Garden log cabin (heating and installation)

[codegeass]

I was reading some old threads here about garden offices, thought it would be better to start a fresh one. So, we're looking to buy a log cabin (that is, once the DH has some more time on his hands to roll up his sleeves). I will likely use it as an office occasionally, and we'll also store stuff there. The thing is, I work remotely a couple of days a week, so I'm looking into insulated log cabins so I can use it year-round. We will likely pick an affordable one here, I saw a few really nice options (with the price including the delivery). A couple of questions for those of you who have a garden log cabin - how do you heat it up? And how difficult was it to install it? I mean, DH has built a few things here and there, but I'm not sure if we'll need to hire a professional (and that would, of course, add to the price).

We used a company to install it. We have an electric heater.

I was looking on rightmove and saw a place with a garden room that had electrics and a toilet. No reason too not include a shower. The possibilities are endless.

Thank you both. I was thinking about getting an electric heater, will start looking around if there are any good offers once we order the cabin.

We have an insulated one with an electric heatedr but I stopped using it in the winter as the electricity costs were extrenely high.

Ours is well insulated and clad with hardieplank. It has an electric wall heater but I think I’ve only used it 5 times in two years!

We have a large insulated garden office with air conditioning. It’s cold in winter and in summer is very, very hot. It’s been so hot this summer that the boards have started shifting apart and we now have gaps, so we’ve had to put up heat reflecting blinds outside. Air conditioning and heating costs are about £25 a month just for that one room as my partner works in it. It cost about £20k all up to install I think. I would be very sure to insulate it properly and have air conditioning but also treat the whole thing with uv reflecting stain on the outside. The external blinds have helped but wooden structures are most definitely not great in heat!

What’s the draw of a log cabin over a normal garden office (not sure what they are made of, look like planks of wood on outside)? Is it that they are cheaper and you can potentially put them together yourself?

You will lose most heat through the roof. I believe they are usually OSB with felt shingles. There is usually no ceiling so you can't use loft installation methods. The warm air will rise to the top so you will probably need some kind of fan to stir it round.

It is possible to incorporate rigid insulation when building a roof, I have not done it but I have seen insulating sarking A local roofer could probably install a much better roof for you than the vendor supplies, especially if you are in Scotland where roofing standards are higher.

I strongly advise against flat roofs.