Wooden Summer Houses at a Glance
Construction: Quality redwood deal timber with no OSB boards · Sizes: From compact 7x5 summer houses to large 28x16 buildings · Glazing: Toughened glass as standard · Floors: Solid wooden floors included · Styles: Traditional, contemporary, apex, pent and corner designs.
Uses: Garden retreat, home office, studio, hobby room, entertaining or relaxing space · Insulation: Insulation options available, with fully insulated models available · Installation: Free professional installation included · Finishes: Colour paint options available · Bases: Base-building service available · Customisation: Bespoke sizes and designs available · See before you buy: Full-size wooden summer houses on display at our Surrey show site near Guildford and Woking.
Need advice? Our experienced team can help with summer house size, style, insulation, glazing, colour, base requirements and installation before you order.
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Click on images below to see larger versions of summerhouses
Click on images below to see larger versions of summerhouses
l Click on images below to see larger versions of summerhouses
Click on images below to see larger versions of summerhouses
Click on images below to see larger versions of summerhouses
Click on images below to see larger versions of sumerhouse shed combos
Click on images below to see larger versions of combination garden rooms with shed
We recommend OPTIONAL Demidekk Ultimate log cabin paint range which can be colour matched to suit. See examples in
our photo gallery.Please note that all colour shown are indicative only and will vary depending upon the light on the day the photo was taken. Additionally all screens will display the image differently. If exact colour is essential then please order a sample pot.
Choosing a Quality Wooden Summerhouse
A wooden summerhouse should be judged by far more than how attractive it looks in a photograph. Timber quality, framing, cladding, flooring, roofing, doors, and glazing all contribute to how substantial the finished building feels and how well it performs over time.
I have worked with timber garden buildings since 1979, and one lesson I learnt very early is that two buildings can look remarkably similar online while being quite different when you examine how they are actually constructed. That is why I recommend comparing specifications carefully rather than buying on appearance or headline price alone. Our summerhouse buying guide explains the main points worth considering before you choose.
What Is a Wooden Summer House?
A wooden summer house is a timber garden building designed primarily to provide additional leisure or living space in the garden. Depending on its size and specification, it might be used for relaxing, entertaining, hobbies, reading, home working or simply enjoying the garden from somewhere sheltered.
What separates one wooden summerhouse from another is not simply its shape or size. The timber used, cladding profile, framing, floor, roof, glazing, treatment and construction can all vary considerably.
This is why I prefer customers to look at the complete building rather than assume every timber summer house is essentially the same product with a different name.
Why Choose a Timber Summer House?
Timber has been used for garden buildings for generations because it combines practicality with a natural appearance that suits most gardens. A quality wooden summerhouse can feel much more at home alongside planting, lawns and trees than many more industrial-looking materials.
Timber is also flexible. It can be manufactured in traditional or contemporary designs, painted in different colours, pressure-treated for additional preservative protection and, on suitable models, insulated for greater comfort.
The important qualification is quality. Simply describing something as timber does not tell you whether the building is well made. Always look at the actual specification.
Why Timber Quality Matters
One of the first things I look at is the timber itself. Our principal wooden summerhouse ranges use quality redwood, which I prefer to lower-cost alternatives where the overall specification warrants it.
The cladding is only one part of the equation. The framing behind it provides structural support, while the floor needs to be substantial enough for furniture and regular use. The roof, doors and windows also need to complement the rest of the construction.
A beautifully photographed summerhouse with weak framing or a lightweight floor would not impress me simply because the visible cladding looked attractive.
Tongue and Groove Timber Summer Houses
Tongue-and-groove construction uses boards shaped so that one edge fits into the adjoining board. It provides a neat interlocking finish and is widely used for good-quality timber garden buildings.
Profiles such as shiplap and loglap provide different appearances. Shiplap has the familiar overlapping look of many timber summerhouses, while loglap creates a more rounded, substantial visual effect.
I would not automatically declare one profile better for every customer. The timber thickness and overall construction quality matter as much as the profile name. If this construction method is particularly important to you, compare our dedicated tongue and groove summer houses.
Diamond or Platinum Wooden Summerhouse?
Our Diamond and Platinum wooden summerhouses are aimed at somewhat different requirements, and it is useful to understand that distinction rather than simply assuming the dearer building is automatically the correct choice.
Diamond Wooden Summer Houses
Diamond is a strong choice for customers wanting a quality wooden summerhouse for relaxing, entertaining, hobbies and general garden leisure use. The range offers a wide choice of traditional and contemporary designs, with extensive bespoke options on selected models.
