Outdoor Buildings That Require Minimal Groundwork and Disruption

Dreaming of extra garden space but not months of building work?

Traditional extensions are stressful. Riddled with planning delays, waiting for builders and surprise bills that soon spiral.

But there’s good news:

Outdoor buildings like summer houses and garden rooms require very little groundwork, and can go up with minimal disruption to your life.

In fact…

You could have a completely new building installed in your garden within days.

In this guide you’ll learn:

• Why garden buildings trump traditional extensions
• The types of garden buildings with little to no groundwork
• Understanding bases for garden buildings
• Finding the perfect building for your garden

Why Garden Buildings Are Better Than Traditional Extensions

Let’s face it…

Who wants their home surrounded by scaffolding and builders wandering around? Traditional extensions involve ripping holes through walls, dust everywhere and weeks of disruption.

Outdoor buildings don’t invade your home.

They are separate structures which go up in your garden without impacting the actual house itself.

This means:

• Zero internal mess to clean up every day
• Builders aren’t coming in and out through your house
• No living without a kitchen for several weeks

The UK garden room market size hit £266 million in 2024 and shows no sign of slowing down with year-on-year growth of 5.8%. As more homeowners realise just how simple garden buildings can be compared to full renovations, sales figures don’t lie. Using a company like 1st Choice Leisure Buildings would be the right call to make for any garden renovations as 1st Choice Leisure Buildings is a UK-based design & build specialist, specialising in premium garden rooms, studios, and bespoke outdoor structures for style-conscious homeowners.

When browsing if you can have summer houses delivered and installed online, the benefits are easy to see. With professional teams delivering and installing your new building, some models can be standing in as little as one or two days.

Impressed? Read on…

Types of Garden Buildings With Little to No Groundwork

While some outdoor buildings do need foundations, others are surprisingly easy to install.

There are three main garden buildings…

Summer Houses

Summer houses have been the go-to for home owners who want a peaceful getaway in their garden for years. Their lightweight frames mean they sit on top of simple bases, without needing any real foundations.

As you may have guessed by now, summer houses are usually made from prefabricated panels. The labour intensive part of the build takes place in the factory, then on your lawn all we need to do is slot the building together.

Log Cabins

Log cabins provide more robust construction with better insulation values than the average summer house. Log cabins are built from interlocking timber walls that can usually be stacked up in a single day.

Being generally larger buildings than summer houses, they do take longer to erect. However, we’re still talking days rather than months. Once again, the elements that make up your building are made off-site in a factory.

Garden Rooms

Arguably the most useful outdoor building you can get. Garden rooms have surged in popularity thanks to many of us working from home.

Fully insulated, garden rooms are suitable for year-round use.

These buildings often use modern modular building methods. In other words, lots of the construction happens off-site in a factory. Recent industry statistics show the value of prefabricated modular outdoor buildings accounts for around 34% of all residential projects today.

That’s because customers can be sure of lower costs and faster installation times.

Gazebos & Pergolas

If you want as little disruption as possible, consider a gazebo or pergola. Both of these open sided garden buildings can sometimes be installed with absolutely no groundwork at all.

Granted you won’t have a fully weatherproof room like a summer house. But they’ll make a huge difference to the look of your garden without any builders coming into your property.

Do Garden Buildings Need a Base?

Hold up…

Every garden building needs some sort of base. I know what your thinking, “Hang on a minute doesn’t that involve concreting down slabs?”

Nope.

The most common garden building bases are:

• Concrete slab
• Paving slabs laid on a compacted sub-base
• Treated timber bearers on flat ground
• Adjustable foundation pads to cope with uneven ground

It all depends on what type of garden building you choose. The light weight summer houses often don’t need anything more than paving slabs or timber bearers. Large timber log cabins will probably require a concrete slab.

But wait…

You’d still be amazed how quick we can install a concrete slab compared to a full set of foundations. Most bases can be installed in 1-2 days before your building arrives, that’s if your garden is accessible for a concrete truck!

Compare that to…

Traditional home extensions that need foundations several feet deep, erected before we even start on the actual structure. Factor in visits from your local building control officer and you’re up to several weeks onsite just getting started.

Got it?

Base required yes. Concrete foundations no.

What Garden Building Is Right for You?

Let’s be honest, it all depends on what you want!

Don’t worry I’ve still got 3 things you should consider when trying to decide…

Consideration #1 What Do You Want to Use it For?

Are you after some storage space? Do you want a summer house guests can stay in? Or are you after a home office you can use all year round?

Defining what you want to use your building for is step number one. For summer house style buildings that you only use in warm months, a traditional summer house is fine.

If you’ll be using it throughout winter get something like a garden room or log cabin. Log cabins have better insulation properties out of the box due to thicker walls.

Consideration #2 How Big is your Garden?

Measuring your garden may not sound fun, but bear with me.

The good news is Outdoor buildings come under permitted development. As long as they’re under 2.5 metres tall, and don’t cover more than half of your gardens outdoor space, you won’t need planning permission.

Always double check with your local council before submitting an order, but it’s very unlikely you’ll need to.

Consideration #3 Cost

Cost really is everything when buying a garden building.

They can range from a couple hundred pounds for something basic up to the thousands for a fully fitted garden room.

Just remember to include the cost of preparing your base and getting any electrical installed. You’ll still be way ahead of having an actual extension built though.

On The Day Your Building Arrives…

Once you’ve ordered your garden building, wait is over!

Your building gets delivered exactly how it will look when finished.

Here’s the general process:

1. Our team arrive and unload the building from the truck
2. We check the base is level and ready to go
3. All the walls get raised and clipped into place
4. The roof structure is added
5. Doors/windows/get to skipping because the build is complete

For summer houses and garden rooms, this entire process will take place in one day. Large log cabins may take 2 days.

Compare that to building an extension…

You’ll soon see why more and more people are searching for garden buildings online.

Conclusion

Outdoor buildings are the perfect choice for homeowners who want more space without the associated headaches.

Whether you’re looking for somewhere to relax in your summer months, somewhere guests can stay overnight or you need a home office, there’s a garden building to suit.

Once again:

• Garden buildings can be erected in a matter of days
• Most don’t need planning permission
• Many have very little to no groundwork
• They’re installed by professionals who keep disruption to minimum

That’s why the industry is booming. Don’t believe us? The proof is in the sales stats. As more people discover how quick and easy garden buildings can be compared to traditional extensions, the more they sell.

We hope you love your new building as much as we love helping you get it installed.