Pro Build Garden Rooms

Cedar Garden Rooms in Cardiff

Cardiff is home. Gary March is based here and has spent 40 years on the tools, building every garden room himself, one job at a time, from Roath terraces to the newer estates out west. Cedar clad, properly insulated, up in 2 to 4 weeks. Free survey, fixed written quote, no deposit, prices from £14,950.

Call Gary on 07739 845899 Message on WhatsApp

Free site survey and a fixed written quote. No sales visit, just a builder with a tape measure.

Cedar clad garden building with large glazing, timber decking and a planted garden bed

Built in 2 to 4 weeksStart to finish, on site

Why cedar suits Cardiff

Cardiff gets its share of rain off the Bristol Channel, and cedar is one of the few claddings that doesn't mind. It's full of natural oils that resist rot, it never needs painting, and it weathers to a soft silver that sits well against the red brick and slate you see all over Roath, Canton and Pontcanna. It suits these streets in a way plastic cladding never will.

The gardens help too. Victorian and Edwardian terraces in this city tend to have long, narrow plots, often with a rear lane, and a garden room at the far end turns dead space into the best room you own. Where there's lane access, materials come in the back, so nothing gets carried through your kitchen. After 40 years on the tools in this city, Gary knows how to work a tight garden without wrecking it.

Man caves, offices and gyms

Most people want one of three things: an office, a gym or a man cave. If you're working from home a couple of days a week, a proper insulated office at the end of the garden beats a spare bedroom and beats queueing down Newport Road into town. Every room gets the same build: a C24 frame at 400mm centres, 100mm PIR insulation, anthracite aluminium bifolds and Part P certified electrics.

Gyms get the same insulation, so you can train in January without a heater running all morning. Man caves are the fun ones: a telly, a fridge and somewhere to watch the rugby when you can't get a ticket for the Principality. And with 100mm PIR insulation throughout, it's a proper room all year round, not a shed with a sofa in it.

Planning permission in Cardiff

Most garden rooms in Cardiff don't need planning permission. They count as permitted development outbuildings, provided you keep the height down (2.5 metres if it's within 2 metres of a boundary) and don't cover more than half the garden. One thing worth knowing: planning in Wales runs under its own rules, so some of the advice you'll read on English websites doesn't quite apply here.

The exceptions are the ones you'd expect. Cardiff Council is the planning authority, and if you live in one of the city's conservation areas, parts of Pontcanna around Cathedral Road for instance, the rules tighten up. Gary won't guess on your behalf. If the survey throws up anything that needs checking with the council, he'll tell you straight before you spend a penny. No deposit means you risk nothing while you find out.

How the job runs

It starts with a free survey. Gary is based in Cardiff, so getting to you is easy, whether that's a Canton terrace, a semi in Whitchurch or one of the newer estates out at St Mellons. He measures up, works out access (rear lanes usually do the job), and gives you a fixed written quote. That figure is the figure. No deposit, no surprises.

Then the build. Gary takes one job at a time, so when yours starts it's the only one he's on. Most builds take 2 to 4 weeks. The frame is C24 timber at 400mm centres, the roof is EPDM rubber with a 20 year guarantee, the electrics are Part P certified and the finished room carries a 10 year structural guarantee. The man who quoted is the man building it, on site every morning, not managing crews from a van.

Straight Answers

Asked around Cardiff

If your question isn't here, ring Gary. You'll get a builder on the phone, not a call centre.

Can you build in a terraced garden with no side access?

Yes, and in Cardiff that's most jobs. The terraces in Roath, Canton and Splott mostly back onto rear lanes, and Gary brings materials in that way. Where there's no lane, everything comes through the house, boarded and sheeted properly. Timber, insulation boards and the bifolds all fit through a standard hallway. It takes a bit longer but it's routine. Access gets checked at the free survey and the fixed quote covers it.

Do I need planning permission for a garden room in Cardiff?

Usually not. Most garden rooms fall under permitted development, so there's no application to make. Cardiff Council is the planning authority if you do need one, and there are cases where you might: conservation areas, listed buildings, or if you live in a flat, because flats don't get permitted development rights. Gary will give you an honest steer at the survey. If it needs checking with the council, he'll say so before anything is ordered.

How does cedar cope with Cardiff weather?

Very well. Cedar's natural oils make it one of the best claddings for a wet climate, and Cardiff is a wet city. Left untreated it slowly silvers, which plenty of people like. If you'd rather keep the warm colour, a coat of oil every couple of years does it. If you're near the water at the Bay or down towards Penarth, the salt air won't bother it. Cedar has clad coastal buildings for centuries.

Which parts of Cardiff do you cover?

All of it. Gary is based in Cardiff, so whether you're in Llanishen, Rumney, Fairwater or down in Grangetown, you're local to him. He covers the Vale of Glamorgan too, so Penarth, Barry, Dinas Powys and the villages beyond are all within range. The survey is free wherever you are, prices start at £14,950, and every job gets the same fixed written quote and the same 10 year structural guarantee.