neighborhoods spread out from there with stucco homes and block walls. Out at the east end of Base Line, the Natural Parkland Trail draws riders, cyclists and walkers, and the city's trail guide points out they're walking along the San Andreas Fault.
We work across Highland and on east into Mentone. On an older bungalow, the job usually starts with the wall and roof framing we're tying into, and on a newer house it starts with the slab, which is why I look at both before I put a number on paper.
Explore the services
Redlands, CA
Book a visit for your Highland sunroom
We pick up seven days a week, from early morning into the evening, so call (909) 488-7044 or send the form whenever it suits you and we'll set a time to look at your base.