Garden Room Specifications

The specification is where garden rooms are won or lost. Most companies lead with photos and hide their spec in small print. We do the opposite. Everything below is what goes into a standard My Retreat garden room. If something is an upgrade or an option, it is clearly marked as such.

At a Glance

Every My Retreat garden room is fully bespoke. The specification above reflects the standard package available through the online configurator. Almost every element can be upgraded or customised, and for Westbury builds the entire specification is designed from scratch around your brief.

Structure and Frame

The floor frame is structural steel. This is the single most important difference between a My Retreat garden room and most competitors' products, which use timber floor frames. Timber rots. Steel does not. A steel floor frame means the base of the room stays dimensionally stable for the life of the building, regardless of ground moisture or conditions beneath it.

Walls and roof are timber frame construction, wrapped in a breather membrane before cladding is applied. The breather membrane makes the structure waterproof from the outside while allowing moisture vapour to escape from within.

Foundations

The standard foundation system uses concrete-filled piles. Plastic tubes are driven approximately 50 to 60cm into the ground and filled with concrete to form the piles. This approach is cost-effective and suitable for the vast majority of domestic gardens. Ground screw foundations require minimal excavation compared to a traditional concrete slab. A small amount of spoil is created during installation, which can usually be spread around the garden if space allows. This is significantly less disruptive than a concrete slab foundation, which requires a substantial volume of soil to be removed.

Ground screws remain the least disruptive foundation option as they create virtually no spoil during installation and are an excellent upgrade where site conditions and budget allow. They are particularly useful on sloping sites, in areas with tree roots close to the surface, or where access constraints prevent pile driving. We advise on the right foundation for your specific site at the design stage.

For larger bespoke builds subject to building regulations, custom concrete foundations are designed by a structural engineer and specified for the individual project.

Insulation

50mm rigid EPS (expanded polystyrene) foam insulation goes into the floor, walls and ceiling as standard. This keeps the room comfortable year-round without excessive heating costs. The 2kW smart panel heater included as standard is more than adequate to warm the space in normal use.

Roof

All My Retreat garden rooms use EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) rubber roofing. EPDM has a life expectancy in excess of 25 years and a proven track record of lasting over 50 years in commercial applications. It outperforms older felt-based systems on every measure.

• Permanently flexible, will not crack or split as the building moves seasonally
• UV and infrared resistant, does not degrade in sunlight
• Acid resistant, handles rainwater without corrosion
• No shrinkage across a temperature range of −40°C to +120°C
• Environmentally non-toxic

The fascia colour matches your chosen door and window colour, in either black or anthracite grey. The fascia slopes gently to the rear, where water drains into a downpipe. Guttering and downpipes are included as standard and are only available in black.

Doors and Windows

The standard specification is double-glazed UPVC sliding or French doors and UPVC windows. Both are available in anthracite grey or black and come with a 10-year guarantee. Window Energy Ratings of up to A+ and U-values as low as 1.0W/m²K.

The fascia colour on the front and sides of the building matches the chosen door and window colour, either black or anthracite grey. Guttering and downpipes remain black regardless of the door and window colour selected.

A popular alternative to bifolds is the 4-pane UPVC sliding door. The two middle panes slide back behind the outer fixed panes, giving you a wide open aspect and plenty of light for roughly half the cost of aluminium bifolds. They look great, work perfectly in a timber frame and are one of our most-requested options for customers who want the open feel of bifolds without the premium price.

Aluminium doors and windows are also available as an upgrade across the full range for customers who want a slimmer frame profile or a specific colour not available in UPVC, including the Cortizo slimline aluminium system with 20mm sight lines used on our award-nominated Westbury builds.

Cladding Options

Cladding is chosen at the design stage and affects both the look of the room and the long-term maintenance it requires. All cladding is secret-fixed for a clean finish with no visible fixings on the face of the boards. All timber cladding is from sustainable, FSC-certified sources.

Electrics

A full electrical fit-out is included in every build. All electrical work is carried out by qualified electricians and certified on completion.

Heating

Every My Retreat garden room includes a 2kW smart Wi-Fi panel heater with app control via Tuya as standard. Wall-mounted, slim profile, with a programmable schedule. For most room sizes and uses this is more than sufficient to maintain a comfortable temperature year-round.

Air conditioning is available as an upgrade, providing both heating and cooling. It is particularly worth considering for rooms used intensively in summer with the doors closed, including gyms, offices and cinema rooms. External infrared heaters are also available for covered outdoor areas.

Flooring

Howdens Professional V Groove Laminate (2.2m² pack) is included as standard in any colour. Howdens laminate is AC4-rated for medium commercial use, FSC-certified, UK-manufactured and comes with a 20-year finish and wear guarantee. In Kieron's view it is the best laminate on the market and the reason we have not changed supplier.

The 2.2m² pack size covers the standard room footprints. For larger rooms or if you prefer a different product, flooring upgrades are available at POA. You can view the full Howdens flooring range here.

Interior Finish

Interior walls are plastered and skimmed to a smooth finish. A decorator's mist coat is applied as standard, leaving the walls ready for a top coat of any colour. MDF skirting boards are fitted throughout. The room is finished and ready to use from the day of handover.

External Features

Guttering and downpipes are included as standard in black only. Water drains from the rear of the roof via the sloped fascia.

Canopies and overhangs are available on all models. The Clifton includes a standard roof overhang with integrated spotlights. On the Ashton, an overhang can be added as an option. On the Westbury, canopies can be designed to any specification and used to cover hot tubs, outdoor kitchens, seating areas or storage. Decking is available as an upgrade on all models.