If you want a well-made timber summer house but do not require pressure-treated construction or professional insulation, Diamond may provide everything you actually need.
Platinum Wooden Summer Houses
Platinum is worth considering when you want to move up in specification, expect to use the building more regularly or particularly value pressure-treated timber construction and professional insulation options.
Selected Platinum models can be professionally insulated, while buildings such as the Fleet and Odiham are available as fully insulated summerhouses. This can make Platinum particularly relevant for customers considering home working, studios or regular hobby use.
The key is matching the specification to your requirements rather than simply buying the highest specification available.
Pressure Treated or Conventionally Treated Timber?
Pressure treatment gives timber additional preservative protection by introducing treatment into the wood under pressure. Conventionally treated timber relies more heavily on surface-applied protection and appropriate subsequent maintenance.
A well-made and properly maintained conventionally treated wooden summerhouse can provide excellent service, so pressure treatment should not be treated as the only measure of quality. However, if deeper preservative protection is a priority, compare our pressure treated summer houses.
Can a Wooden Summerhouse Be Painted?
Yes. Colour can completely change the character of a timber summer house. Traditional greens and blues can help a building blend naturally into an established garden, while greys and neutral shades often work particularly well with modern houses and contemporary landscaping.
Factory-applied colour finishes are available on selected ranges. If colour is a major part of your decision, compare our painted summer houses, where you can explore coloured and grey summerhouse options in more detail.
Can a Timber Summer House Be Insulated?
Yes. Insulation is available on selected wooden summerhouses and can be particularly worthwhile where you intend to use the building as a home office, studio, hobby room or for longer periods during colder weather.
Insulation should be considered as part of the complete building rather than in isolation. Walls, roof, floor, glazing, ventilation and suitable heating all affect comfort.
If colder-weather use is central to your plans, I recommend comparing our insulated summer houses as well as the standard timber buildings on this page.
Apex or Pent Wooden Summer House?
Apex Timber Summer Houses
An apex roof rises to a central ridge and gives the familiar traditional summerhouse appearance. It also adds height toward the centre of the room and works well in both traditional and contemporary designs.
Pent Timber Summer Houses
A pent roof slopes in one direction and creates a simpler roofline. It is particularly popular with customers wanting a modern wooden summerhouse and works well alongside contemporary homes, patios, and landscaped gardens.
Neither design is automatically better. Consider the position in your garden, overall height, nearby boundaries, appearance and how you intend to use the internal space. If modern styling is one of your main priorities, our contemporary summer houses provide a useful comparison.
Bespoke Wooden Summer Houses
A standard size or layout does not suit every garden. Selected wooden summerhouses can be altered to provide different dimensions, door positions, window arrangements and other bespoke features.
This is particularly useful if you have an awkward garden, want to take advantage of a particular view or already know where furniture will be positioned inside.
My advice is to think about these things before ordering. It is much easier to position a window around a planned desk or sofa at the design stage than to discover afterwards that it is exactly where you wanted your furniture. If you are still deciding on the footprint, our summerhouse sizes guide lets you compare the available dimensions.
Why My Experience With Wooden Garden Buildings Matters
I’m Robin Antill, founder of 1st Choice Leisure Buildings. I left school at 15, and my working life eventually led me into the garden building industry. In 1979, I started my own business, trading as Marina Sheds, because I believed I could manufacture good-quality timber buildings and offer customers better value.
Those early years gave me practical experience that cannot be obtained simply by reading manufacturers’ brochures. I was involved in making timber buildings, selling them and getting them out to customers. It taught me where strength matters, how buildings go together and where shortcuts in construction can create problems.
I sold Marina Sheds in 1990. Unfortunately, I did not receive all the money I had been due from the sale, which was certainly a difficult business lesson, but it did not end my involvement with garden buildings.
In 1992 we expanded beyond sheds to include summerhouses, garages, garden rooms and log cabins. Because the business was now doing considerably more than selling sheds, that change in direction led to a new name: Titan Garden Buildings.
My son Craig joined me in 1992 after studying carpentry at Guildford College from 1990. His carpentry knowledge complemented my manufacturing and sales experience, and garden buildings have been very much a family business for us ever since.
We sold Titan Garden Buildings in 1998. Then, in 2000, Craig and I formed 1st Choice Leisure Buildings because we wanted to take a different approach. Rather than being tied to whatever one manufacturer happened to produce, we wanted to select quality products from established manufacturers and give customers a genuine choice.
