Can I put a hot tub in my summerhouse?

For many, the summerhouse and the hot tub are like a match made in heaven, but is it really as simple as that? 

Perhaps you already have a hot tub and now you’re just looking to find if a summerhouse is really going to be the perfect storage solution to keep your hot tub house. 

Can you really just put a hot tub in a summerhouse?

The short answer to this question is…YES!

You absolutely can put your hot tub in a summerhouse and no one can stop you from doing that. 

But, is it a good idea to put your hot tub in a summerhouse?

The answer to that question is…no. 

Let’s dive deeper (excuse the pun) to take a look at some of the issues with putting your hot tub in a summerhouse, whilst also examining some of the alternatives. 

By the end of this blog, you will know exactly why it is not a great idea to put your hot tub straight into a new Summerhouse. However, you’ll also know some of the fantastic alternatives that are available. 

The benefits of putting a hot tub in a summerhouse?

There’s no shortage of answers to this question – there are plenty of reasons a summerhouse can be a good house for that hot tub of yours:

1. Is a summerhouse a good shelter for a hot tub?
2. Can the summerhouse provide a storage area?
3. Does a summerhouse provide privacy for my hot tub?
4. Will a hot tub look good in a summerhouse?

Will a summerhouse act as a good shelter for my hot tub?

If staying out of the rain is the aim of the game…a summerhouse can be a great shelter for your hot tub. Wind, rain, hail or even snow, a summerhouse is going to keep you protected from the elements whilst enjoying your hot tub time. 

This is great because it means that you can use your hot tub all year round, 24/7, 365 days a year. 

After all, you want to get your money’s worth, right? ….

• Related content: Can you use a summerhouse all year round?

Can a summerhouse provide storage?

In this scenario, you can liken a summerhouse to a cloakroom for your house. There is plenty of space for things like your towels, clothes and shoes etc meaning you don’t have to worry about these getting dirty.

On a side note – a summerhouse is going to keep your valuables such as a phone and a speaker dry too. This means that you can move the party out to your hot tub, play your favourite playlist and boogie the night away.

Does a summerhouse provide privacy for my hot tub?

Ah, another benefit of the summerhouse is that it can provide privacy for you and your family. 

This can be especially useful when you’ve got nosey neighbours who are just jealous of all the fun you’re having. Having the privacy of a summerhouse means that you can relax worry-free and just enjoy your hot tub time. 

One other great option that can provide privacy is an outdoor part to your summerhouse. Creating an overhang with a slotted wall partition can also work just as well. More on that later though.

Does a hot tub look good in a summerhouse?

Last but not least, your hot tub is going to look absolutely awesome housed away in a summerhouse. Let’s face it, when you have friends around, they’re going to be keeping tally of your style points and this is certainly going to bag you a few. 

On paper, a summerhouse seems like a great solution to house your hot tub then, but as with every FAIR comparison, let’s look at the other side of the story. 

What are the issues with putting my hot tub in a summerhouse?

We’ve covered the reasons you might want to put a hot tub in a summerhouse and like we said you can. But the question we’re asking is “should you?”. 

And while you can technically do it, there are lots of issues it can cause. That’s why we DON’T do it. 

In fact, we won’t build a summerhouse around a hot tub for these reasons. 

1. Moisture
2. Weight
3. Drainage
4. Difficult to set-Up

Let’s look into these…

1. Moisture

Moisture is the main issue that is going to arise from putting a hot tub in a summerhouse.

When you have a cover over your hot tub, it’s not going to be letting much moisture out. However, when the cover is lifted and you begin to use your hot tub, trapped moisture is released into the air, thus damaging the timber.

This is the single biggest reason that we say you should not put a hot tub in a summerhouse. Moisture simply causes havoc when it interacts with timber. 

How does the moisture from my hot tub damage a summerhouse?

Well, timber is a porous material meaning that it has small pores (holes) all over its surface. These pores are small enough to not be visible but large enough to allow dampness and moisture to enter.

The moisture enters these pores and gets trapped inside, leading to timber rot. At this point, you would either have two choices.

Firstly, you could replace the rotting weatherboard (which is going to be quite the task). Secondly, you could let the rot spread which would mean you’re going to have to end up replacing the whole summerhouse.

A big task, or an even bigger task!

Either way, you don’t want to be facing these problems.

Does putting a hot tub in a summerhouse cause mould?

Yes. 

The temperature and the moisture from the hot tub create the perfect breeding ground for mould. 

Mould is not good in itself most of the time, but pair it with timber and you’ve got an absolute nightmare on your hands. Mould weakens the timber by breaking up its internal structure, thus threatening the structural integrity of your building. Avoiding mould is so important to prevent having your summerhouse come tumbling down – all thanks to a few mouldy bits of weatherboard. 

Let’s just try to keep the mould to a minimum then, shall we?

If you want to keep mould to a minimum, there are tons of general tips about preventing mould in your timber building. 

In an ideal world, the way to prevent this issue would be by ensuring that the summerhouse you get comes with pressure-treated timber. Pressure treatment is when timber is sprayed with an anti-fungal spray to protect it from rot and fungi. This spray is what makes the timber take on a green colour. 

From our experience though, pressure-treating single-skinned buildings has its own problems and can actually be worse for the building. The reason for this is not quite as you would expect.

The process of pressure treating requires spraying the timber with an antifungal spray. For the antifungal spray to enter the timber, it is often forced in through the pores in the wood. By forcing its way into the timber, these pores are widened, meaning that the timber is not as dense. This means that the timber is more susceptible to water ingress.

