FOUNDATION
What’s Included: Groundscrews
Details: The garden rooms are suspended on a grid of groundscrews. A groundscrew is a large screw that looks and functions much like a regular screw, except these are over a metre long! As you might expect they are screwed into the ground, but not with giant comedy screwdrivers unfortunately. Instead they are driven into the ground with specialist equipment that looks and operates like a large drill. The screws are strong, each can hold over 1000kg, and the building will never move. The screws are spaced 1.5 metres apart and we will use between 10 and 30 screws depending on the size and loading expectations of the building.
PRODUCT DETAILS
For an example of illustrated product specifications in reality please see the case study (yellow section) on our home page.
BEAMS
What's included: Timber or steel beams above all doors and windows
Detail: Whenever you put a door or window into a wall you weaken it's structure. In a garden room, the front and back walls are supporting walls meaning they are holding up the roof. To compensate for the effect of reducing the wall strength by adding a door or window, beams are used above the doors and windows to strengthen the wall and provide adequate strength. This effectively stops the roof 'pushing down' on the doors and windows and causing the door or window frames to distort. When the frames are squashed and distorted like this, they don't open or close properly so your windows might bind or your bi-fold or sliding doors won't glide open smoothly. This is quite a common problem in house renovations and particularly in external buildings such as garden rooms - people are tempted to take short cuts to save money and after a few months they can experience problems, particularly with large doors. Unfortunately, calling out the door supplier doesn't fix the problem either, because its the building design which is the problem! It is a risky business to spend thousands of pounds on premium doors that may not operate like premium doors for their lifetime because the building isn't designed for it.
The bigger, or wider, the doors, the bigger the problem, and hence the more strength needed to compensate. Thick timber beams are typically good enough for 2m wide openings, and above that metal is used. This approach guarantees that the doors and windows will operate perfectly throughout their lifetime. It's one less thing to worry about.
CLADDING
What's included: There are multiple options for cladding.
Detail: You can choose from a range of options which I have hand selected from the vast array of products on the market. The choices are not restricted to this shortlist but I have already done much of the hard work to determine which options represent a suitable blend of attractiveness, durability and value for money.
Typically I would recommend Cedar or larch for the front of the building, because this looks fantastic, although it does require a little maintenance every few years. I would recommend something attractive yet durable on the rear, such as composite cladding, because you will probably rarely see this and therefore maintenance-free options may have the most appeal. For the sides, these may or may not be seen and hence your preference will vary depending on the design and location of your building. Of course, this is just a typical configuration and the choices are in fact endless.
ROOF
What's included: EPDM rubber roof with a 50-year life expectancy. Facia boards and roof trims colour coded to your doors and windows.
Detail: The rubber used on the roof is a professional-grade EPDM from Firestone. The trims are bonded and fixed in place around the front and sides, and a gutter trim is used at the back to direct the water flowing off the roof. All garden rooms are fitted with guttering and pipework.
STRUCTURE
What's included: 125mm pressure treated timber in walls and 150mm in roof. 11mm OSB sheathing on outside walls, plasterboard on inside. 22mm moisture resistance tongue and groove boards for flooring and roof.
Detail: The structure is built to last. The walls and roof are constructed from pressure treated timber. The timber used in the walls is 125mm thick and the roof is 150mm. Boards are glued together with PU adhesive and screwed to the joists to prevent movement so that the floor won't creak. The structure is incredibly strong and it will never move or flex, even in a hurricane.
VENTILATON
What's included: Vented cold roof design with 50mm ventilation gap, internal vapour barrier, external breathable membrane, 25mm ventilation gap between walls and cladding, 50mm ventilation gap underneath building.
