What Factors Do I Need to Consider When Buying a Garden Office?

A garden office is a quick, convenient and cost-effective way of adding an extra room to your home without needing to invest in an extension. But how do you go about choosing the right garden office for you? Here are some key factors to consider.

How Much Will a Garden Office Cost?

We’ll start with the most obvious of factors to consider when buying a garden office: budget. Your budget will have an impact on every other decision you make and will also eliminate some of the options from the start, which can help you to hone in on the right garden office for you.

When it comes to setting a budget, think about how much you’re willing to spend but also try to be realistic about what that could bring you. In addition, it’s worth considering what you might be willing to compromise on in order to bring your chosen garden office in on budget.

How Much Will Different Types of Garden Office Cost?

The type of garden building you choose for your office will have the greatest impact on price. There are four main office types to consider here at B&M Garden Buildings: log cabins, garden office pods, summerhouses and sheds. We’ll explore the features and characteristics of these in more detail in a later section, but the approximate price ranges for each are shown below:

• Sheds: £300 to £3,000
• Summerhouses: £500 to £3,000
• Log cabins: £2,000 to £10,500
• Garden office pods: £9,500 to £15,000

How Much Does it Cost to Install a Garden Office?

As well as the price of the garden office itself, there’s also the installation cost to consider. This will vary depending on whether you install the office yourself or use an installation service, and will also be influenced by the size of the building and complexity of the installation process itself.

DIY installation will take up a lot of your free time, but the primary expense is likely to be buying or renting the necessary tools (which could cost from £50 up to £500). A professional installation service like the one offered for all Forest Garden sheds, summerhouses, log cabins and garden offices is much more convenient and likely to cost between £300 and £2,500 depending on the building type, the model and the complexity of the build.

Garden Office Use, Location, and Size

We’ve tied these three points together as they’re intrinsically linked. How you plan to use your garden office and what you want to fit inside will help to dictate the size. Equally, where you want to install the building in your garden will influence both size and use. Let’s take a look at each of these points in turn.

How Can Garden Offices Be Used?

Despite the name, garden offices don’t just have to be used as actual offices. In fact, they’re incredibly versatile spaces that can be transformed into whatever type of room you wish. Pop a desk inside, along with some storage and some solar-powered lights, and you’ve got yourself a lovely quiet office space away from the hustle and bustle of your house. Add a few sofas, a TV and a bunch of soft furnishings and you’ve got yourself a lounge or gaming room. Install an easel or pottery bench and you’ve got yourself an arts and crafts room.

Once you’ve defined what you plan to use the room for, you’ll be able to assess which models have the right dimensions for your requirements and what design elements you might want to prioritise (e.g. number of windows).

Where's the Best Place to Install a Garden Office?

There’s a lot to think about when it comes to location, even if your garden is on the smaller side. Here are some questions to get you started:

• Is the ground level and will it support good drainage?
• Will you be able to access the garden office easily once it’s been installed?
• Will the office be close enough to install any facilities you might want, such as electricity?
• Is it a private space that’s not overlooked?
• Will you need planning permission? (Your local planning authority can help with this one.)

Wherever you choose to position your garden office, make sure that you have a suitable base in place before installation as your new structure will need a secure foundation.

What Size Garden Offices are Available?

Garden offices come in all shapes and sizes, which not only gives you a generous level of choice but also helps to ensure that there’ll be a viable option for you, no matter how much – or how little – outdoor space you have to play with.

What we would consider to be the more classic garden offices – those made from log cabins or garden office pods – range in size from 8’ x 10’ up to a massive 20’ x 15’ here at B&M Garden Buildings. Summerhouses and wooden sheds tend to be smaller, starting at a petite 6’ x 4’ and increasing to 12’ x 8’ (summerhouses) and 20’ x 10’ (sheds).

Once you’ve chosen the perfect location and defined how you want to use your garden office, carefully measure up the space to see what size building can be comfortably accommodated by your garden (and can comfortably accommodate the furniture you’re planning to add inside). Always make sure you take any external overhangs, verandas, door opening clearances and window opening clearances into account as it’s easy to overlook these and get caught out further down the road.

What are the Different Types of Garden Office?

