5 Ways to Prepare Your Garden Building for Winter | Tiger Sheds

Published: 27/11/2018

With autumn in full swing, people are moving away from relaxing in their gardens to snuggling up on the sofa indoors. But before the cold winter weather sets in for good, there are a number of ways you should prepare your garden buildings - ensuring they can be used throughout the season ahead and arrive in spring in the best condition possible. From essential maintenance tips to underfloor heating, Adam from Tiles Direct gives his top insights on prepping your garden building for winter - ensuring it’s well-equipped to withstand the elements and remain usable, even when it’s chilly outside.

Weatherproof the building

As the temperatures plummet and the damp climate becomes a mainstay, it’s vital to prioritise weatherproofing your garden building. With most outdoor buildings constructed from wood, winter weather conditions can wreak havoc - causing damp and rot inside and out. Ensuring roofs, windows and doors are well-sealed and free from leaks will prevent water from getting in. We recommend using a high quality, solvent-based preservative to treat the wood annually. Installing guttering and a water butt to collect rainwater will draw surface water away. If your shed is a Tiger Shed, rest easy! All of our sheds come with heavy duty mineral roofing felt for leak-proof protection. The profile of the shiplap boards of our sheds enables easy run off to prevent water collection, too!

Update with a lick of paint

A simple but effective way to keep the weather out and damp under control is to give your garden building some TLC with a lick of paint. From applying a fresh coat of outdoor paint or varnish to the exterior to experimenting with a warm colour on the walls inside, you’ll be arming your garden building with defence against the adverse weather ahead, while also adding bags of seasonal style.

Warm things up indoors

Garden sheds are a fantastic way to carve out additional living space away from the main home, but many people only make the most of this extra space during the warmer months. However, there are plenty of ways you can add extra warmth inside, making it a comfortable place to use all-year round. Why not consider insulated walls and underfloor heating to help create a cosy and luxurious setting inside? Whether you currently have floor tiles or wooden planks, underfloor heating is both cheap and easy to install - so there’s no reason you can’t extend your garden building’s use all the way through winter.

Make maintenance a priority

With winter just around the corner, it can be tempting to pack items away in your garden room and abandon them until next year. But if you want to make the most of this space, even when it’s cold outside, it pays to get things in order - both inside and out. Cutting back overhanging branches and sweeping up dead leaves will reduce the chance of damage outside, while organising indoor space by installing shelving and storage units will keep your shed neat and tidy inside - which means you’ll be more inclined to use it during the cold season, too.

Switch up your interior

To make full use of your garden room over winter, you could create a snug and comfortable place to relax in by switching up the interior. From woolly rugs underfoot to soft throw cushions and blankets, layering the inside of your garden building with a variety of thick fabrics, textures and seasonal colours will ensure it’s a warm winter haven from the weather outside. With essential maintenance and some thoughtful interior decoration, your garden buildings will be well prepared to face whatever weather the season ahead brings - so follow our tips  to enjoy a warm, relaxing space you can use the whole year through. Thanks, Adam!