The Garden Room Guide

Garden room, garden office & garden studio buyers guide

Visit the Swift Garden Rooms website to learn more

show buildings

High spec garden room £10,000

Building With Boxes are looking for a new home for their show building. Built to a high specification with SIP’s core construction and aluminium doors and windows this would be a good buy for someone with the right garden.

See Pod Space at Grand Designs Live

It’s a couple of months away but we are delighted to hear that Pod Space will be exhibiting their Micro Pod Max at Grand Designs Live at the NEC in Birmingham between the 7th and 9th October 2011.

We recently profiled the Micro Pod Max on The Garden Room Guide and Grand Designs Live will offer interested parties the chance  to experience the quality of this garden room up close. You will find Pod Space at G544 (opposite the VIP area) in the Grand Show Gardens section.

If you want discounted tickets for the show visit the Pod Space website for details.

Next week we will be showcasing another of Pod Spaces new ranges, the Eco Pod.

Garden Spaces Apex Duo

A few weeks ago The Garden Room Guide was awash with details of the garden room companies going to Grand Designs Live. One firm, Garden Spaces had designed the feature building for the Grand Gardens section of the show which was to be used as a garden design centre.

Our last article showed the visualisations which Garden Spaces had produced for their new Apex Duo range and we thought you would be interested to see the real thing! The garden room was such a success that Garden Spaces have been asked to design something new for next years show!

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The Garden Spaces Apex Duo has a high, standard specification:

  • FOUNDATIONS: Pressure-treated timber bearers on dry mix concrete pile foundations in “normal” garden conditions.
  • MAIN STRUCTURE: Floor, wall and ceiling are made from structurally insulated panels system (SIPS) – filled with highly thermally efficient expanded polyurethane. SIP’s thermal efficiency value, U = 0.27 w/m2 k (equivalent to 320mm of Rockwool).
  • DOORS, WINDOWS and SCREENS: 1 off – 1.8m wide x 2.05m high French Doors and a variety of symmetrical side screens all 2.05m tall; all in aluminium (choice of 3 standard colours) with high security locking to doors, key operated locks to doors and high performance double glazing (Celsius Clear – Argon gas filled, heat reflective, thermal insulating, UV protective & easy clean) with toughened glass.
  • ROOF CONSTRUCTION: SIPS dual pitched roof, covered in breathable waterproof membrane. Mertoshingle finish with matching ridge (30 year guarantee) and wooden soffit & barge boards (coated in Tikkurila ultra paint – RAL colour coded to exactly match the aluminium frames. Hidden black plastic rainwater guttering to both sides.
  • EXTERNAL CLADDING: Western Red Cedar (zero maintenance) T&G external timber cladding.
  • INTERNAL FINISH
    Walls: Fully plastered finish & decorated interior (matt white) with 4” painted skirting boards.
    Floor: Solid wooden flooring in a variety of finishes, or with round stud rubber tile flooring (various colours).
  • FIXTURES & FITTINGS: 1 double dimmer light switch (brushed metal), 6-10 double power sockets (brushed metal), 8-16 internal recessed downlights (brushed metal), 2 external lights with top and bottom outputs (brushed stainless or anthracite) and consumer unit with RCD.

In addition Garden Spaces have a range of upgrade options, prices for the Apex Duo start at £19,500 for more information visit the Garden Spaces website.

Executive Garden Rooms New Show Building

Executive Garden Rooms recently launched their new show building at the Sherborne Castle Country Fair, although all Executive Garden Rooms are bespoke and therefore unique this new show building gives customers the opportunity to see the style of Executive Garden Rooms, the materials on offer and the quality of the workmanship.

The show building garden room is 4m wide by 2.7m deep giving an overall external footprint of 10.8sqm; the garden room has a contemporary feel with flat roof and floor to ceiling glazing on the front elevation. The garden room is clad in cedar and we particularly like the subtle colour difference in each plank which makes a striking contrast to the dark French doors and windows.

So, what inspires Executive Garden Rooms?

[quote]we build it based on what we would like in our own garden room, so many companies offer a standard garden room that is not so flexible which is brought to the site in a flat pack form which is quickly constructed in panel sections with limited choice on positions of windows, doors etc, we want to provide a flexible bespoke product which is constructed on site from scratch this may take longer but the end result is a quality garden room which will last for many many years”[/quote]

Executive Garden Rooms are a family run company, who only take on one project at a time so that they can provide the best service to the customer; this includes full project management so the customer has a stress free installation.

Executive Garden Rooms like to work closely with the customer and incorporate their ideas into the design meaning the customer will end up with a unique quality room to suit their requirements that is different from any other.

The Executive Garden Rooms service includes:

– Site survey, design and assistance with planning & building regulations if necessary

– Concrete slab foundations

– Insulation 70mm in floor, 140mm in walls & 150mm in ceiling

– Underfloor heating with touch screen programmable thermostat

– Tiled floor in clients choice of colour

– 56mm thick joinery all made in a professional joiner shop, painted to clients choice of colour

– Double glazed with 24mm toughened thermal K-glass

– Roof sky light to maximise natural light

– Power connection from the house to the consumer unit: – down lights (internal & external) with dimmer, power sockets, PIR light, smoke alarm

– Torch on roof felt in colour of client’s choice

– Finished in Western Red cedar which requires no ongoing maintenance

Additional extras are available such as bi-fold doors, hardwood or oak joinery, paving, security alarm, toilet facilities, shelving systems, built in cupboards etc

The garden room shown in the pictures above is sitting on a raised base for easy transportation but garden rooms will normally sit on a concrete slab so there is no need for raised decking.

The garden room shown starts at £12,000 and can be seen at the Beaufort Polo Club Country Fair on 18 & 19 June 2011

For more information visit the Executive Garden Rooms website

Garden Rooms at the Chelsea Flower Show

If you are lucky enough to have tickets to this weeks RHS Chelsea Flower Show (we hear its sold out!) you will have a great opportunity to look at garden rooms!

Crane Sheds & Summerhouse will be exhibiting their range of garden buildings which include traditional style garden rooms, but if you are looking for something a little more contemporary check out the Office Pod show building incorporated into the Hiller Landscapes display.

If you’re not going to Chelsea you can find information about Crane Sheds & Summerhouses and Office Pod via their websites.

See Office Pod at Chelsea!

If you are visiting the Chelsea Flower Show at the end of May you will have the opportunity to see the slick designs of Office Pod who will be there as part of the Hillier Landscapes mature tree display.

The architect designed Office Pod is 2.1m x 2.1m and seldom requires planning permission, and comes complete with desk and storage solutions designed for optimal working.

Managing Director Stephen Tanner will be at Chelsea to answer your questions about the Office Pod or you can contact Office Pod via their website

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