Return to flip book view
Pages 24-28: The BENEFITS of quality garden rooms
Pages 16-23: Things you NEED to know for your garden room project
Pages 9-15: The MUST haves for your garden room project
The Groovy Guide to Garden RoomsPages 4-8: What do you need your garden room for?
Pages 2-3: The 3 garden room types
List of Contents(click on the page title & number to be taken straight there)
Garden Room Type 2 - Yearly Maintenance The 3 Garden Room Types Garden Room Type 1 - Padded Sheds
These are, in effect, glorified sheds being sold as "garden rooms."
They may have some basic insulation in, but unless you're Wim Hof, you're going to feel the cold in the Spring, Summer, Winter and even on those cold and damp Summer nights (we are in the UK after all). And they're the cheapest…and for a reason.
You may think you'll be saving yourself some money in the short-term, but before too long you'll revert to storing your garden furniture, tools and other stuff in there - albeit slightly warmer than when it was a shed. That said, you can always wrap yourself up in your lawnmower cover to keep warm!
Typically these are garden rooms with wood external cladding. And they look great - initially. And we love wood. I mean, our business is called Groovy Timber® after all.
These types of garden rooms should be better made than the padded shed variety (it depends on the manufacturer). But they need to be maintained on a yearly basis, otherwise the wood starts to go grey and look tired and sometimes a little shoddy if it's not treated.
Which brings us onto another key point: you can only treat the wood cladding with chemicals. Not only do they cost you money every year, but they're also not great for your green credentials. Just saying.
These are the gold standard of garden rooms…that are truly zero maintenance. So, once they've been installed, you don't have to do anything to maintain them.
Groovy Garden Rooms are zero maintenance, as well as portable, and more, because we use plastic coated galvanised steel for the exterior cladding. Also, we're the only garden room company that uses it not just on the exterior walls of our garden rooms, but also on the roofs.
Some garden roof companies put rubber on the roof as external cladding. Now that's fine - up to a point. And, yes, rubber is cheaper for the garden companies to install so they make more profit. But rubber roofs don't last long enough whereas our plastic coated galvanised steel clad roofs do.
We prefer to make less money but produce a top quality product that'll last you for much, much longer - unless, of course, you use it for military target practice. Just saying. So this is why our Groovy Garden Rooms are the most robust and the longest lasting.
The 3 Garden Room Types Garden Room Type 3 - Zero Maintenance I want to check out your Groovy Garden RoomsGarden Office & Garden Work Studio What Do You Need Your Garden Room For?
This is a simple but very important question.
So, if you want to use your garden room as a garden office or a garden (work) studio, is it the sort of office where clients and/or colleagues will be visiting you? Will it be the sort of office where you and/or your partner or indeed some members of your family and even friends will be using as a space for working away from the home without being visited by clients and/or colleagues?
If it's the former, for instance, then think about the type of furniture you need to suit your business type. How do you want your clients and your colleagues to feel when coming to see you and work with you?
For instance, a sofa, even a two-person sofa, takes up more room than you might think. And then how big a desk or how many desks do you need to enable you and others to work? And what about the number of power points you'll need?
Garden Lounge & Entertainment Space What Do You Need Your Garden Room For?
You may also want to use your garden room as a garden lounge & entertainment space for relaxing and entertaining family and friends.
In this instance, do you want a TV and, if so, do you want it to go on a wall? In which case, what sorts of seating do you have for this: a sofa, armchairs or other chairs, or a combination of some or all of these?
And, if entertaining, do you want to use this space as an enclosed garden dining area or a place where you have people standing and sitting for drinks?
Garden Gym What Do You Need Your Garden Room For?
Then again you might want your garden room to be a garden gym.
If you like pounding away on a running machine or pumping weights or generally leaping about vigorously in the name of fun & fitness, then it's crucial your garden room manufacturer knows this.
Why?
Because the floor structure has to be adapted to withhold the weight and impact.
Garden Bedroom What Do You Need Your Garden Room For?
And if you also want your garden room to have the capacity to be used as spare garden bedroom, then you need to think about having a cloakroom (toilet & basin) or a bathroom (toilet, basin & shower).
This means that whoever is staying in it can get washed and changed without having to traipse up your garden to your house (that's if they can get in because it isn't locked!).
In this case, you need to factor in the extra space you'll need for a cloakroom or a bathroom, as well as a bed or, at the very least, a sofa bed…and a table and some chairs.
Garden Room Location & Purpose What Do You Need Your Garden Room For?
Another key thing to think about is exactly where you want your garden room to be placed in your garden.
Factor in what view you want and whether you want it facing north, south, east or west.
And what's going to be an optimal location for access and how your garden room fits in with your garden and any other key features in it.
