Find an Ex-Display Shed with ShedBuilder
There are two ways to find a garden building. You can spend an evening designing one from scratch, working out the size, materials and cost. Or you can spot a handsome summerhouse in a showroom, already built, and start wondering if it'll fit your garden before somebody else gets there first.
Now you can do both in one bargain hunt. Our ex-display sheds and summerhouses are appearing on our sister site, ShedBuilder. You can browse real showroom buildings, then use a free design tool to check the practical bits before you get carried away by the pretty windows. It happens.
A shed bargain needs to fit more than your budget
ShedBuilder is a free UK shed design tool. You can design a shed to your own size, then get a materials list, cutting list and cost estimate. It also has planning and structural checks, a Build vs Buy comparison, guides, and ready-made sheds, summerhouses, log cabins and workshops compared by size and price.
That makes it a useful companion to ex-display shopping. The cheapest building in the photographs may still become the most expensive thing in the garden if it can't get through the side access, sits too close to a boundary, or needs a base you hadn't allowed for.
Our new ex-display sheds page on ShedBuilder brings the two jobs together. It lists the newest ex-display sheds and summerhouses from ex-display.co.uk, with up to 70 listings at a time. The page refreshes every three hours. Each card shows the price and the town to collect from, then takes you through to the full listing on ex-display.co.uk.
How I'd use the two sites
Start with the building you actually like. Not the imaginary one that would be perfect if it had a different roof, different doors and lived in a different county. Ex-display stock is what it is, and that's part of the fun. You might find a summerhouse with a better specification than you'd expected, or a workshop that's been reduced because a showroom needs the space.
Make a note of the listed dimensions, the collection town and anything the listing says about access, condition or dismantling. Then use ShedBuilder to sense-check the footprint. Draw the plot around it, think about the route from the road to the garden, and leave room for doors to open and for someone to maintain the building. Measure the narrowest gate, not the widest bit of the path. Future you will be grateful.
Planning is another reason to pause before paying a deposit. In England, the Planning Portal says the outbuilding rules cover sheds, playhouses, greenhouses, garages and other garden buildings used for a purpose incidental to the enjoyment of the house. It also says permitted development is subject to limits and conditions. Those include a maximum eaves height of 2.5 metres, a maximum overall height of four metres for a dual pitched roof or three metres for another roof, and a maximum height of 2.5 metres if the building is within two metres of the boundary.
Those limits won't answer every planning question. Listed buildings, designated land, flats and maisonettes, planning conditions and local restrictions can change the answer. The Planning Portal says its guidance relates to England and that policy in Wales may differ. Check the current rules for your property and contact your local planning authority if you're unsure. A design tool can help you ask better questions, but it can't know the history of every house and plot.
Once the size looks possible, compare the ex-display price with the alternatives. ShedBuilder's Build vs Buy comparison is handy here. You can also look at the materials list and cost estimate for a new build, then decide if the showroom building is doing enough to earn its place. Sometimes the answer will be yes. Sometimes you've mentally left out the base, delivery, dismantling, treatment or the half-day of wrestling it through a passageway.
That last bit is deliberately unglamorous. Ask what's included, what you'll need to arrange and what condition the timber is in. If the seller recommends treatment or repairs, price those before you commit. You're not talking yourself out of an ex-display building. You're giving the bargain a fair test, which is rather the point.
Collection is part of the deal
Most ex-display sheds and summerhouses are collection only, from the showroom. At the moment, a lot of the listings are in the South East of England, although that changes as stock moves around. Read the collection details carefully and check the distance before you fall for the building with the charming little veranda.
Collection also means asking practical questions early. Is the building still assembled? Can it be dismantled? Is the route from the showroom clear? Will you need a suitable vehicle, more than one pair of hands, or a specialist mover? Can the doors, windows and roof sections be protected during transport? These are questions for the seller, and the answers may vary from one listing to the next.
Keep the full listing open while you're making your decision. ShedBuilder is useful for finding and comparing. The ex-display.co.uk listing is where you'll check the detailed description, photographs, seller information and collection arrangements. One site helps you find a possible bargain, the other gives you the detail needed to decide if it can actually reach your garden.
Why ex-display stock helps a showroom
A showroom needs to change. Displays are refreshed, layouts are updated and buildings that have done their job still have plenty of useful life left in them. For a showroom or retailer, ex-display stock can be a sensible way to put those buildings in front of people who are actively looking for a lower-cost option.
That's the thinking behind this partnership. ShedBuilder helps people work out what they need. ex-display.co.uk helps them find what's available. We're bringing the two together because someone shopping for a garden building often wants both sides of the decision, the excitement of finding one and the reassurance that it makes sense.
We're also keen to hear from more brands and retailers with showroom, ex-display or clearance stock. If you've got garden buildings that need a new home, get in touch with us. We'd like to put useful stock in front of bargain hunters, with the details clear enough for people to make a sensible decision. Nobody needs another mystery purchase sitting in the drive.
A better way to buy the building you nearly talked yourself out of
There's a particular pleasure in buying something that's already had its showroom moment. The building may have a mark, a little wear or a specification that's no longer current. In return, it may be ready to use, easier to judge in person and priced below a new equivalent. You'll need to be comfortable with the exact condition and the work involved. That's part of the bargain, and knowing it upfront makes the decision much easier.
So browse the ex-display page, save the listings that have potential, then do the boring checks before you book collection. Size. Access. Base. Planning. Collection town. Treatment or repairs. Total cost. If the answers still look good, you may have found a garden room, workshop or summerhouse with far more charm than its price suggests.
And if nothing quite fits, ShedBuilder can help you price the made-to-measure route instead. Either way, you'll be making the decision with a clearer picture, which is exactly what a good bargain should give you.
