Don’t D.I.Y.

Sometimes it’s better to get the experts in

If you’re an architect, a joiner or an electrician, great! You can skip this bit. But if you aren’t, it’s important to think carefully about what you can do yourself and what you should hire an expert to do. DIY can sometimes be a false economy, especially if your time would be better spent doing something else you’re really good at. Trust the pros.

Design

It’s tempting to install Google Sketchup and design your own building, but doing it right is a bit more complicated than that: you need to think about ventilation, stability, safety and practicality. If architecture isn’t your thing, it’s a good idea to get someone else to do it for you. That might involve buying an off-the-shelf design over the internet, or hiring an experienced architect for more ambitious ideas.

Preparation

Garden buildings need firm, level and square or rectangular bases, which you can make with beams or slabs – but for larger ones the best base is one made from solid concrete. Excavating, shaping, mixing and finishing concrete is harder than it looks.

Construction

Kit-based buildings are relatively easy to build, because the most difficult stuff has already been done for you. If you’re building from scratch it’s much more difficult and requires much more expertise: you don’t want your pride and joy to fall down at the first gust of wind. Don’t know your MDF from your OSB? Get the joiners in.

Electrics

This one has the law behind it: under current building regulations you must get a qualified electrician to certify any electrical work such as running power to your Mac cave. That doesn’t mean the electrician has to do the work – if you’re competent you can do the work yourself and get them to check it – but unless you know what you’re doing this is one you really ought to leave to the experts.