By Amy Hanlon
A customer said to me yesterday that she’d heard that the sheds are on their way out. I reassured her that we remain committed to ShedLife around here. While our summerhouse specification has been replaced by brand-new garden rooms, the sheds are here to stay!
When we introduce a new product, there’s bound to be some confusion at first.
That’s exactly why this blog exists. Informed Sheddies choose garden buildings that are perfect for them. But if you don’t know your cladding from your air cavity, how can you be expected to make the best choice?
So let’s explore the differences between our new Radiata Garden Rooms and the Blackstone Garden Rooms we’ve been building for years.
Once you’ve read this article, you’ll understand exactly how the two products differ, and if you’re considering an all-season garden building, you’ll know which one suits you best.
Size
The most obvious difference between these two building types is right there in the page description. If you’re looking for a Garden Room under 12m2, you’re looking at our brand new 4-Layer specification.
If you’re after a building larger than 12m2, you want a Blackstone Garden Room.
Why the difference? It’s all a matter of engineering.
We can use the simplified specification for smaller buildings and ensure that they are still solid and stable enough to last. But to ensure the same structural stability in a building above 12m2, the five-layer specification is necessary.
This is why we won’t use the 4-Layer spec for anything above 12m2. A larger building wouldn’t meet our high standards for stability and longevity.
But for the smaller builds, it’s absolutely perfect.
Design
When we realised that it was time to retire our summerhouse specification, we knew that we didn’t want to get rid of these beautiful buildings entirely.
To pay homage to our summerhouse heritage, we’ve preserved four of our designs to upgrade to our new Radiata Garden Rooms. Each of these is available in three standard sizes.
The Rannoch, The Vorlich, The Kindrogan and The Deuchny live on, although they’re now so fauncy you might not recognise them!
While it’s still possible to customise these at an additional cost, our new Garden Rooms will be based on these four designs.
When it comes to a Blackstone Garden Room, however, you’re starting with a blank canvas. Each of these buildings is completely bespoke and customised to your specific requirements.
We project-manage every aspect of a Blackstone Garden Room to ensure that your building fits your budget, your needs, and your unique timber building dreams.
Specification
Now for the technical bit!
We’ve learned over the years from our Garages that the key to keeping water out of a timber building is LAYERS.
But how many layers does a timber Garden Room need?
As I mentioned before, the answer to this question very much depends on the size of the building.
Radiata Garden Room Four-Layer Wall Specification
Our Radiata Garden Rooms have four layers, including a vital air cavity to prevent moisture ingress.
Unlike a single-skinned building, any moisture that penetrates the outer layer of cladding is stopped in its tracks by that air cavity.
The air cavity, the insulation board and the timber lining ensure that the building stays cosy when it’s cold outside and cool when it’s clement.
In these smaller buildings, this specification creates a solid, durable Garden Room that can be used all year round (with the addition of a heating source).
Radiata Garden Room Cladding
And have I told you about our super-cool new cladding yet?
Radiata Pine ThermoWood is a stable, moisture-resistant timber, with even fewer knots and more regular grain than Scandinavian Redwood. It’s also seriously good-looking.
Thermal treatment doesn’t just protect the wood against moisture, insect damage and rot. It also prevents movement in the timber, meaning that your building stays as square and solid as the day it was installed.
This protection means the wood can be left unpainted for a natural finish. Left untreated the cladding will lighten to a pale blond, and eventually turn silver.
Or, you can oil the cladding in Osmo UV Protection Oil (shade Light Red Cedar) to help maintain the dark colour of the wood.
Isn’t it great to have options?!
Radiata Garden Room Doors and Windows
Our new Radiata Garden Rooms sport gorgeous anthracite grey aluminium double-glazed windows and doors.
Slim and refined, these units complement the designs of the buildings perfectly. Each design comes with a set of double doors and two windows as standard. Additional windows can be added as an upgrade.
As well as looking the part, these doors and windows confer all the usual benefits of double glazing. Your building will stay dry and warm, and whether you want to block out the noise of the outside world or create some noise of your own in there, everyone gets peace and quiet.
Radiata Garden Room Roofing Materials
Two of our Radiata Garden Room designs come with steel box profile roofing.
We’ve written before about how much we love steel box profile roofing – a 40-year materials guarantee is not to be sniffed at!
Properly installed, a steel roof has decades of life in it, and it’s virtually maintenance-free. That’s why we’ve chosen steel for our Rannoch and Vorlich designs.
But what do you use when you have a shaped roof?
Our Deuchny and Kindrogan designs needed something to rival steel’s durability, but also provide the sophisticated finish needed for such refined buildings.
Enter Isola Shingles.
We’ve used Isola Shingles in the past but hit a snag when their manufacturer stopped supplying to the UK. However, they’re the best roofing shingles out there, so we jumped through all the hoops required to ensure that we could continue to use this superior product.
Isola Shingles have a materials guarantee of 30 years (30! Count them!) and provide a beautiful classic finish for your building.
