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What is a garden summer house?

A summer house is a wooden structure that, similar to a garden shed, usually sits on solid foundations. It usually has a felt or tiled roof and a selection of windows and doors that allow access for visitors and a bounty of natural light.

Differing from a shed in their purpose, however, summer houses are designed to give people a place to inhabit, supernumerary to their home, and are not traditionally designed for storing goods.

They can be used for a wide range of purposes, including:

  • Outdoor dining rooms
  • Offices
  • Home gyms
  • Extra playrooms
  • Covered garden spaces - protecting people from the weather
  • Hideaway spaces for some quiet time
  • Hobby rooms
  • Workshops
  • At-home consultation rooms

Whatever you want one for, with Solid Sheds, you can create a wooden summer house to your exact specifications. From including built-in storage options such as shelves to adding custom PVC colours to brighten up your exterior, and much more.

Why choose a purpose-built wooden summer house for your garden?

Here at Solid Sheds, our comprehensive service includes an extensive range of wooden summer houses for our loyal and deserving customers to choose from. Our selection includes many kinds of garden buildings to suit your specific needs and preferences, including simple yet attractive budget summer houses, and more luxurious models complete with a veranda.

Our wooden sheds are always custom-built to order, allowing you to design a bespoke summer house to your ideal specifications. With the assistance of our experts, you can create the garden summer house of your dreams. We can cover all bases, from smaller summer houses for a spot of shade to spacious garden cabins with more than enough room for everyone to spend time together.

We encourage our customers to take advantage of our purpose-built summer house service to achieve exactly the result you expect. The more information you provide, the happier you will be with our finished product after we tailor your chosen summer house to your requirements. The expert team at Solid Sheds works closely with every client to establish a positive relationship, ensuring that our output is always spot-on.

Summer houses

What are the benefits of a garden summer house?

Interested in the benefits that summer houses can bring to your garden?

We don’t blame you. After all, there’s a reason why a wooden summer house is becoming a more and more popular addition to homes nationwide. Summerhouses, in opposition to what most believe, give homeowners the chance to use their garden space all year round, both when the sunshine eventually comes around, and also during the cooler winter and autumn months.

A wooden summer house also offers a great solution if you’re looking for some peace, quiet, and extra space! If your home appears overcrowded in the presence of guests, you can easily extend your space to the outdoors with this warm, cosy retreat. Similarly, they provide a versatile option for those who want to experiment more with their garden design, creating a stunning focal point to redesign your garden around.

A garden summer house is a great multi-use space, perfect for adding an additional room to your home. Ideal for the children to play in while developing their independence, or perhaps repurposed as a hobby zone. Alternatively, why not fill it with snacks and those noisy game consoles and give your teenager space to host their friends, without trashing your living room?

Other ideas include:

  • Reading nooks
  • Cinema rooms
  • Home gyms
  • Working from home spaces
  • Libraries
  • A socialisation hub

The options are literally endless!

Do garden summer houses require planning permission?

Getting planning permission can be a long, drawn-out process that quite often puts off potential summer house converts. So, should this be an issue?

In the UK, most garden buildings - including sheds, greenhouses or summer houses - do not require homeowners to apply for planning permission, because they come under the heading of what’s called permitted development.

However, to be sure that planning permission is not required, there are rules you should meet. To ensure you don’t have to take down your lovely new summer house once it’s constructed, our experts can help you to come up with a design that doesn’t require planning permission if you would prefer.

Removing the worry altogether.

Why choose a wooden summer house from Solid Sheds?

Solid Sheds is proud to offer a large variety of choices for homeowners looking for a wooden structure for their garden. From traditional apex and pent sheds to garden office sheds, wooden Wendy houses and summerhouses, there is something for every outdoor space.

Once customers have chosen the basic exterior, they can then explore our wide range of custom-built options. All of our wooden sheds are designed and constructed to order, including elements to maximise the space, such as built-in internal storage or shelves. This ensures that not only are they as comfortable as possible, but they can also be used straight away by our customers after delivery and erection.

Additions and alterations to our range of wooden summer houses include, but are not limited to:

  • Premium PVC fully glazed doors and windows
  • Choice of PVC colours
  • Guttering
  • Double-strength floor
  • Vapour barrier membrane
  • Foil Insulated Floor
  • Insulation
  • Cladding
  • Installed electrics
  • A 20-year guaranteed rubber roof

By choosing custom-built design options, our summerhouses can exactly fulfil customer expectations and quickly become a highly used space, giving families precious extra space to grow and flourish. Our expert team is experienced in constructing bespoke garden buildings and works very closely with our clients to ensure that not only do their desires come to fruition, but their whole experience from start to finish with Solid Sheds is also pleasant and relaxed.

High-quality affordable garden summer houses on sale

A garden summer house is one of the most versatile products around, as part of the selection on offer from Solid Sheds. No matter what you want to use the space for, you can be confident you can do so due to its durability and robustness against the elements. We have many variations in size and design available, giving you plenty to choose from. You will have ample opportunity to find the one that’s perfect for your garden space and budget. Once you’ve set your heart on a particular summer house, you’ll have the option to add a range of upgrades to complete your ideal set-up.

We understand that buying one of our summer houses is a big investment, but the durable materials we use, and our robust craftsmanship always make it worthwhile. An extra-strong framework, with double-glazed toughened glass and tongue-and-groove flooring as standard, allows our sheds to endure the elements for many seasons to come.

At the Solid Sheds factory, we only use ethically sourced timber, which undergoes a vacuum pressure treatment to preserve the wood and provide long-term protection against rot. Every wooden summer house we sell comes with a coat of Protek wood preserver to keep it in prime condition for as long as possible.

