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What makes a man cave, a man cave?

7 essentials for the perfect man cave!

Ahhh, the fabled man cave – a place for men of the world to be just that, men of the world.

A world filled with manly essentials like tools, beer, dart boards and neon lights, a place reserved for the great unwashed and downright unholy.

Yes, these ‘dens of iniquity’ are the retreats of ‘modern’ men the world over, each with their own personalised footprint or territorial gimmick that makes the place their own.

Whether it involves getting tanked up on home-made Scrumpy, scratching themselves in peace or just having a place to retreat to for a little calm, the man cave is modern mans way of escaping the rigours of life and the banality of the domestic routine.

But what actually constitutes a good one?

What do you need to fill it up with to make it stand out?

And are there any special tricks to making it your own?

There are hundreds of lists out there that tell you what the ‘essentials’ are, but I thought I would keep it as simple as I could and give you 7 of the best ‘must have’ inclusions for you to make the most of your little masculine sanctuary.

Now, this is a list of my personal favourites, nothing to do with Best Heating at all really – it’s all just me and what (if I was allowed to) I would spend my hard-earned on.

Shall I begin?

1 – A walk-in beer cooler

Yes, it may just be a big fridge that you can stand in, but imagine the look on the faces of your friends when they walk into your cave, only to find that they can also walk into the place where you keep all of the beer too! A beer cave, you might say.

An image of a walk-in beer cooler

I understand it’s not cheap, but neither are diamond rings and handbags, and I once spent nearly £500 on make-up for my better half – the least she could do is allow me this little piece of heavenly, walk-in, beer-swilling luxury!

2 – A massive (370 Inch) television

Forget about all of your mates spending their cash on sports cars and designer gear, what you really want in your life is a Titan Zeus Television, the biggest and most expensive TV I could find to include in this blog post.

Titan Zeus 370 inch television

370 inches of pure 4K entertainment that renders any trip to the local cinema entirely moot, this extraordinary telly-box is yours for JUST a cool £1.4 million!

Great if your dad’s Richard Branson or that chap that people don’t like from BHS, what’s his name – Philip Green – that’s the fella isn’t it? Apparently, he has 3 of these in every room* (That’s not true at all, just a made up ‘fact’ for dramatic effect – I bet he has at least one though).

The only issue with this is, you need a pretty big man cave to stick it in…

3 – An illuminated pool table

I love Pool. It’s the best game ever invented and a Pool table is a must for any respectable man cave anywhere in the world.

What good is a man cave without one, and what good is a Pool table if it isn’t lit up like Christmas? Ideal for when the lights are low – it’s a 24/7 investment!

Illuminated pool table

This one is supposed to be for the outdoors, but there’s nothing stopping you from having it inside.

I would personally love one of these, I just have to wait a few years for my kids to move out and I’m dedicating a single room to this little beauty!

4 – A sign that says: “man cave”

You can probably stop short of having a doorman or ‘bouncer’ at the entrance, but it may be wise to mark the boundary of your man cave with a sign like this, just to be on the safe side.

Neon Man cave signage

The last thing that you want is lesser spotted males or some super-spotty teenagers mistaking your cave for a ‘yoot’ club or something.

Ensure that only the manliest of men get to enter by sticking this sign above the door and perhaps charge an entrance fee, to raise money for more cool man cave stuff and just to see if you can get away with it. #AlwaysThinking

5 – A golf course simulator

Aside from the Pool table, this for me is an absolute – ‘give it to me now’, ‘I’ll do whatever you say for the rest of my days’, ‘I promise I’ll be a good boy forever’ – must-have for the man cave.

Man playing golf indoors on a golf simulator in his man cave

People who say that “golf is a good walk spoiled” can sit and watch (in silence if they know what’s good for them and you haven’t already asked them to leave) as you push tin around some of the world’s best courses.

I want the guy in the picture above to be my best mate, my dad or both! (If you know where he lives leave a comment with his address below.)

6 – A manly heating system!

Regardless of how ‘manly’ you think you are, there’s no shame in keeping your man cave warm; after all, that’s exactly what our (actual) cave-dwelling ancestors did, isn’t it?

So, in order for you to maintain warmth and ‘manliness’, you really need a heat source that is going to tick all of those masculine boxes.

But, unlike our forefathers, you can’t start rubbing a few sticks together and have a cave fire, so you need to find an alternative that is hot, attractive and screams “MAN!”

A Terma Ribbon radiator on a wall in grey

Well, thankfully, our new season collection can do just that, with the outstanding Terma – Ribbon – an award-winning radiator from the Polish radiator specialists – helping to bring all things ‘man’ to your home heating.

7 – A striking set of killer lighting

A great way to add a unique touch to any space, lighting is possibly one of the most important parts of how your man cave looks.

It’s all well and good having all of the coolest gadgets, the pool table and the massive television, but if you don’t set the lighting right you’re wasting your time.

man cave lit up with striplights

There are loads of cool LED striplighting kits out on the market, so make the most of your man cave’s lighting and be sure to shop around.

What are your man cave essentials?

Like I say, there are quite literally hundreds of different things you could stuff in your man cave, but what do you think it should have?

I know I’ve omitted a load of stuff that I’m sure you think I should have included, like – a hidden bookcase door, a hammock and loads of video game tackle, but this is my list.

Tell me what you would have in your man cave in the comments below. I’m sure you’ve got some amazing ideas…

Stay Safe & Happy Heating!

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