So please factor in these elements when thinking about the size and style of your garden room depending on its intended use and, just as importantly, its potential future use.
In addition, don’t just think about your intended short-term use. Imagine what your garden room could also be used for in the long-term. This will help future proof it for you.
Some Of Your Key Questions (Video) Answered The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project
Despite his youthful vigour, Simon, the Head of our Design & Build Team, has been involved with the construction & building industry for 40 years.
Not only that, but he also found time to serve as an officer in the British Army's Royal Engineers regiment.
And, in this series of videos (complete with the odd sound of our team making garden rooms in the background at our Yorkshire factory!) coming up over the following pages, he explains why the following are some of the KEY things your garden room project must have…
Scroll onto the next pages now to see his answers...
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project What's the best type of insulation to have in your garden room so you can use it all year round? What are the best types of garden room foundations to have?
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project What's the best design & build approach to make a garden room as strong and as durable as possible? Why do we use plastic coated galvanised steel for our external cladding instead of timber?
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project What are the best types of doors & windows to have in a garden room? What's the importance of a site survey and what are the risks of not doing one?
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project How important is a proper contract between the customer and the garden room manufacturer? What garden room guarantees should you expect?
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room Project What types of garden room companies should you work with and not work with? What are some of the key elements customers need to look for when planning on having a bathroom, a cloakroom and a kitchen in their garden room?
As well as designing & building garden rooms and doing other internal and external work for homeowners, they also get asked to do internal and external works for well known private and public sections organisations like the NHS, Lloyds Banking Group, NPower, Capita, MITIE, Interserve and many more.
The MUST Haves ForYour Garden Room ProjectSo, your garden room project is in very safe, very experienced and very competent hands, as well as being covered by our Guarantees.
As it is, the company we use for our Design & Build Team, that's been in business since 1969, has all the necessary and best professional credentials to back up the work they do - on both a professional level and, just as importantly, a personal level too...
Planning Rules Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project Site Survey
It's most unlikely you'll need planning permission from your Local Planning Authority (LPA) as garden rooms falls under the Permitted Development rules. But, please read our planning guide which not only tells you what you need to know, it also helps you discover who your LPA is.
Having a Site Survey done is a crucial part of your garden room project. This is because it's vital to discover everything possible about the location of your planned garden room. Not doing this could undermine the integrity of your garden room.
I want to check out your Site Survey service I want to check out your planning guideGround Preparation Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project
Once you've committed to investing in a garden room, you need to make sure that the place where your garden room is being installed is properly clear of any trees, shrubs, roots and rubble.
And, if you have a concrete base in place already, please make sure that it is truly strong, solid and stable. By this, we mean it's unfractured and solid with a depth of 15cm or, if the concrete has been mixed with steel, then it has a depth of 10cm. If this isn't the case then it will need be taken up before the installation begins.
If need be, seek the advice of a local building professional you trust. If not, then we can assess it all for you as part of our Site Survey service.
Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project Electrical Set-Up
When we’re on site, we put one of these commando wall sockets at a suitable point on the external wall of your garden room.
Then, we put a three-pinned commando plug at both ends of a steel wire armoured cable so one end can be connected to the external commando wall socket on your home and the other plugged into the commando plug point on your garden room. The cable can be buried or run along a hedge row or the edge of a garden (whatever works best for you). And then you have compliant weatherproof power to your garden room.
The commando wall socket, placed on an outside wall at a suitable location at your home, needs to be installed by an electrician of your choosing before we come to install your garden room. And the cost for an electrician to do this can be about £200-£400.
To get electricity safely and in a compliant way to your garden room you need to have the following (if you don’t already have one):
An external waterproof 16A CEE flush mounted (commando) socket IP44 box with integrated lockable switch (like the one below) fitted on an outside wall at a suitable location at your home.
Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project External Cladding, Flooring, Doors & Windows/Glass Panels
Depending on what you're planning to use your garden room for (in the short-term as well as the long-term), you need to think about what types of external cladding, flooring, doors and windows/glass panels you want.
What's the look and feel you truly want, that will work well for it intended use(s).
With Groovy Garden Rooms we include the external cladding, front doors and front windows/glass panels and non-slip flooring (and a LOT more) in our standard specification.
This garden room sizing & styling page gives you a good idea of some of the choices you have.
Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project Heating & Air Conditioning
A well made garden room with thick, quality insulation (at least 80mm) - quality because it doesn't lose its thermic values over time like too much insulation, meaning your garden room gets colder over time - should enable you to enjoy using it all year round.
But, if you want to make sure you get the room temperature you desire all year round, then you can have an oil free free-standing radiator or an air conditioning unit installed that keeps you as cool as you want in summer and as warm as you want in winter.
