If you have the room in your garden, or an area of land near your home, you might want to consider building a summer house. One of the great benefits is that if your garden doesn’t face the right direction, you can still enjoy summer nights in a separate location. Not only that, it could be a place to work from during the day if you work from home, alleviating the problem of being tempted to ‘just have 5 minutes in front of the TV’ So what do you need to know? Read on for some helpful tips on planning a summer house.
Choose the Type of Foundations
Once you have decided where you are going to place your summer house, you then need to decide what sort of foundation is best. A simple timber summer house may only need a raised wooden base, similar to timber decking; whereas a sturdier building will need proper concrete foundations. The advantage of concrete is that it gives you a solid footing to build on and a more permanent construction. For a permanent structure you may want to check your local planning regulations and obtain any necessary permissions.
Are You Installing Utilities?
Having a separate building in your garden might be a great idea, but once constructed you may soon regret not adding electricity and water to it. So now is the time to consider whether you will want to connect your household utilities to it (or not) before the concrete base goes down.
This could be just a case of adding an electricity supply for lighting and a few sockets, or you may want to go the full hog and install water and waste pipes for a sink or even a toilet. This would give you a living space to spend the day in or even for a guest to stop over if it’s big enough.
It is advisable to use a private utility locating in Texas company for instance, as the local plans only show primary utilities to your home and not secondary ones coming from it. This means you may end up digging through drains or cables by mistake as you won’t know where they are. It will also help locate them to plumb into should the need arise.
When installing electrical utilities you should consult your supplier, as you might end up overloading your main system. They will advise if you need to upgrade your domestic supply to cope with the extra demand.
Construction
If you have limited experience with building projects, it is probably advisable to buy a summer house in kit form. Then all you have to do is follow the instructions to erect your building. It may be even easier if you know a local joiner or builder who could help. Should you wish to make a custom designed building then you will need to have some plans drawn up, as this will not only help you construct it but will also tell you what materials you will need. Having plans drawn up may seem like an unnecessary expense, but will be worth it as it saves on wasted materials and time due to poor initial planning. Once completed, a summer house will give you extra space for working or entertaining, whilst adding value to your home and giving you hours of pleasure.
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