11 Best Ways to Heat a Garden Room

With the right heating and insulation, a garden room can be used all year round as a garden office, home gym, cinema room and much more. Most garden rooms and offices are fully-insulated and provide a cosy outdoor escape or convenient extra room in your home. If you’re looking to make your garden room even more comfortable, you may want to consider additional garden room heating or cooling solutions. Here are some of the best ways to heat a garden room.

The best way to heat a garden room:

1. Electric Radiators
2. Convection Heaters
3. Wood Burning Stove
4. Underfloor Heating
5. Air Conditioning
6. Solar Heat
7. Bottled Gas Heating
8. Oil Filled Radiators
9. Electric Stove
10. Infrared Heating
11. Insulation

1. Electric Radiators

Electric radiators look very similar to the radiators you would have in your home except, instead of running on gas, they use electricity. Typically, electric radiators can take a little longer to heat up but once heated are fantastic at warming up your garden room. They can also be controlled using a thermostat or timer, meaning you can preheat your room before you plan to use it. Just remember that an electric radiator requires an electricity source in your garden room.

2. Convection Heaters

The great thing about convection heaters is that they are effective at warming the air extremely quickly so that there’s no need to preheat your garden room before use. This is also fantastic for saving energy and cutting electricity costs. Similar to electric radiators, convection heaters have timers and fitted thermostats so you can control the temperature throughout the day, for example to give a heating boost at night to stop pipes from freezing over the winter. Choose from stand-alone or wall-mounted convection heaters for a streamlined finish and efficient use of space.

3. Wood Burning Stove

A wood burner stove complements the style of a log cabin or wooden garden room perfectly, fitting in with the traditional, rustic interior and making a classy addition to your space. Wood burners warm up the room effortlessly and keep it toasty for long periods of time. There are various types of fuel sources you can use for your wood burner, and you can even find carbon-neutral options for a more sustainable way to heat your garden room. 

However, please note that for safety reasons, a wood burner requires professional installation, and the cost of the chimney flue can be fairly expensive. You may also need to hire a professional cleaner for the ashes from time to time.

4. Underfloor Heating

Underfloor heating is a luxurious extra in addition to other heating solutions but should not be used as your main heating system. Underfloor heating runs using a complex water-filled piping system below ground. Some limitations include the price of the equipment and installation, the disruption of removing existing flooring and a limited section of floor materials to choose from. However, if you’re willing to make the investment, underfloor heating takes up no space in your garden room and is an impressive feature to have.

5. Air Conditioning

Air conditioning is dual-purpose, both heating your garden room in winter and cooling your garden room in summer, ideal for the unpredictable English weather. It offers the ideal solution for your garden office where computers generate lots of heat, in your home gym to keep you cool during a workout or to prevent damp in your art studio. Air conditioning units have a bad reputation for being noisy and unsightly but this is no longer the case. Newer models are quiet, streamlined and easily mounted to your walls. One drawback is the external unit on the side of the building which is necessary but arguably detracts from the beauty of your garden room. 

6. Solar Heat

Solar power provides an eco-friendly heating solution with low running costs and little maintenance. It works by installing special tubes onto your garden room roof which collect water and warm up in the sun. The tubes are connected to a boiler and provide pre-warmed water to heat your indoor space. Professional installation is required and the equipment can be costly but it definitely makes for a good long-term investment. Unsurprisingly, solar h

eating works best in bright sunshine, so we would only recommend  installing solar panels if your garden gets a lot of sunlight, for example in a south-facing garden.

7. Bottled Gas Heating

Bottled propane gas heating is a great solution for garden rooms without an electricity supply. Simply attach the bottles to the outside of your garden room and connect them to a fixed or free-standing gas heater. A few things to consider when buying a gas heater are that it can take up a lot of space and may not suit the natural aesthetics of your garden; you may want to create an outdoor closet to hide it. Gas heaters also require plenty of ventilation to prevent build-up of water vapour or toxic fumes. For this reason, bottled gas heating is not an option for small garden rooms. 

8. Electric Oil Filled Radiators

Electric oil-filled radiators provide a flexible and cost effective option for heating your garden room. They work by heating up the oil inside them and retaining this heat to warm your room, even after being switched off. Oil filled radiators are freestanding, meaning you can pack them away during the summer or warmer weather, allowing you to make best use of your space, especially if you have a small garden room. If you have a larger outdoor space, a garden room with a storage area is perfect for keeping it safe when not in use.

9. Electric Stove

Electric stoves are an extremely efficient way to heat your garden room in comparison to most gas alternatives. Since almost all the energy used to power the stove is put towards heating the room, there is hardly any waste. Electric stoves can be slightly more expensive to run than other heating methods but are fairly reasonable to install and require very little maintenance. 

10. Infrared Heating

Infrared heating is another fantastic solution that can be used both indoors and outdoors.

Instead of heating up the air in your garden room, infrared heating uses electricity to generate radiant heat and transfer heat rays directly towards people in the room. You just need to make sure it is positioned correctly to reach you or consider attaching it to an extendable arm to make it easy to move around. Infrared heaters are also suitable for your outdoor dining area, similar to what you see in many restaurants’ outdoor seating areas.

11. Insulation

A well-insulated building design can keep your garden room cool in the summer and warm in the winter, helping you save money and energy. Double glazed windows and draught-proof doors are a must-have, helping to prevent heat loss and any cool air coming in. Some soft furnishings can also act as added insulation, such as thermal curtains which provide a layer of insulation and retain heat in cold weather but block out sunlight and reflect heat back out when it’s warm. Heat-retaining walls and flooring are also a great option, as they collect sunlight and keep the space warm naturally. Crown has  set the standard for insulation in garden rooms. Our floor, ceiling and wall insulation are all nothing less than residential grade.

Crown Pavilion Garden Rooms

Finding the right heating solution for your garden room will depend on the size of your space, your personal preferences and your budget. At Crown Pavilions, our luxury garden rooms are constructed using premium quality residential materials and insulation, making them suitable for year-round use. All our windows are double glazed and argon filled, providing you with excellent U-value. Our teams have experience installing heating and cooling solutions for our clients, and will be happy to offer their expert advice during your site assessment.

Browse our beautiful selection of luxury garden rooms and our stunning collection of wooden gazebos or get in touch with our team for more information.