We provide easy-to-assemble structures with full instructions, so you can erect a sturdy summer house yourself even with the most basic of DIY skills. However, if you’d like to save yourself some hassle, you’ll also have the option to hire our team to carry out professional construction for you.

Need help designing your dream summer house?

Wondering which of our spectacular summer houses would suit your garden best? Or are you interested in learning more about a particular style we have in stock? Contact Solid Sheds today by calling 01695 51442 to discuss your requirements and receive expert advice on our summer house options.

Alternatively, if you’d like to see our wooden summer houses with your own eyes, feel free to visit one of our multiple branches across the UK. You’ll be able to speak with a well-informed member of staff while you’re there to find out more about each summer house as you experience the range in person.

Absolutely! Though the name may suggest otherwise, our summer houses are purposefully designed to tolerate all kinds of weather conditions – ideal for the unpredictable British climate. Don’t let the name put you off buying a summer house suitable for the winter, as it has a durable and hardwearing make up makes it a perfect retreat in wind, rain, shine or snow!

Each of our garden structures uses durable redwood timber with preservative treatments to outlast the ever-changing outdoor elements.

If you’d like to enjoy your summer house throughout every season, regardless of the temperature, then of course you’re free to do so. After all, why wouldn’t you want to get the most out of your investment? Our strong and sturdy summer houses will give you somewhere to take shelter in all kinds of weather.

That said, if you do plan to sit in your garden summer house in the depths of winter, it’s best to add extra insulation. Our double-glazed windows will keep the wind and rain out, but wall coverings, wool rugs, and blankets will keep you extra-cosy. If you run electricity to your outbuilding, you can even use a space heater.

Many of our customers often want to get hands-on with our summer houses before they make their purchase – and understandably so! If you’re going to be spending a sizeable amount on a structure that will last you many years to come, then you’ll likely want to see it in person first to complete your vision as to what you want to do with the interior and exterior. With our Solid Shed bases positioned nationwide, you’re able to visit and take in what your new building is all about before you make the purchase.

It’s sensible to get a complete vision of what you’re buying by sizing up the structure when it’s right in front of you. Our branches open their doors to as many people as possible, allowing potential buyers to reach their final decision.

You can view products from Solid Sheds in-store by visiting one of our partner stores across the North West, Midlands, and North East of England. Viewing our existing models as complete structures will give you a better idea of their size and how they'll look in your own space. You’ll also be able to compare different models against each other properly.

You’ll also have the benefit of being able to speak to a team member in person at the store you visit to get more information about each summer house in stock there. Our representatives would love to see you and discuss our summer houses in more depth, so get yourself down to your local branch today!

At Solid Sheds, we stock summer houses that will fit in almost all gardens, regardless of size or shape. Of course, you’ll know yourself whether your garden is too small for a wooden summer house all together, or if the fit wouldn’t quite match the amount of leisure space you’d like to. This is why we list the exact dimensions of each of our sheds, so you know what you’re measuring up against each and every time.

Our selection includes a variety of structures, so you can decide which accommodates your spatial constraints or general preferences the best. No matter how large or small your garden may be, one of our summer house designs is sure to be a perfect fit.

From more traditional sheds to small studios to spacious cabins, the range of sizes and styles on offer makes it easy for you to find the best option for your garden. If there isn’t much room to start with, consider a corner summer house that can fit snugly to one side without taking up too much of your valuable limited space.

Before choosing a summer house from Solid Sheds, we do advise taking accurate measurements of your garden first. It’s best to think about where you want the structure to go in advance, so you can pay extra attention to the measurements for this area and compare the sizing options against them. This way, you can also choose the most appropriate placements for the doors and windows.

One of the great things about garden summer houses is that, in the majority of cases, they don’t need planning permission. If you’re renovating your garden and want to complete the process as quickly as possible, applying for planning permission can hold things up, so simply installing a straightforward summer house will speed things along.

However, we did say that this is true for the majority of cases. Some garden structures do require planning permission before you can put them in your back yard, so if you want to skip this pesky step, make sure that your summer house is:

  • Not larger than half of your garden space
  • No more than 3 metres high (if it has a pent roof)
  • Not within 2 metres of a boundary (if over 2.5 metres high)
  • No more than 4 metres high (if it has an apex roof)
  • Neither in front of your home or closer to public highway than your house

If the size, shape, and placement exceed these restrictions, then you’ll have to apply for planning permission from your local authority. You’ll also need to get permission if your summer house has a floor space of 15-30 square metres or more, or if you intend to use the building for commercial purposes. You can find out more about this by contacting your local council or visiting the government’s online Planning Portal.

Though its name implies that it’s a house, which people normally do live in, it’s actually illegal to live in a summer house full-time – unless you have planning permission. Of course, you can have a visitor stay the night and sleep in your summer house every now and then, but if you intend to use it as a regular living facility then you must apply for the appropriate permissions first.

For a shed or garden summer house to become a safe place to sleep in every night, you must convert it to comply with building regulations. This isn’t the same thing as planning permission, meaning that you need to consider both. These regulations cover health and safety concerns like structural stability, insulation, ventilation, electricity, water supply and drainage, and fireproofing.

You must adhere to the rules closely, and the finished conversion must pass an inspection before you’re allowed to start using the summer house as self-contained accommodation. Remember that planning permissions are about where you construct it, while building regulations are about how you construct it. Don’t forget that when a summer house becomes an extra liveable room, this can affect your council tax band.