Craig now runs the day-to-day business, and I am here to support him as required. My experience on both the manufacturing and retail sides means I naturally look beyond the photograph and ask whether the timber, framing, floors, roofs, doors and glazing are good enough for us to recommend a building.
You can read more about me, Robin Antill, and my experience in the garden building industry. My dedicated author page documents my involvement from Marina Sheds in 1979 through Titan Garden Buildings and the formation of 1st Choice Leisure Buildings in 2000.
How Long Does a Wooden Summer House Last?
There is no honest single lifespan I can give for every wooden summerhouse because timber quality, construction, treatment, location, base preparation, maintenance and exposure to weather all influence longevity.
A quality building installed on a suitable firm and level base and maintained appropriately should provide many years of useful service. Allowing water to collect around the bottom of any timber building or leaving damaged roofing unattended will naturally reduce its prospects.
This is another reason I would concentrate on the whole building and its installation rather than simply looking for an impressive lifespan claim in a sales description.
Do Wooden Summer Houses Need Maintenance?
Yes. Timber is a natural material and should be inspected periodically. The maintenance required will depend on whether the building is pressure-treated, factory-painted, or supplied with another treatment system.
Check external finishes, roof coverings, doors and windows and keep excessive vegetation away from the walls. Following the relevant manufacturer’s maintenance instructions will help protect both the appearance and condition of your summerhouse. Our guide to weatherproofing a wooden garden building provides further practical advice on protecting timber from the elements.
A Wooden Summer House Needs the Right Base
Whatever timber specification you choose, the building still needs a suitable firm, flat and level foundation. Correct base preparation helps the structure sit square, allows doors and windows to operate correctly and reduces the risk of problems associated with movement or unsuitable contact with damp ground.
Always obtain the precise required base dimensions for the individual building rather than preparing the foundation from its nominal size alone. Our summer house base guide explains the main foundation options and the points worth considering before installation.
See a Wooden Summerhouse Before You Buy
Something I have believed throughout my working life is that there is considerable value in seeing a timber building in person before spending a substantial amount of money.
Photographs cannot tell you exactly how substantial a floor feels, how smoothly doors operate, how the timber and framing look close up or how much usable space there really is once you walk inside.
You can visit our Surrey garden building display site near Guildford and Woking to compare representative summerhouses and other timber buildings.
Wooden Summer House FAQs
What is the best wood for a summer house?
There is more to a good summerhouse than the name of one timber species. I favour quality redwood in the right specifications, but I would also examine the timber thickness, framing, cladding, floor, roof, and overall construction. The complete building matters more than one material appearing in the description.
Is a wooden summerhouse better than a plastic or metal building?
It depends on what you want from the building. Timber provides a warm, natural appearance and offers considerable flexibility in design, glazing, colour and insulation. Plastic and metal buildings can serve other purposes well, particularly storage, but many customers prefer timber when creating an attractive garden leisure room.
Can I use a timber summer house as a home office?
Yes, provided you choose an appropriate specification. For regular home working, I recommend insulation, glazing, heating, ventilation, electrics, internet connectivity and furniture placement alongside the basic timber construction.
Are wooden summer houses waterproof?
A correctly manufactured, installed and maintained timber summerhouse is designed to keep normal weather out. Still, I would avoid describing a timber garden building as permanently waterproof regardless of condition. Roof coverings, treatment, sealants, doors and windows all need to remain in good order. Our wooden garden building weatherproofing guide provides further advice.
Do wooden summerhouses need a base?
Yes. A suitable, firm, level base is essential. It supports the building correctly, helps doors operate as intended and reduces the risk of problems caused by movement or inappropriate contact with damp ground. See our summer house base guide for the main foundation options.
Can wooden summer houses be made to measure?
Selected models are available with bespoke dimensions and alterations to doors, windows and layouts. Options vary by range, so discuss unusual dimensions or layout requirements before ordering. You can also use our summerhouse sizes guide to compare standard dimensions before deciding whether a bespoke size is necessary.
Choose the Right Timber Summer House
A good wooden summerhouse should provide an attractive and practical addition to your garden, but I recommend choosing it according to construction and intended use rather than appearance alone.
Browse the wooden summerhouses above or compare our wider summer house range if you are still deciding between traditional, contemporary, painted, pressure-treated or insulated designs.
After working with timber garden buildings since 1979, my advice is straightforward: look beyond the photograph. Good timber, sound construction and a specification suited to what you actually need are far more important than a clever product name.
Robin Antill
Founder, 1st Choice Leisure Buildings
From £4931
