Category Archives: Gardening

Condensation In Metal Sheds – advice from one of our top manufacturers

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Metal Garden Sheds are an incredibly popular alternative to traditional timber sheds and outdoor buildings, they are more weather resistant, secure, fire retardant and virtually maintenance free. Although metal sheds suffer from very few of the labour intensive problems associated with other types of shed, they can sometimes be affected by the condition of their surroundings. In a word ‘condensation’!

A high quality metal shed will incorporate design features like ventilation, which should avoid the issue of condensation, however occasionally dampness can be caused by external sources. If there is any moisture in the foundations, the warmer air inside the shed will rise and settle on the cold metal panels. The damp will then condense and drip down, creating a cycle, and once this process is established it is not terribly easy to halt, making prevention rather than cure, a better idea. If you have yet to create the foundation for your metal shed, there are few rules to ensure that condensation never raises its ugly head.

Make your base whether concrete or slab, a few inches larger than the base rail of the shed,

then:-

  • Place a damp-proof membrane into the foundations at least two inches higher than ground level.
  • Ensure that the newly laid foundations of your shed are allowed to cure for around 3-7 days, or longer if conditions are damp. This will avoid creating possible water related problems caused by insufficiently dried concrete.
  • When ready, bolt down your shed to the base and apply a silicone or mastic sealant to the inside shed base rails. By applying this to the inside you will facilitate trouble free drainage, while preventing water seepage into the shed.

If you have already constructed your metal shed and base and are currently faced with the problem of condensation, there are still ways of tackling this.

  • Remove your shed from its base and place a timber floor which is a few inches larger than the shed base measurements on raised bearers.
  • Secure the shed to the wooden floor using wood screws, and mastic seal the inside base rails of the shed.
  • Ensure regularly that water cannot stop ventilation by collecting underneath the floor.

Alternatively:-

  • Wait for a nice warm day, and begin by wiping down the underside of the roof panels with methylated spirits.
  • When dry attach polystyrene tiles to the underside with spray glue which is designed to bond polystyrene to metal and is impervious to heat and cold.
  • This insulation cannot eradicate moisture within your shed, however condensation should no longer be an issue.

This blog was originally published on one of our manufacturers pages, with years of experience behind them we are more than confident in sharing their tips and advice.

New Colour Options Available!

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Some of our most successful lines will soon be available in additional colours!

Our immensely popular Olympian Metal Garages have always been top sellers at Taylors Garden Buildings.  Available in 4 sizes (12 x 20 – 12 x 38) they have always been available in a very attractive emerald green colour, which not only looks pleasing on the eye but also blends in with a vast majority of gardens up and down the UK.

Now, after several years of good sales and positive feedback from our customers, we are happy to announce that these durable structures are going to be available in an anthracite grey colour too!

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 These will be going on sale September 29th, watch this space!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Woodmeadow Show Site

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Sometimes the benefit of having a show site for our log cabins, Sheds and Summerhouses in Northampton at Woodmeadow Garden Centre can also be one of the common reasons for our customers to complain.

 A while back I was at the garden centre when a customer had come from London to look at a log cabin.  In the grand scheme of things London is not that far as we are centrally located (this means we are a reasonable distance from the majority of major conurbations). Unfortunately we only had two log cabins on display partly down to the fact we had only moved into the garden centre towards the end of the previous year and have not had the time to organise the space and the recent snow and bad weather had been an issue in slowing us down.

 The customer although disappointed we didn’t have the exact model log cabin that he was looking for was met with courtesy and a smile, we demonstrated the quality of the log cabin that he could expect and showed him alternative buildings which we did have on display including a heavy duty workshop, potting shed, and traditional apex sheds all of which can be delivered and fitted at his house in London.

 I was pleased the customer stayed and had a coffee in our garden centre cafe and went away with the peace of mind that we are a genuine company with genuine people all trying to give our best service and value when making a big purchase. I personally think it is good to see and speak to the people that you are purchasing from.

My biggest frustration is we can’t show every garden building and log cabin. We have thousands of sheds and Summerhouses including timber garages and greenhouses the challenge is to have a representation of both size and quality variation demonstrating the different quality log cabins that manufacturers offer as well as our own sheds especially when looking for a bespoke building.  I would always suggest if you are planning a visit to Woodmeadow (we are open seven days a week) that you  give us a call on 01604 781899 before you set out and we can advise you which buildings we have on display at the time.

I always refer to Woodmeadow as a developing garden centre, if I am honest it is probably like most gardens they are never really finished and always being developed we move products around frequently to keep it fresh and periodically sell display log cabins and sheds off to make space for new models.

