Can Bathroom or Kitchen Facilities be Added to Your SheShed Log Cabin?

Our SheShed flatpack kitset cabins are the perfect way to add extra living space to your home, or create a backyard office, or finally get that dedicated hobby workspace. But what if you need a bathroom or kitchen?  

Each of our kitset cabins do not come with built in facilities, as we know each person purchasing has a different use, some just for an office, home business, studio or sleepout, and in some locations adding these facilities changes the council consent requirements.  

So, can you add a kitchen or bathroom facilities to a SheShed log cabin or timber shed? 

Yes and no, depending on your location... 

For either country though, we always recommend checking directly with your local council for any requirements that you'd need to meet to add facilities to your cabin, or you can give our friendly team a call to chat over your build project ideas and see if there are any other viable options available. 

You can also book a complimentary Zoom tour of our Brook River Cabin in New South Wales (shown in the video above), which has a self-contained bathroom pod and small kitchenette added after construction.

What are Some Alternative Options to Consider?

If you live somewhere with restrictions on adding a kitchen or bathroom and you want to pursue getting council consent, what other options are there to consider?

Building an additional smaller shed dedicated as an outhouse or bathroom, can be a lot easier to get council consent. In some locations, (NZ and Aus), outhouses may be exempt, acceptable because of being “historically considered a permitted activity”, but this will vary from council to council, and will still have some restrictions on how it’s implemented.

Partially covered outdoor cooking facilities can also often be created in an aesthetically pleasing way and may have less stringent council requirements than a consented building. But either way, if you are unsure about the regulations, we do recommend checking directly with your local council in both New Zealand and Australia, or you can also talk to a local town planner if you're unsure for all requirements you will need to meet.

Still Want Those Council Approved Amenities?

If you’re still keen on converting your kitset into a consented dwelling in New Zealand, our SheShed technical team have outlined a few areas where alterations may need to be made to the kitset to make it fit for purpose as a consented dwelling in New Zealand. Some of these include but are not limited to: 

• Roof cladding - The asphalt roofing tiles may have to be replaced with an iron/steel roof. 
• Insulation - Additional insulation may need to be added to the floor, walls and roof, which may require building out the wall thickness, creating a wall cavity for added lining and insulation. 
• Window Flashing - Aluminium flashings may have to be added, and high thermal performance windows may need to be installed depending on what climate region the cabin is installed in.