Your Questions Answered

If you already have a level or nearly flat site, it is an ideal place to position your greenhouse as it will be easier to achieve a good floor area for the foundations. The type of base you choose depends on your gardening needs. This guide should help you to choose what is best for you and give you some handy tips on how to achieve the perfect base to install your new glasshouse upon.

The Duchy glasshouses were designed with council requirements in mind as excempt developments in most areas/scenarios.

Council requirements vary, so will need to be taken into consideration when selecting a site for your glasshouse. Contact your local council or planner for advice specific to your situation. More information can also be found in our guide.

Traditional greenhouse sizes were always listed in feet. This unit of measurement has remained unchanged for sentimential reasons.

You aren't restricted to a specific size, a bespoke glasshouse can be made to any size you wish.

Our glasshouses are made in Britain by experts with years of experience in crafting, designing and building the most beautiful and well constructed glasshouses. 

All of our greenhouses are individually handmade by our craftsmen to give that unique quality and appearance. We employ traditional methods using mortice and tenon joints and utilise only the highest quality materials.

For bespoke orders, we aim for an average delivery timeframe of 6 months after ordering. If we specify a delivery period, this is always indicative.

Royal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to tradespeople who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages.

Shipping costs vary depending on your location. Please contact us for a quote.

All our timber has a 10 year guarantee (timbers must be kept clean and clear soil and garden rubbish etc.)

We recommend re-staining the wood with a Wood Preserver every 3 to 4 years to prolong the life.

Over time the wood will turn a silvery grey in colour; this is the nature of the timber and cannot be prevented. The patina adds a beautiful lived in quality to our natural wooden products.

Maintaining good drainage is essential. Care should be taken to ensure that gutters and drainage pipes are running freely.

Timber and glass should be kept clean and free from lichen and mould.

PEFC is independent third-party certification that ensures that the timber in our greenhouses are sourced from sustainably managed forests.

The scheme ensures that forests are correctly maintained to improve biodiversity, protects ecologically valuable forests and prevents deforestation and over logging. PEFC also protects the rights, safety and wellbeing of people working in the forestry and respect any land usage rights.

The PEFC scheme allows us to follow a chain of custody procedure which provides a mechanism for tracking PEFC certified materials from the forest, through manufacture to our finished product.

Just like some of the smaller glasshouses of the early 20th Century, The Duchy glasshouses are flat packed and are designed for self assembly. 

We supply a pictorial installation guide and telephone support is available. If you would prefer to have your install done for you, we can assist, prices and availability depend on your location. Please contact us for a quote. 

Many of our bespoke builds can be designed as flat pack, self install solutions depending on the complexity of the chosen design. Installation advice for these buildings will be based on your project requirements.

Both are correct. A Glasshouse is a form of greenhouse. Glass was once the only material suitable for this purpose, so glasshouse and greenhouse were pretty much synonymous.

Today, a glasshouse is considered to be a building made of glass that houses plants to protect them and aid their growth.

A greenhouse also can be made from glass, but as a relatively modern term it tends to be used to reference a building made with polyethylene or other transparent plastic material.

Our cresting is made of aluminium and it is what adorns the ridge of your greenhouse. This helps to keep birds away and is also a defining feature of the Victorian Glasshouse.

Finials are the architectural detailing at the end of the cresting, that adorn each end of your glasshouse enhancing the visual appeal of the structure.

Spandrels are metal reinforcements used as a structural and decorative features in our glasshouse roof. Our spandrels feature intricate detailing and add a flourish of style and superior strength to our traditional Victorian inspired glasshouse designs. Glasshouses 10ft and wider include tie bars for extra strengthening. 

One of the most important fittings within the glasshouse is the benching (or staging as it's professionally known). It's designed to ensure pots are easy to work on and in a position where they can get the maximum amount of light.

Dwarf walls are low walls that are often used at the base of a greenhouse. They assist in managing the internal temperate of the space as full height glass can become too hot in sunny weather and too cold at night in the winter. A dwarf wall also assists in protecting your glasshouse glazing.

A lean-to design is when a glasshouse is built against the side of an existing building.

The advantage of the lean-to type of glasshouse is that, it usually is close to available electricity and water.

The even-span is the standard type of glasshouse. The two roof slopes are of equal pitch and width. The Duchy glasshouse design is an example of this style.

A porch is visual focal point in their garden which is sure to impress friends & family frequenting their home.