Who wouldn't fancy spending some time up a tree house? But is it a possibility in this part of the world where trees are hard to come by as part of residential properties. While the newer developments around town may not have established trees, the same cannot be said of some of the older residential areas of Dubai, such as Umm Suqeim and Jumeirah.
With many of the older villas having country cottage style gardens they are the perfect places to build a tree house just like the one you may have grown up with elsewhere.
Outdoor living
With the weather ideal for outdoor living, now is the right time to consider building a tree house, and it doesn't even have to be limited for the children. "The majority of tree houses we build are for children, but some are for ‘grown up children' too!" says David Trotter, director of Squirrel Design Tree Houses in the UK.
Squirrel Design Tree Houses have built some of the most enchanting tree houses around the UK. The tree houses they build vary from somewhere adults can enjoy a spot of lunch, to an office for someone who wants some peace and quiet, and to the obvious — a fun hideaway for children.
Style and safety
"Our style is as rustic as possible. We will build what you want, it is very much a bespoke service," says Trotter, who believes he has the best job in the world. "We can build in soft wood, hard wood, use safety glass or stained glass. We like to try to build in the trees as much as possible, but we have done a few things on the ground as well."
For Squirrel Design Tree Houses to make a bespoke home in the garden takes six to eight weeks depending on the complexity of the structure. But, for those who want to build their own, Trotter has some advice.
"It kind of depends on the tree. You can build on the tree or you could build a house in between a group of trees. The diameter at the base of the tree should be about 400mm. You don't want to go ludicrously high up a tree, about 2.5m to 3m is enough. You need to have enough room to climb down a ladder or slide down a fireman's pole, but you don't want it too high in case a child falls. The most important thing is to ensure that you do not put anything around the tree house, like a garrote, if you do this, the tree won't be able to get any of its nutrients and will eventually die."
For anyone whose DIY skills prevent them from trying to build such a structure, help is at hand as there is the possibility of hiring Squirrel Design Tree Houses even if you are in Dubai. "We mainly build in the UK. However, we have built in Spain and we get a lot of enquiries from the US," admits Trotter.
"We could come out to Dubai and build a project, but the project would have to be of a certain size to be worthwhile and affordable for the client. I don't know what the legal implications would be for us to come out and work there, but if we weren't allowed to work in Dubai, then one possible way would be to use a local carpenter and one of our team leaders could come over and supervise."
Costs vary for the tree houses, although for a project in Dubai, it would probably be somewhere around £40,000 (about Dh232,000). However, while this is a substantial investment, the rewards are absolutely immense. "I have not met anyone who hasn't said, ‘I wish I had a tree house'," concludes Trotter.
"They stimulate and enliven children's lives and it also gets them away from electronic media. It is escapism — you can get up there in nature and you are two to three metres higher than the ground in a living structure. You can think things through, it really is quite inspirational and you can get rid of the clutter of everyday life. It is just magical."
As Trotter admits that he gets thank you cards and even homemade cakes from his clients when projects are finished it seems that they all agree with him. And it is hardly surprising.
If the sound of the birds in the trees and a cool drink and a spot of lunch in a tree house appeal to you, or you want to tear the children away from their computer, then perhaps this is one addition to your property that is worthwhile.
Handy tips
If you would like to build your own tree house, before you take out your hammer, there are some things you need to consider, suggests Trotter.
- Make sure the tree you use is a healthy one. We recommend that a specialist tree person checks it. Any dead branches should be taken out so that these don't fall on anyone.
- You don't need to go higher than 2.5m to 3m.
- Use good materials. The wood needs to be very durable. You can use something like pine but it has to be treated to protect it from the elements.
- Any hardware that you use, needs to be good quality. They need to be galvanised and rust-proof. It is not worth scrimping on materials. Use screws as nails can bend.
- Make sure the area under the tree is safe. You could place shredded tree bark, or shredded rubber tyres which look like bark as it never rots. Use it in a layer to soften any falls.
- Once you have built your tree house you need to look after it. You need to brush off dead leaves and always maintain it. Depending on the weather conditions you may need to treat it with a clear exterior wood treatment.
- Safety is paramount. Children need to be supervised, as they may not be used to coming down a fireman's pole.
