Question for those with a garden office or summer house

[Cosmos123]

Do you still use it throughout the winter?
Also would you recommend it?
If you could change anything what would it be.
Thinking of having one installed and just wanted to get ideas.
Thank you

Insulation, as when it's in the sun it gets very hot for the computer even early morning in the summer. We have air con in there which was essential.

We have a summer house.

Far too cold to use in winter, extremely hot and not useable in the summer.

It was a waste of money, no one goes in it - looks pretty though 😂

Love our garden office! Use it throughout winter and summer. Only downside I've found is in winter, when it's lashing down outside, we get soaked running inside to the toilet! 😂

Use ours all year. We bought extra insulation and put it everywhere we could. Obviously has a (electric) radiator. Just use a fan in the summer but has a big tree shading as well and curtains. Was much cheaper than getting a side extension.

I have a log cabin garden office, so insulation wise it’s half way between a shed and a much more expensive fully insulated garden office. It has thicker walls than a normal shed, there is some insulation in the roof and possibly the floor but no insulation in the walls. It has electric and I use an oil filled radiator. I use it all year round and I’ve only had the heating on about 5 days this year. I do sit there in a duvet down jacket. My feet are where I notice the cold but I’ve just bought fancy down slippers.

Do you have it fully insulated?

@Cosmos123 sadly not!

We were discussing doing this, not sure on costs though…

We are also considering a garden office/ occasional bedroom for family visits. The alternative is a side extension, but we don't have much room for that. I would also love to hear people's experience.

Ours is fully insulated but still costs £2-£3 an hour to run an electric heater in the winter. I used to use it all year round as my office prior to the energy price rises but now move into the house for the 6 coldest months.

100 % best thing we did.

I like working at home, absolutely hate working in the house. Hate the proximity of work to my private space.

We have a full offset up, no clearing away at night etc. It's 2x3m on plan, within permitted development regs.

Has a radiator in it with an electric element (just a regular central heating radiator and an electric element like you get in bathroom towel radiators.

DH built it over about 2/3 months, cost 3-3.5k looks great, it's be best thing we've done in the house!

Full office set up

We have a garden room, we just use it for sitting in. It’s not a regret, but it would be so much better if it were plumbed and we had a loo in it. We coated it and it wasn’t worth it to us, but it means that every time I have a drink I have to then go back to the house for the loo. I think I’d spend more co ti you’d time in it if it had a loo.

V pleased that we put air con in given the high temperatures we’ve had in recent summers, plenty of sockets, wall lights and lamp, and wouldn’t be without the fridge (for drinks) and freezer compartment (ice and looked).

Yes. 3x4m. Fully insulated with 100 mm Kingspan and double glazed. Electric radiator. Built ourselves during lockdown as DH needed to diversify quickly, this gave him a place to do it.
Cost 2.5 K in timber and cladding, plus a set of patio doors. The sash window, insulation, laminate flooring we salvaged from work going on in our own house or picked up on freecycle type sites.

Very useable all year.

Would add lantern rooflight or velux if doing again. Might retrofit with one anyway.