We touched on this earlier in the budget section, but now it’s time to explore the different types of garden office in more detail. Ranging from sheds and summerhouses to log cabins and dedicated garden office pods, each building offers different kinds of features and benefits that may help you to come to a decision.

Here at B&M Garden Buildings, we offer garden buildings from top manufacturers including Forest Garden, Palmako and Shire.

Log Cabin Garden Offices

Log cabins have a lovely natural look, with interlocking log walls, strong floors and a choice of apex, pent or reverse apex roofs depending on the model. The thick and durable timber walls aid in maintaining the temperature during the summer and winter months, while the heavy-duty construction gives you a garden building that has been built to last and will withstand the elements.

There are classic and modern variations to choose from and the majority come equipped with large windows and glazed double doors (which are often lockable too). You can also get log cabins that consist of multiple rooms, so that you could have two office spaces or a quiet area for you to work while your family relaxes next door.

Summerhouse Garden Offices

Summerhouses are all about bringing the outside in and will typically have expansive glazed windows and glazed double doors taking centre stage. This makes them light and airy buildings that thrive in the summer as entertaining or relaxation spaces, but can also hold up well through the year in all weather conditions.

Pent, apex and reverse apex roof types are on offer and alongside the traditional rectangular shape there are also corner and octagonal varieties. The cladding tends to be tongue and groove, which gives the summerhouses a sleek appearance, superior strength and excellent insulation properties.

Garden Office Pods

Dedicated garden offices like the Forest Garden Xtend range have been designed with home working in mind. Compact and efficient, these buildings are built from industry-leading Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for superior, year-round installation. These panels are used in the floor, walls and roof and are topped by tongue and groove exterior cladding for a polished finish. The pre-primed interior cladding is ready for painting too, so you can add a personal touch to your office.

Another benefit of a garden office pod is the fact that they’re relatively easy to install and won’t require much maintenance, so once they’re assembled all you need to worry about is what furniture you’d like to put inside.

Shed Garden Offices

A shed might not seem like the most obvious location for a garden office, but modern wooden sheds have a lot to offer with their excellent build quality and versatility. Most feature strong wooden frames, robust wooden floors, and overlap, shiplap or tongue and groove cladding. You can also choose between pent, apex and reverse apex roof styles.

Using a shed as a garden office means you’ll probably want to take advantage of a model with windows and generous doors. Some models (particularly the Forest Garden ranges) give you the flexibility of being able to choose where to place those windows and doors, so you can tailor the shed’s layout to perfectly match your requirements.

What are the Key Features of a Garden Office?

One final area to consider is what features you want your garden office to have. Roof type, door type, window type and cladding type will all affect the look and feel of the building (as well as the price tag), so have a think about what’s important to you and where you might be willing to compromise if needed.

Garden Office Windows

Number of windows is probably where you get the greatest amount of choice, with some styles of garden office enjoying floor-to-ceiling windows and others opting for quaint cross-bar windows instead. Your decision here will come down to style and how much natural light you desire, as well as whether the windows can be opened and the glazing type.

Garden Office Roof Types

You’ve got three main options here: pent, apex or reverse apex. With a pent roof, the roof has a modern sloped design that works particularly well if you’re planning to place your office next to a wall or fence line. With an apex roof, you get a classic upturned V-shaped roof that offers generous headroom in the middle of the shed. With a reverse apex roof, that upturned V-shape is flipped 90 degrees and the headroom runs the length of the building.

Garden Office Doors

Single or double doors? Fully glazed, partially glazed or not glazed at all? Lockable or padlockable? For a garden office, double doors will make it easier to get furniture in and out, and a lockable door will help to keep that furniture safe once it’s inside. A solid door may provide an extra layer of security, while a glazed door will allow natural light to flood inside.

Garden Office Extras

Some garden offices boast extras like a canopy to protect you from the rain, a veranda to enjoy as evening draws in or even a gazebo area. Keep an eye out for any additional feature that particularly appeals and bear in mind that these extra features might well mean an extra cost.

What Garden Offices are Available to Buy?

You can find an exciting range of garden buildings, including log cabins and garden offices, at B&M Garden Buildings. We stock buildings from top manufacturers including Forest Garden and Palmako, and there are a wealth of sizes and styles available.

Looking to install a garden office? Share your garden set-up, tips, tricks, and garden photos with the B&M community on Facebook, X, TikTok, and Instagram.

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