Poolside studio pod with eaves 4m x 5m installed at Doncaster VIC

Fully installed for our customer at Doncaster, a suburb of Melbourne, this budget-minded pool house or poolside studio pod has eaves and is a more light and airy alternative to trying to build a room underneath a high-set home. Even when there is a slab on the lower level of a high-set home, there are several issues usually arising from this type of proposed development.

Firstly, the ceiling height underneath a high-set home is usually sufficient for a garage or workshop but not high enough (eg: minimum 2400mm) for livable rooms to be developed and certified as habitable. The cost of further excavations to achieve a room that could be certified for occupation as a rumpus room, home office, or extra bedroom is why you see so many homes for sale with a lower level that looks like a granny flat but on the floorplan, it says only “storage” or “utility”. This is because it’s not possible to ‘sell’ rooms as livable rooms if they’re not certified as habitable. Real estate agents know this rule very well.

Another issue with creating livable rooms underneath a high-set home, compared to building a poolside studio pod like this one, is often the cost of drainage to prevent any water ingress over the slab, which is not such a problem for a garage or workshop but an absolute no-no when developing a habitable room for certification. When a bathroom is part of the proposed under-house development, the cost of excavations for plumbing through an existing slab can also be prohibitive.

Our Backyard Pods customer at Doncaster, Melbourne, went looking for a low-cost backyard studio building that would sit high and dry (no slab needed), bright and airy, besides their pool to serve as a “pool house” in the backyard of their high-set home. Saving all the way with Backyard Pods, the 4m x 5m backyard studio kit was installed by a professional tradesperson in time for the family to enjoy through the summer months.