Radiata Garden Room Base Requirements
We all know how important the base of a garden building is. A great building starts with a great base.
For our new Radiata Garden Rooms, the simplified specification means that level concrete slabs or ground screws form the ideal base.
With this sort of specification, you can have your perfect home office, reading room, garden party pad – whatever you like, really!
This post is part of our Radiata Garden Room Buyer's Guide
It has everything you need to know about Radiata Garden Rooms in one easy-to-digest guide! Enter your email address below to access this free resource.
Blackstone Garden Room Five-Layer Wall Specification.
But what if you’re looking for a larger Garden Room that’s essentially a detached extension of your home?
This is where our Blackstone Garden Rooms come in. The five-layer wall specification used for these larger buildings is fully compliant with Building Standards legislation. This means that a BGR is as safe, fire-resistant, waterproof and structurally sound as your home is – by law!
If your Garden Room is going to be an extra bedroom, an Airbnb, or a holiday home, this five-layer specification is essential.
As well as the outer cladding, air cavity, insulation and lining, a Blackstone Garden Room has a breather membrane for even greater moisture protection, and a layer of OSB for added structural stability and insulation.
They’re perfectly designed living spaces, studios, business premises… The list goes on!
Blackstone Garden Room Cladding
Our BGRs come with pressure-treated Scandinavian Redwood weatherboard cladding as standard.
This cladding must be painted with a water-based exterior paint – we recommend Sadolin.
Radiata Pine ThermoWood is also available as an upgrade which replaces the previously offered Siberian Larch cladding upgrade.
Like Siberian Larch, Radiata ThermoWood can be UV-protected to retain its original finish. Or it can be left untreated to weather to a silvery-grey colour.
Blackstone Garden Room Doors and Windows
These larger buildings are more suited to the proportions of uPVC doors and windows, and that’s exactly what we use. Energy-rated, long-lasting, reliable – what’s not to love?
We’re back to that custom life again – the number, placement, shape and size of your windows and doors will entirely depend on your budget, your needs and your wants.
If you’re building a photography studio you may want to make the most of the natural light. A cinema room or beauty salon would be completely different projects. That’s why the first part of your consultation involves getting to know exactly what your plans are.
Blackstone Garden Room Roofing Materials
A bespoke building gives you additional choices.
The roofing materials on our Radiata Garden Rooms can’t be switched, but with a BGR you have more room to customise your building.
Our Blackstone Garden Rooms come with steel box profile roofing as standard. But if you’re looking for added sophistication, Isola shingles are available as an upgrade on apex BGRs.
Isola shingles are unsuitable for pent roofs, so a pent Blackstone Garden Room will have a steel box profile roof.
Blackstone Garden Room Base Requirements
A Blackstone Garden Room is a serious building that needs a serious base.
A good base for your building will keep it standing firm for decades to come. For a BGR, this means either a poured concrete plinth or ground screws.
It’s over 12m2, it’s fully compliant with Building Standards, and it’s designed to last a lifetime. Oh, and it’s created according to your requirements. Each Blackstone Garden Room is a totally unique project, brought to life just for you, the way you want it.
Price
So, how much is all this going to cost?
There’s definitely a difference in price between our Radiata Garden Rooms and our Blackstone Garden Rooms, and various factors that affect this.
Let’s start by looking at the prices of our new Garden Rooms.
How Much Is A Radiata Garden Room?
Our Radiata Garden Rooms range from £11,949 – £16,759, depending on the size and model you choose.
Explore Radiata Garden Room pricing.
Whichever design you choose, our Radiata Garden Rooms are a more affordable option than our custom Blackstone Garden Rooms.
Upgrades listed on our product page include laminate flooring and guttering.
Beyond this, customising our new Radiata Garden Rooms is absolutely possible, but these customisations will be charged separately.
What Other Costs Are Involved?
The two main additional costs involved are the base and an electricity supply.
Our team will project manage your basework and electrics in collaboration with our accredited contractors. After a site visit has been conducted for each, you will receive a custom quote for your base and your electrics. A custom quote is required for baseworks and electrics because the cost can vary considerably depending on your site.
How Much Is A Blackstone Garden Room?
Because each project is unique, there’s no single figure I can give you that neatly answers this question.
However, roughly speaking, BGRs start at around £20,000. Depending on the size and complexity of the project, they can cost as much as £60,000 and beyond.
What Other Costs Are Involved?
Groundworks and electrics are additional costs completed by external contractors. Again, these costs will vary depending on your individual project.
Contractors will carry out site visits and consult with you to make sure that you’re fully aware of your options and the costs involved.
We also project-manage each BGR to ensure that everything runs smoothly and coordinate with your chosen contractors to schedule everything appropriately.
Where Can I Find Out More About Gillies & Mackay Garden Rooms?
We’ve been building Blackstone Garden Rooms for years! There’s tons of information in our Learning Centre about these large, custom buildings.
Our Show Area also includes a beautiful BGR that you can come along and see.
As for our Radiata Garden Rooms, you can see all of the different models right here in our Show Area. Big changes are afoot!