Detail: Moisture control has been fully thought through meaning you dont have to worry about mould, rot and building decay. There are vapour barriers in place to help keep moisture away from any structural elements, and there is also continuous ventilation to the floor, walls and roof to allow all moisture to evaporate and keep everything dry. In addition to this trickle vents are specified on the windows and doors to help encourage air circulation. A vented cold roof is an unusual feature on a garden room as garden rooms are typically classified as low occupancy buildings. But as our garden rooms are designed to be used all year round, day in, day out, you don't have to worry about the long-term integrity of your building. An adequately vented roof is exactly what is expected by house building codes and the same philosophy is applied to these garden buildings. The floor is suspended 50mm above the floor to encourage airflow, and the roof also has a 50mm void above the insulation. The cladding on the walls has a 25mm ventilation gap.
A building without well-designed ventilation will more than likely end up with damp, mould and eventual decay which is not only costly but also unsafe.
HEATING
What’s included: Energy efficient, digitally controlled electric heaters. An appropriate power rating is specified for the building size and area being heated
Detail: Electric wall-mounted heaters are not the only option, the alternative being a combined heater and air con unit that utilises a modern air source heat pump mounted outside the building. With this option, you would get exceptional energy efficiency with the added bonus of having air conditioning for the summer months. Timber-framed buildings with flat roofs have a tendency to bake in the sun and get very warm inside. If you have large doors, such as a 3m wide bifold, you can open the front of the building up to improve airflow, so you may find air con isn't necessary. If your building is to be used as an office or gym space then you may prefer (or need) to have the doors closed and yet still be at a comfortable temperature inside. The cost of a modern heat pump system is surprisingly affordable and could save you money in the long run, depending on your usage.
INTERNALS
What's included: Underlay+ laminate flooring, plasterboard, plaster, and paint (We will offer a cost reduction if you prefer to paint the room yourself).
Detail: Plaster is applied over the top of 12.5mm plasterboard and the walls are painted in the colour of your choice. Laminate flooring is laid over the top of a 5mm foam underlay. The expansion gap is hidden under bullnose skirting.
INSULATION
What's included: 100mm PIR insulation
Detail: The walls, roof and floor all have 100mm PIR insulation. PIR is much denser and much more effective than rockwool / fibre glass insulation (this is the material that typically comes on a roll and is used in lofts and partition walls). A thickness of 100mm is unusual - 60mm or 80mm is more typical for a garden room. However insulation is the most effective way to reduce your energy costs. If you use the building a lot then it needs to be well insulated, otherwise your heating costs will soon exceed the additional cost of insulation. The additional insulation also means that the building holds it's heat for a long time and will also have a more stable temperature.
ELECTRICITY
What's included: Power, internet, sockets, internal and external lighting, including connection to the house.
Detail: All buildings come with power and internet as standard, including internal and external lighting and sockets. The electricity connection between your house and the new garden room will also be taken care of. Your power needs will be discussed upfront to determine what work needs to be done to your property - typically this will mean adding some additional functionality (such as uprated fuses) to your existing house supply and consumer unit. An underground armoured cable is buried at a suitable depth, typically 500mm, to get power from your house to your new building.
CAT6 cable is run underground from your house to the garden room. This gives you a reliable internet connection over a cable to ensure the same quality of service as your home. The internet cable can also be connected up to a router inside your garden room to give you wireless connectivity inside the building, and also your garden.
All work is carried out and signed off by a qualified electrician.
DOORS & WINDOWS
What's included: High end aluminium doors and windows, professionally fitted.
Detail: The doors and windows sit at the heart of the building and it is the thing that makes the single biggest difference to your experience of using the garden room. Aluminium doors and windows are used as standard for a number of reasons, not only do they look so much better than PVC because of the cleaner profiles and thinner sightlines, but their superior strength ensures reliability and that trademark silky smooth action. That could be a sliding door, a large multi panel bi-fold or just a simple window. If you have experienced both then you will know that there is no comparison in terms of how enjoyable it is to use. The doors and windows can also be supplied with internal blinds which sit inside the glass which gives them a very clean and professional look, and they never need cleaning. The blinds give you control over both your privacy and also the amount and direction of sun light entering the room. These are a huge upgrade.