Only recently our café has had a slight revamp with a new and improved menu and a new attraction has been added to our site called “Bugtopia” which gives shows and demonstrations of exotic creatures such as bats and various insects (please call us beforehand for show times).

Thanks for reading this taylorsgardenbuildings blog, we look forward to seeing you at Woodmeadow soon

Instructional videos.

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A recent addition to many of our listings are instructional videos!

We are all too aware that sometimes the traditional paper variety are just not quite enough – no matter how comprehensive! The same goes of course for the PDF versions that are on a vast majority of our listings, there are times when we just want to actually see somebody doing it. This gives us just that bit of extra confidence when erecting our brand new summerhouse, gazebo , metal shed etc etc.

Take a look at this example, we are sure you will agree that it is very indepth!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPgh8hOeips&ab_channel=TaylorsGardenBuildings

July update

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Summer is in full swing and business is booming at Taylors Garden Buildings!

Our Metal shed range is selling nicely and we have seen a steady increase in sales of our summerhouses and gazebo lines. Barbeques are also selling well, so many of you are obviously sitting outdoors of an evening enjoying a nice burger and a few drinks (we still haven’t received our invites though – we blame the postal service).

Our sales team are as eager as ever to speak with you if you have any enquiries, don’t forget that we are on call 7 days a week!

Also, have you visited our show site recently? Woodmeadow are constantly expanding their range and services (the tea room is open and in full swing don’t forget!) and there has been a big change around in the shop recently which has dramatically improved the ergonomics of the store and improved the customer shopping experience no end.

We look forward to seeing/speaking to you!

Garden Furniture

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How beautiful has the weather been this past week or two?

For the first time so far this year we are using our beloved gardens for what they are meant to be for – to sit outside in nice weather, enjoying our plants, soaking up a few rays and having a nice glass of wine or two.

A rather embarrassing thing happened to me last week, after spending some time outdoors tending plants and tidying up the lawn I decided to take a well earned break and have a sit in the sun. With a glass in hand and my mobile in the other I plopped myself in to one of our faithful garden chairs only to have the thing collapse underneath me!! (This is actually true by the way and not fabricated to give you all a laugh at my expense – it was witnessed by my partner who found it very amusing to say the least!).

Looking back on it I probably did look funny squatted there on the floor surrounded by splinters of wood with a glass of wine in my hand (which oddly enough hadn’t spilled a drop).

The chair in question was an old fold away chair made of wood which we have had for many years, we had left them out over the winter so obviously the cold and damp had caused it to perish. (Note to self – store our furniture during cold spells!).

Luckily, being an employee of Taylors Garden Buildings, I have a large database of quality garden furniture to peruse and I am in the midst of doing so. Might go for one of our brushed steel sets this time!

So, with the beautiful weather in full swing I am sure that many of you will be looking for some new furniture for your gardens/patios and hopefully your reasons for doing so will be considerably more dignified than mine!!

Garden furniture

Not actually my chair in question but it gives you an idea!

Come and view our extensive garden furniture range now!!

Visited our show site yet?

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As many of you are aware, we have a garden centre located in Northampton.

We took over this business around 18 months ago and have seen it go from strength to strength in that time!  In the past year and a half we have completely reorganised the layout of both the indoor shopping area and outdoors where you will find our selection of sheds, summerhouses, greenhouses and other items such as plants, gardening tools and ornaments.

Woodmeadow Garden Centre.

Feedback from our regulars has been very positive, we have a very loyal customer base who return to us time after time and are particularly happy with the friendly atmosphere and efficient service.

Woodmeadow Garden Centre is an independent business, which in this day and age is becoming rare with larger businesses opening chains of stores all over the country, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future.

One popular feature of Woodmeadow is the café which can be found in the outdoor display area next to the poly tunnels, it has been closed for a short while whilst refurbishments are taking place and a new menu drawn up.  This will be reopening very soon so watch this space!

We have a small selection of garden buildings on display at Woodmeadow  which demonstrate the quality and workmanship in our products. If you are interested in a particular building you have seen on our website we strongly urge you to call ahead to see if we have it on display or something close to it. Our phone number is 01604 781899.

In our shop we sell gifts, DVDs, CDs, tools, gardening aids, bird feed and have a variety of ornamental products such as candles and jewellery.  We also stock greetings cards all year round for various occasions  such as birthdays.

Woodmeadow is located on the A43 in between Northampton and Kettering  just outside of a small village called Hannington. For those of you who are using a sat-nav our postcode is NN6 9TD

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Need any more details? Visit the Woodmeadow Website for more information!

See you soon!

