FAQ
Do I need planning permission?
You do not need planning permission if your cabin meets these specifications:
It has a 15 square metre floor plan with a single pitch roof under 2.5 metres high (3 metres for a dual pitched roof) can be built in most gardens as long as the following apply:
The cabin is not built in the front garden of the property, (described as the side of the house with the front door)
The property is not listed
The property is not located in a national park
It is possible to build as large as 30 square metres and as high as 4 metres for a dual pitched roof (3 metres for a single pitched roof) if the cabin is built more than 2 metres from a boundary. The criteria above must also apply.
For additional information, see this Guide to Permitted Development.
How much does a cabin cost?
Cabins vary due to size and choice of materials used in the construction and supply at the time of purchase. At this time they start at £16,000 for a 15 square metre cabin.
How long will my cabin take to build?
Typically builds take three to four weeks, depending on access.
Are your cabins insulated? How warm are they?
We insulate the floor, walls and ceiling with insulation made from recycled plastic bottles. It is a bit more expensive than rock wool but it feels better to know that we are not putting harmful stuff into the build.
Rockwool (typical insulation) is made by spinning molten rock with minerals and steel particles to create a light fleece insulation roll. Unsurprisingly the fibres are very itchy on the skin and unpleasant to breathe.
The insulation we use is very effective – helping keep the structure warm. Most people tell us their cabin is better insulated than their house.
Does my quote include electrics?
Our builds are electrics-ready, but quotes do not include the installation of electrics. We recommend and work alongside a qualified electrician who we trust, and he consistently meets budgets and timelines. If you already have an electrician, we'll happily work with your own contractor.
How do you finish the interior?
Interior walls are normally clad with 9mm plywood sheets which look good painted or left natural. The floor is finished with a laminate flooring and simple skirting board.
What kind of exterior cladding do you use?
Typically we clad two sides in Timber and two sides in metal sheets. The timber is locally grown and milled Larch & Douglas fir. The metal is galvanised corrugated sheets or plastic coated box profile sheets in black or anthracite grey.
What roofing do you use?
We use either corrugated or square box profile metal sheets, which can be either painted and plastic coated or plain galvanised. We often also clad the back wall and the wall facing the prevailing wind in metal.
What windows and doors do you use?
We use Flying Doors UPVC windows and doors and for wooden joinery we use our friends at Wiveliscombe Joinery.
Can we use second hand windows and doors?
Yes of course. We love to reuse windows and doors, there’s so much perfectly good second-hand joinery on ebay, gumtree and marketplace.
However, windows must have frames and casements (the opening parts) and doors must be external doors with frames. If in doubt please send us a picture and we will tell you if we can use it.
Does my quote include groundworks?
We are happy to remove old garden sheds as part of our quote but we don’t include groundworks; for example, levelling a sloping garden or tree removal.
If the area you’d like to develop needs levelling or clearing of trees then we can recommend qualified tree surgeons and a digger driver who can fit his machine into most garden spaces.
Are your cabins built on site or in a workshop?
All of our cabins are bespoke and are custom built on site to your specifications.