Again, something to think about depending on where you live and your tolerance for heat and cold.
Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project Bathrooms, Cloakrooms & Kitchens
If you want a bathroom or a cloakroom you need to think about getting water to and from these rooms as well as how to get the waste away.
In terms of the latter, you can have something like a Saniflow toilet system with a macerator installed. A main waste pipe doesn't need to be connected to this sort of toilet. The macerated and other waste can be pumped up to 50m horizontally which then connects to your house's main soil drainpipe without having to divert or add to it.
Whereas if you want a more traditional flushing toilet, then you'll need to have a main waste pipe extension (and manhole cover) dug through to the toilet in your garden room which costs a lot more.
In terms of getting water to and from your bathroom, cloakroom and kitchen, you need to have an extension from your mains (potable) water pipe to your garden room. This sort of work needs to be completed before your garden room is installed.
Turnkey or Not Turnkey Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project
There are some - in fact too many - garden room companies that quote you for a garden room and you pay for something you believe will be a turnkey product. But then, when your garden room is almost if not actually finished, that this doesn't include small things…like the flooring or even the painting of walls and more. This is because they then tell you these are optional extras!
So check that they state what their standard specification is somewhere on their website. And, if you're in any doubt, clarify what you need to by email.
At Groovy Timber® we're very clear about what's included in our Groovy Garden Rooms - and they are ALL fully TURNKEY products. Any additional specification is truly that and not an essential part of what makes our standard specification garden rooms ready for you to use immediately.
Overall Costs Things You NEED To KnowFor Your Garden Room Project
Depending on the size and the styling and other additional specification you may want, quality garden rooms that are good value can range in price from about £19,000 (including VAT) for a small 2.5m x 2.5m room with no roof overhang…to about £35,000 (including VAT) for a 6.0m x 5.0m roof with, say, a front roof overhang.
Also, please be aware that some (we think too many) garden room manufacturers quote a price for a garden room, only for you to then discover that key elements like the flooring or the painting of the walls and other things are not included!
With us, it's really clear. Your Groovy Garden Room is a FULLY TURNKEY product.
✓ Financial The BENEFITS of A Quality Garden Room
Firstly, there are three key benefits of owning a garden room, and certainly a Groovy Garden Room. These are FINANCIAL, PRACTICAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL…
A quality garden room can increase the value of your home and give you huge cost savings on an equivalent home extension...
A single storey extension can cost you from about £2,000 per m² and even a conservatory can cost you from about £1,200 per m²…
Whereas, for the same look and feel, a Groovy Garden Room costs you from £610 per m².
And...a quality garden room can also increase the value of your home by 8%-10%. So, what's not to like!
The BENEFITS of A Quality Garden Room ✓ Zero Commuting Costs & Stress
It costs the average UK worker commuting by car about £5,000 per year.
And the those commuting by train about £2,500 per year, with the average commute duration in the UK being 62 minutes per day...
Whereas, with your own garden office, your commuting costs are £0 and your average commuting time is about 6 seconds!
✓ Improved Mental Health The BENEFITS of A Quality Garden Room
Commuting is stressful and often unproductive. But working from inside your home with other people there can be stressful as well as distracting and often less productive.
Also, not being able to separate your work from your home life can also be stressful...
Whereas having a physically and therefore psychologically separate space for working, keeping fit, chilling out and even sleeping, is certainly psychologically as well as practically beneficial and life enhancing.
✓ Better Quality of Space & Life At Home The BENEFITS of A Quality Garden Room
Secondly, you have an additional high end space to improve the quality of your life at home, whether you (and others) use it as a garden office or gym or lounge or studio or spare bedroom…or some or even all of these.
✓ Zero Maintenance Garden Rooms That Are Portable, Multi-Use & Can Be Used All Year The BENEFITS of A Quality Garden Room
And, thirdly, Groovy Garden Rooms are truly zero maintenance and portable. Both these key design qualities save you a lot more money than those garden rooms that are neither.
Our award winning business designs our garden rooms to be truly zero maintenance (with our external cladding) as well as portable so, despite their strength and sturdiness, they can be dismantled and then re-assembled at a new location if you move home - and in for a lot less money and done in a lot less time than one designed and built from scratch.
Whereas garden rooms clad in wood (nearly all other garden room manufacturers) need yearly treatment to keep them looking half way decent…and this involves the cost and use of unpleasant and un-environmentally friendly chemicals. Not only that, but, because wood is a natural product, it can make your wooden garden room contract & expand. And that's never a good thing.
But, not the case with Groovy Garden Rooms because we use plastic coated galvanised steel to clad the walls and also, uniquely, the roof as well. This makes them zero maintenance and enables us to offer the longest external cladding guarantees in the industry.