Garden Sheds

If you’ve decided that you need a freestanding garage, nobody is likely to dissuade you and we certainly wouldn’t want to - but there are a few things you should take into consideration before you actually make your purchase.

• Most Councils consider a freestanding garage to be a construction and will therefore require you to submit design plans. Fortunately, that’s relatively simple because all Absco garages come with the Engineer’s plans so you can submit them straight to your local authority. There will almost certainly be restrictions as to where you can position your garage too and you’ll need to know exactly what those restrictions are before you go ahead with your purchase. If you go ahead without council approval and you’ve stepped outside their rules and regulations you’re likely to find yourself dismantling your garage under the glare of a council inspector at a later date. If you haven’t obtained approval, it can also present a problem if you want to sell your home. Seeking the proper approval isn’t difficult or expensive - so not doing it shouldn’t even be on your mind!
  
  
• If you’ve purchased a home on a relatively new estate you’ll need to find out if there are any restrictive covenants on the land. Developers put such covenants in place – usually just for a few years – to ensure that the area remains attractive while they’re still trying to sell land in the vicinity. Restrictive covenants may dictate that you must have a double garage rather than a single one. The same covenant may restrict you from erecting any freestanding shed larger than 20 metres square – so basically, it could prevent you from erecting a freestanding garage at all. If you’re in that situation, you’ll just have to wait it out – or consider a carport instead.
  
  If you’ve checked with Council and land developer restrictions aren’t an issue for you, then it’s time to think about which garage you will purchase. Note down all the things you might need to do in the garage. Will you need a window or a personal entry door as well as the main door?
  
  
• Factor in all the costs that will be involved. If you’ll be using your garage as a workshop as well as for vehicle storage, you probably intend to run power to it and that will involve additional cost. Have an electrician give you an idea how much so you won’t be taken by surprise.
  
  If you’re planning to keep valuable items in your garage, give your insurance company a call. You might need to have the items specified on your policy or if they’re work tools, covered under your business insurance policy instead. Worst case scenario, if the items are worth a lot, they may not agree to cover those items if they’re in the garage – or they may only do it if the garage is alarmed.

You’ll be investing a reasonably large sum of money to purchase your garage so taking the extra time to make sure you end up with exactly what you need and aren’t going to have a run in with your local authority makes good sense.