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Garden Office Heating, and Keeping It Cool

An insulated garden office costs about €20 to €40 a month to heat in winter. An electric radiator, from €350, is enough for most. An air-to-air heat pump, €800 to €1,500, heats for less and cools the room in summer. How much heat you need depends on the insulation first and the heater second.

Which heater, what it costs to run, and how to stop the room overheating in June.

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  • €20 to €40a month to heat in winter
  • from €350an electric radiator
  • €800 to €1,500a heat pump that heats and cools

The heaters, compared

HeaterOur priceGood forWatch
Electric panel or ceramic radiatorfrom €350Any insulated office. Silent, with a thermostat and timerDearest per hour of heat
Air-to-air heat pump€800 to €1,500Offices used all day, all year. Heats and coolsAn outdoor unit on the wall, and a low hum
Oil-filled radiator on wheelsWhat you already ownA stopgapSlow, and takes floor space
Underfloor electric matPriced with the floorWarm feet in a fitted officeSlow to respond; has to go in before the floor

What it costs to run

Budget €20 to €40 a month across the winter for an insulated office used on working days. A small room holds its heat: once it is warm, the heater ticks over.

Where you live moves it. Letterkenny has 2,211 heating degree days a year, Tralee 1,673. The office runs off the house supply, so its heat is on the electricity bill you already get.

Three habits that halve it

  • A timer. Heat on forty minutes before you walk out, off when you leave.
  • A frost setting overnight in a cold snap. It keeps damp off paper and screens for very little.
  • A rug and a door closer. The floor and the open door are where the heat goes.

Summer is the harder season

A small, well insulated room with a wall of glass and two computers gets hot. Plan for it when you choose the glass.

  • Face the big glass north or east if the garden allows.
  • Put a roof overhang or a blind outside the glass, not inside it.
  • Have a window that opens on a different wall from the door, so air crosses the room.
  • A heat pump cools as well as heats.

Heating, priced

WhatTypical costWhat moves the price
An electric radiatorfrom €350Size of the room
An air-to-air heat pump€800 to €1,500Heats in winter and cools in summer
Heating it in winter€20 to €40 a monthInsulation, hours of use, the heater
Electrics inside the office€600 to €1,200Sockets, lights and a small fuse board

Our price guide for Ireland. Ask whether VAT is in the price. Many list prices leave it out. Ask what the price includes: the base, the cable from the house and the inside finish.

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More on garden offices

Costs, sizes, pods, insulation, planning and studios.

A flat-roofed garden office in dark cladding at the end of a back gardenWhat a garden office costsEvery size, priced. A one-desk pod is €6,700 to €10,500.A small black cabin with a glazed frontOffice podsOne desk, 6 to 9 m². The smallest building that works all year.Charred black timber cladding with a window and a wall lampInsulated officesWalls, floor, roof and glass. What to ask for in millimetres.A long, low building in black metal cladding on a lawnPlanning permission30 m² for all garden buildings together, 3 m high, behind the house.A desk and chair under a wide window inside a timber-lined garden officeWhat size to getOne desk, two desks, or a desk and a meeting table.Two dark green timber buildings joined by a deckGarden studiosMusic, art and treatment rooms. What changes from an office.

Garden offices in every county

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Questions people ask

What is the lowest-cost way to heat a garden office?

Insulation first. Then an air-to-air heat pump costs least per hour to run, and an electric radiator costs least to buy.

Can I put a stove in a garden office?

A stove needs a flue, a hearth and clear space round it, which a small office struggles to give. It also overheats a small room quickly.

Do I need heating if it's well insulated?

Yes, a little. You and the computers warm it, but not on a January morning.

Will it get damp if I don't heat it?

It can. A frost setting and a trickle vent keep it dry when it's shut up.

Does the heater need its own socket?

Yes. Put it on its own socket so it doesn't share a strip with the computers.

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