Anyone put in a garden room/garden studio recently - tips?

[ColouringInQueen]

Hi there,
I'm looking into having a garden room/ studio put up in our garden this year and wondered if anyone had done the same recently?

If so do you have any top tips or recommendations?

I'm thinking of approx. 4 x 3m, will need to be usable all year round so proper insulation etc, dry and light (as I'll be painting in there). I've found a company called Green Retreats who look good, but would be sensible to have a couple to compare.... exciting Oh and budget up to £10k.

Thanks v much!

One my architect friends from university has a company that does modular & bespoke ones of these. This is their company. They have got quite a good reputation i think.
We decided to go for a traditional brick built building instead of one of these for a few reasons - I wanted to use it for my business all year round & we live in the rural NE. It can get very cold so we wanted something extremely well insulated so we didn't have to spend a fortune heating it.
We are in a conservation area and although where it will be sited is only really visible from us & the side of next door we thought it would be easier to get permission for something that matched our existing detached garage.
Key things to consider - insulation, how will you heat it, what lighting/power etc do you need. I usually say double the number of sockets as you always need more. Security - if you have computers etc make sure you have adequate locks.
Are the internal finishes included if so to what standard.

dependant on how far from house ( or how wet you'd get on a rainy day !) might be worth considering a loo and basin too !! kettle - stove/ log burner - or even BBQ - can make for interesting lunch breaks if you will be working out there all day !!! if you go for a product that you can add to if you wanted, that could be useful - as you may find that your studio becomes a popular room all of a sudden !! and avoid bark pathways to and from your cabin - as they make messy floors !!!

thanks wonky those ones by your architect friend look lovely! (Sadly a bit too £££). Yes am looking into insulation carefully - Celotex seem to be the most common type. V useful re: plugs though! Am thinking I need to see an actual building to check finish, rather than just buying online.

oneplan hmm. I had hoped to get away without a loo and basin, (its a bit of a walk indoors.... so will have a think. Will definitely get electricity so can do kettle and prob plug in oil radiator. YES to the studio becoming popular tho - dd already has her eyes on it!!! Good tip re: bark. I think we can lay a couple of slabs from the path to the studio... Have you come across any good garden room companies? Thanks v much for your advice

Watch out about loos.... loos can transport it from being a office/studio space to being considered to contain 'sleeping accommodation' by the authorities and therefore would require planning permission. This depends on your officer/LA but is a fair risk and can also have implications with regards to council tax (if your authority is being mean).
It will definitely require building regulations approval.
Neither is necessarily a problem but can make it slightly more complicated & must be done properly to avoid repercussions.

I wonder if a camping loo would be ok ?! Good point Wonky !

Hmm good point wonky. Think I will just have to use loo breaks as screen/canvas breaks then. Don't want to have to go anywhere near planning....

Westbury builds some lovely garden rooms - although they are attached to the house in most cases. They do have standalone ones though so I think they could probably provide what you're after. They look after all the bits and bobs like planning permission too which is a bonus :)

Oooh thanks ajane will take a look...

Take a look at Walton's. We are currently levelling our garden ready for the install.

I am going to purchase a 4 x 3 garden room, with full insulation and double glazing for all year round use.

Its the cheapest by far and they install it too. You don't need any planning permission as it comes in below 2.5m.

Ooooh exciting! Thanks will see what their 4 x 3 looks like!

You should be able to get one purchased and installed for £10k. I think the Garden Retreats prices do not include site preparation or electrics, but I could be wrong. Do not have a loo or basin or you will be into plumbing and drainage as well. A camping one will totally spoil the ambiance! Also, you might need planning permission if you are in an AONB or green belt. A neighbour had a big hoo ha over planning for an 8ft x 6ft home office in the garden. They eventually came to an arrangement to keep it!

Thanks Milly. I'm going to head over to Green Retreats tomorrow and take a look - they're the only ones on my shortlist of five I can get to in under 2 hours! So should be interesting....

Well. They look fab. No hidden costs, came across as a good small business (no, no-one in my family works for them!) so we have a site visit next week. V exciting

ColouringInnQueen - would love to hear a progress update as we are thinking of doing something similar, and love the look of Green Retreats.

Ooh liberty I had my site visit today which all went smoothly, and installation booked for May... All straightforward and no cheesy salesmen... would recommend so far!

If you can get to their showroom its worth a look!

I'm really interested in getting a garden room next year so I'd be really interested to hear how it goes.

Does anyone know how they go on adding value?

RAPOD Garden Rooms do garden buildings and on the website you can design your own.

www.rapod.co.uk
www.rapod.co.uk/design-your-own-rapod