A garden room can make a fantastic addition to any residential UK property. Unless homeowners plan to use them only on a seasonal basis, they need adequate garden room insulation.
Insulation helps maintain comfortable temperatures during the coldest months of winter and under the hot summer sun. Insulated garden rooms can be used for almost anything, from garden offices to artists’ studios and beyond. The insulation creates a thermal barrier that makes it more cost-effective to heat and cool the space, even during extreme weather events.
On the fence about whether to build a fully insulated garden room or a simple shed? This article will offer all the insight homeowners need to make their decisions easier.
What is Garden Room Insulation?
Gardens & Rooms uses the same high-quality insulation products in garden rooms as those found in primary dwellings. The purpose of this insulation is to form an air and moisture barrier that helps to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures, even in the dead of winter or the heat of summer.
The Benefits of Garden Room Insulation
For anyone who plans to use a garden room year-round, insulation is necessary and not a luxury. The benefits of insulating a garden room extend beyond easier maintenance of indoor temperatures.
They include:
- Lower heating and cooling bills
- Ability to use the structure year-round
- Improved comfort for garden gyms
- More excellent range of possible uses
- Elimination of damage to temperature-sensitive furnishings and electronics
- Increased property values
- And more
Insulation Value By the Numbers: Floors, Walls, and Roofs
There is a common misconception held among homeowners that structures lose all their heat through their roofs. This is far from accurate. Any part of the form that comes into contact with the exterior can create an unwanted thermal transfer.
Are you wondering how to insulate a garden room roof, floor, or walls? Gardens & Rooms makes it easy by pre-cutting rigid foam insulation and bringing it to the site to decrease insulation times.
Each garden room features:
- 80mm-thick insulated floor panels with a U-value of 0.23
- 60mm-thick structural insulation roof panels with a U-value of 0.35
- 100mm-thick wall insulation with an added thermal barrier with a U-value of 0.31
Unlike the average summer house insulation kit, the insulation installed by Gardens & Rooms also features a vapour barrier. With a vapour barrier garden rooms can maintain more comfortable humidity levels. The vapour barrier also extends the longevity of moisture-sensitive building materials.
Understanding U-Values
U-values are a measure of thermal transmittance. In other words, they measure how much heat can move through a material. As a result of this unique measurement system, lower U-values are equated with greater levels of insulation.
Windows and Doors
The doors are elegant and high-quality components and come fully insulated. All windows are double-glazed to improve their insulation value. Whilst no glazing can rival thicker walls in terms of U-value, the use of double-glazing does allow these structures to have U-values of 1.21 or higher.
Best Way to Heat a Garden Room in the Winter
Adequate insulation, coupled with a south-facing window orientation, should be enough to keep garden rooms warm in some climates. When the weather drops below freezing, homeowners will still need to heat the space.
The easiest way to heat a garden room during the coldest nights of winter is to use an electric space heater. Each garden room comes equipped with professionally installed electrics capable of powering a small heater alongside other electronics or appliances.
Propane is an acceptable alternative, but it produces moisture during combustion. The moisture can cause problems with excess humidity and create a perfect environment for mold growth. Luckily, an insulated garden room should require very little heat, so a space heater is generally more than enough to heat a garden room. We have several use cases particularly with our customers that have had a Garden Bar installed with maximum customer satisfaction and good feedback all year round, even in the colder months over Christmas!
How Thick Should Garden Office Insulation Be?
The thickness of garden room insulation required to keep a detached garden office warm depends on the climate. In the UK, between 60 and 80mm of high-quality insulation is sufficient to maintain comfortable temperatures year-round.
Trust the Pros With Garden Room Insulation
If you are planning to build a detached garden office and wonder how thick to make your garden room floor insulation or whether it’s wise to use vapor barriers? There’s an easier way to get the extra year-round space your family needs.
Gardens & Rooms installs professionally designed and constructed garden rooms for surprisingly low prices. From insulation to electrical wiring, we do it all.
If you need garden office insulation advice, you can call our customer service team for all of the answers you need. Call 07999 390901 today to discuss options for your year-round garden room installation.
