extra rooms

We ask garden office suppliers Extra Rooms questions about their buildings as part of our Garden Office Guide.

What is your most popular garden office design?

Probably our artists studio design type. I say “type” as no studio we have ever done has been identical to another, each has different dimensions and customer preferences built in that suit them the best.

Why does your design make the perfect garden office, how have you made it user friendly?

By listening to all our customers and acting upon their combined wishes like going overboard on insulation and finishing them off will proper plastered walls so they are not “sheddy” but proper long life insulated rooms.

How do your garden offices comply with Planning Permission?

They are all built in the assumption that they will be placed less than 2 metres from a boundary as most people want them at the bottom of the garden and do not want to waste space between the office studio and their fences/hedges etc.

Therefore, unless they tell us otherwise, we build them all a tad under 2.5 metres high.

What size garden office do you recommend for one worker to work comfortably?

About 64 sq ft is comfortable but we ask our customers to do a tiny drawing for them selves with their desk and whatever other furniture they are intending to put into it and then this shows them the size they need.

Whether the 64 sq ft is made up of 8ft by 8ft or 10ft by 6.5ft or any other dimensions is neither here not there as we charger according to area, dimensions do not affect the price and this gives the customer the freedom to put the building where it is wanted and we will make it fit the space.

And for two workers what size garden office do you suggest?

8ft by 10 ft to be comfortable and not too cramped

Are the foundations included in the price, if so what type?

Yes they are and the type is determined by the site and what we find. timber buildings, whether membranes are present or not underneath, should always have an air gap under them. This stops rising damp and everything can breath. For virgin ground on soil we will use tanalised timber piles embedded in strong concrete, for when we find existing patios and slabs etc we will use multiple pads below the building, to make it level and provide the ventilation underneath.

Are your garden offices suitable for year round use? What type of insulation do you use? How thick are your walls?

They are only made for all year use. We use a very thermally efficient insulation with in all our panels which are S.I.P.S, structural insulated panels. This insulation is double installed so that the walls are like inside a thermos flask, equal to over 8.5 inches of fibreglass, this is the same or better than the latest green house building levels for insulation.

What is the exterior cladding on your garden offices?

It depends on what the customer chooses and prefers, like everything in our studios, however, most choose either cedar match-boarding on at least the front if they want a contemporary look, and this can be fitted vertically or horizontally, or they choose more rustic feather edged boards or Cape Cod cladding as some prefer to call it, when they prefer the building to be blended into the garden and not standing out.

We often stain it to match the surroundings, deep green most frequently.

What is the roof covering?

A heavy duty torch-on felt with solar reflective coating, as we have found this to be the most dependable long life roof.

What is the interior lining and floor covering?

The interior is properly plastered and painted and the floor covering is generally a laminate floor.

How many electrical sockets do you include as standard?

At least half a dozen doubles in our smallest offices.

What sort of lighting do you use in your offices, why have you chosen this type?

Flush down lighters as customers prefer them and they can take ultra low L.E.D.s at 3.5 watts each.

Do you include heating in your garden office as standard, if so what type?

No but due to being hyper insulated a simple oil filled radiator is more than adequate and if on a timer, extremely energy efficient and the room is always warm when you arrive in the morning.

Broadband and telephone are important in a garden office, how do buyers get these to the office?

There is a special gadget we recommend which uses the mains cable as a conduit for the broadband signal with no additional wiring needed and it boosts the signal very well.

What optional extras would you recommend to create the perfect office setup?

Everybody has different ideas about this, depending on what they are using it for but being bespoke, we normally supply it whatever it is.

What is the lead time on your garden offices?

5-8 weeks normally

What is the typical on site build time?

A single day, including foundations, for buildings up to 120 sq ft, two days after that size, unless it is a soundproofed room and this can be up to two weeks depending on the level of spec.

The single day installation is achieved as the whole building is completely built to absolute completion in our factory, so that the installation is a re-assembly rather than a construction process.

How much does a typical one person office cost?

Prices start at £6.5K plus vat including a foundation.

How much does a typical two person office cost?

If it was 8ft by 12 it would be around £10K plus vat

Are there any hidden extras? (planning fees, electrical hookup etc)

We are turnkey apart from electrical hookup.

What is the lifespan of your garden offices, is there any ongoing maintenance?

Indefinite life, around 50 years at least.

What guarantees come with the office, are they free?

5 years materials and labour covers the foundation and any roof leaks and are free not as extras.

If you could give a buyer one piece of advice about buying a garden office, what would it be?

Nobody ever told us after they had one that they wished it had been smaller.

Interesting read? Contact Extra Rooms on 01159 899 555 for a chat about garden offices or visit their website www.extrarooms.co.uk

Tomorrow, the Garden Office Guide: Site Visits