Taylors Garden Buildings make it easy to grow your own herbs

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Herbs deserve a place in any VegTrug. They are easy to grow and can be very attractive. Put your VegTrug in a nice sunny spot close to the kitchen as you will be harvesting your herbs regularly. Herbs have many uses from cooking to cosmetics and also medicinal properties.

  • Basil is a lovely fragrant herb which is important in the making of Pesto. It does however; need to be protected early in the season if there are frosts around. Plant a pot-grown specimen in early June in a well drained sunny spot place about 20cm apart and pinch out shoots to create a bushy plant.
  • Bay is usually grown as a bush or a small tree and is used for flavouring soups and stews, the leaves can be used fresh or dried.  Plant a pot-grown specimen in late April early May.  They can be pruned quite hard and shaped. Pick leaves as required.
  • Chervil is a relative of Parsley and is used with a wide range of dishes including fish. Sow in shallow drills made 30cm apart, make sure the soil is well-drained and sow in August. The plants will then have a longer season for the leaves to be used and for the seed to mature.
  • Chives are wonderful chopped into salads giving a lovely onion flavour. Chives are a hardy perennial – reproducing itself from small bulbs – growing to 30cm tall. It is propagated by division every three to four years; the bulbs are teased apart and replanted into rich soil, plant about 8in (20cm) apart in spring or autumn. Plants may be raised from seeds sown in shallow drills in April. The plant should not be cut until their second year. Whilst chives will grow almost anywhere, they seem to have a better flavour if grown in sunny, dry situations. Not being allowed to get too lush with watering or over-feeding.
  • Coriander likes dry light soils and the leaves are used as flavouring in many Middle Eastern and South East Asian cookery, the seeds are also used as a spice. Plant coriander where you want it to grow; it quickly develops a deep taproot that doesn’t respond well to transplanting.  Sow seeds 1.5cm deep after all danger of frost has passed. When plants emerge, thin them to 10cm apart and mulch to conserve moisture and deter weeds. Keep a close eye on young plants to make sure they don’t dry out, but once established, coriander needs little water.  Ensure a steady supply of leaves by sowing succession crops every three weeks until late summer.  Harvest entire plants when they’re about 15cm high if you want only the leaves.
  • This is a fast growing herb. Dill does not like to be disturbed so sow the seeds in your VegTrug in April where the plants are to grow and thin to 20cm apart.
  • Garlic can be used in all types of cooking. Plant individual cloves 6cm deep and about 9cm apart in March. Apart from watering there is nothing else to do until the foliage turns yellow in July or August. Lift the bulbs and allow to dry under cover., then store in a cool place.
  • Mint is a quickly spreading plant that is very easy to grow and is wonderful for flavouring all those lovely new potatoes.  Also makes a wonderful refreshing tea.  The best way to plant mint is within a small container within the VegTrug as the mint can take over. Plant small pieces of root 6cm deep and 15cm apart in late April early May or early September.  Top dress with compost in the Autumn.
  • Nasturtium is a pretty trailing plant with bright orange and red flowers, the leaves can be used in salads and the fresh seeds are a good substitute for capers.  Plant out in April about 3cm depth and about 20cm apart.  You can use a trailing variety that can hang over the side of you VegTrug.
  • Parsley is an important herb used in lots of recipes.  Sow seeds 3cm deep in April for a summer and autumn crop and again in August for winter use. Germination is slow and can take up to 2 months.  Seedlings should be trimmed to 15cm apart.  Pick regularly for a continuous supply of fresh leaves
  • Rosemary is another evergreen herb good with lamb. You can sow seeds in May or buy a pot-grown plant and plant in the spring. You can sow seeds in May or alternatively buy a pot-grown plant and plant in a sunny sheltered spot.
  • Sage is an evergreen herb native to southern Europe and is used a lot for flavouring. Sage can be propagated by cuttings from the end of April through to September. Insert the cuttings 30cm apart in a lightly shaded place; leave them until they are well established, then they can be removed and placed in a permanent position. Sage prefers chalky soil in sunny areas, but will thrive in a fertile workable soil with good drainage, water well until moist. Old plants tend to get woody, so replace every 3-4 years. Cutting back hard in spring can rejuvenate the older plants. Sage tea is also said to be good for the throat and ears.
  • Tarragon has aromatic leaves that are used in fish and meat dishes and can also be used in salads.  It needs a sheltered position and you can plant a pot-grown specimen in March.  Remove the flowering shoots to maintain a fresh supply of leaves on the bush.
  • Thyme is a fragrant herb of the Mediterranean and it grows easily in light dry soils.  Plant in late April early May in your VegTrug in a sunny spot at about 20cm apart.  Pick leaves as required. It grows new stems, which need to be divided and planted every two or three years.