Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Garden Office of the Year
















One of the fiercest-fought categories in National Shed Week was the Garden Office section. The winner was Alan Evans - whose West Sussex shed is pictured - who pronounced himself "seriously chuffed" to have won the category and gave Shedworking an exclusive interview about his shedworking.

Shedworking:Why did you build your garden office?
Alan: My home office was originally in the second reception room on the ground floor of the house, but my wife kept going on about converting it to a play room for our little girl and that I should build a shed to free up space in the house. This planted the seed and a year later here I am and the play room is finally complete, so everyone's happy.

S.What work do you do in your garden office?
A.The Shed is split into two, with one part a workshop for making bespoke Network items and the other is the office where I keep my files and work on the PC, organising a small power, data and fibre company

S. What's your favourite part of your garden office?
It would have to be the location as it is at the end of the garden, with the decking outside the door. My pond is very close by, so when it's not raining I have both doors open and can hear the water running. We have a field behind us, so it's generally nice and quiet. It's nice having the office in the garden, as it's easier to switch off when I'm in the house - although I must learn to leave my phone in here too sometimes.

S. Do you have any tips for other potential shedworkers thinking of building their own?
A. Apply the 7 'P's' all the way - prior, preparation, planning, prevents a pretty poor performance! Look around for tips and if your DIY skills are up to it make it from scratch, as this will save a fortune, and it will be exactly how you want it. Go overboard with the cabling too, as it's better to have it there and not use it than finish decorating it and realise you needed a power socket where you don't have one.

Insulation is a must, as this will help with soundproofing as well as a temperature aid. Make sure all ideas are on paper, in case you leave the project for a while waiting for the good weather. I found constructing a timber frame with a tarpaulin on top meant I could work all weather conditions within reason. Best to do this first, as I have helped other people put up a temporary shelter once they had started the build and it started to rain heavily..."

You can see more pictures of Alan's shed at readersheds.co.uk

2 comments:

  1. its great to get an insight into how a sheddie does things.. maybe I should to all the winners to interview them...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, a good idea. I'm sure they'll all have a great story.

    ReplyDelete