To give a quick overview then, pressure treatment protects the timber from rot and fungi (caused by water ingress) but makes the building more susceptible to water ingress. This is a bit of a Catch-22 when it comes to putting a hot tub in a summerhouse.

2. Weight

Many people overlook the weight of a hot tub. A medium-sized hot tub can weigh around 350kg alone when empty. Now factor in three to four people and fill it with water, and you’re closer to 2000kg. That’s heavier than the average weight of a car. All of this weight puts some serious stress on all of the joins in your brand new summerhouse. Over time, this stress is going to weaken the joins and reduce the structural integrity of your build. Pair this with the already rotting timber, and you’ve got a serious problem on your hands. 

3. Drainage

Now, maintenance might be the last thing on your mind, but you need to drain and clean your hot tub at least every 3-4 months. More if you’re partying, spilling drinks or heading in with a fake tan.

With hot tubs holding on average 1500 litres of chemically treated water, draining is seriously important. On most hot tubs, there is a built-in drain that you just open up and let the water flow out but doing so in a summerhouse means that there is nowhere for the water to go. If timber doesn’t like moisture, it’s certainly not going to like a hot tub full of hot water. 

Your other option is to use a submersible pump attached to a hose to get it right down a drain. Having a summerhouse in the way is going to cause access problems here and might get water all over the floor still.

Really not ideal.

4. How do I get my hot tub in a summerhouse?

If you’re thinking about this, we promise, you’re not crazy – you’re actually one step ahead of most. Summerhouse doors are not wide enough to just waltz through with a hot tub, meaning that you’re going to have a problem. You can’t fit the darn thing in! 

To get around this, you could get your summerhouse and hot tub delivered at the same time. Summerhouses are sectional, meaning they are built-in…sections. They are also built from the ground up, so if you can coordinate both deliveries to be at the same time, there’s a chance this could work! 

With that being said, there is then the question of how you get the hot tub out. A summerhouse should last for 30+ years, but your hot tub will only last 10-12 years max (less for cheaper ones). 

What to do then?

Summerhouse Alternatives For Housing Your Hot Tub

We don’t like saying NO to you lovely #sheddies but in our experience putting a hot tub in a timber building just never works out well. It can cause problems and ultimately reduce the life of your building (which we don’t want for you).

But we know that there are loads of benefits to putting a hot tub in a summerhouse and so we’ve got some alternative solutions for you.

Remember, we’re looking to meet the following criteria.

1. Shelter
2. A Space for Changing
3. Privacy
4. Style Points

We’ve seen it all – there are plenty of alternatives for housing your hot tub, but we would like to share two of our favourites with you.

The Summerhouse Side Canopy

Possibly the best way of housing your hot tub is a variation of the summerhouse. Get yourself something like the Vorlich below, and you’ve got a winner. 

This design here gives you all four of the above important features. You can find shelter in the summerhouse section and even use this to enjoy the outside when you’re not hot tubbing. Both the summerhouse and the canopy area give you a space for changing that also provides privacy. The enclosed wall means that if positioned correctly, you will be protected from nosy neighbours yet can still see all over your garden. 

Last but certainly not least, you are going to gain mega style points with this one. Honestly, check it out – it’s awesome!

What are the benefits of a summerhouse canopy?

The benefit of this alternative is that the canopy space to the side is perfect for a hot tub. It’s covered to protect you from the rain, yet at the same time is still an outside space with plenty of ventilation. This means that you can put those fears of mould to bed. 

As well as this, because your hot tub is not inside the summerhouse, you can sufficiently drain it. Another benefit is that the average lifespan of a design such as the above would be at least thirty years if you buy quality and look after it. The average lifespan of a hot tub is only 15 years if you buy a quality one. That means when it comes to replacing your hot tub, this solution gives you a hassle-free exit route. No need for taking down your whole summerhouse just to get a hot tub out! 

The Shed Alternative (or even shed plural!)

This option is perhaps a bit more modest, but can still meet all of the points above and keep you going for many more years to come. 

Getting a shed next to your hot tub could be all you need. It provides shelter for all of your goodies, gives you a space to change, and is certainly going to give you the privacy to do that. As far as privacy in the hot tub goes…you’re a bit more limited, but if positioned correctly, you’ve got no worries still.

As always, the most important part – style points. If you get yourself a quality shed with some quality paint, you are still going to be hauling these in, don’t worry. Sheds can be beautiful too don’t ya know?

Now, if you’re a true #Sheddie, you may even get more than one shed to serve the purposes of your hot tub. One could be a changing room and the other could be a chemical store.

Is a summerhouse a good home for your hot tub then?

To wrap up what we’ve gone over, let’s quickly recap. 

A summerhouse can seem like a great solution for housing your hot tub and it would certainly look good! With that being said, there are problems with putting your hot tub inside a summerhouse. Most notably, you’re looking at moisture, rot, drainage and weight issues. All of these lead to a weakened summerhouse that is just going to come tumbling down.

That’s not to say that there aren’t alternatives that can provide the same great benefits though…

You can opt for something as simple as a shed, or as amazing as a summerhouse with a side canopy specifically for your hot tub! The choice is yours, but either way, you’re going to love your new hot tub home for years to come if you make the right choices.

If you fancy getting yourself one of these solutions, you can book in for a consultation here with one of our team to begin your own Shed Journey.

Maybe you’ve already got a hot tub compatible timber building and you’re looking for a hot tub? Why not check out our friends at Eagle Leisure.