Your Marquee Wedding Booked Customer Guidelines

The Abacus Wedding Hire Hire Guide

Everything you need to know before your marquee installation

Firstly, congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

Whether you have hired a marquee before or this is your first experience, our aim is to make the process as smooth, organised and stress-free as possible.

Every year, our team installs hundreds of marquee events across the South East. During that time, we have learnt exactly what helps a wedding build run smoothly, and what can cause unnecessary stress in the final few weeks before an event.

This guide has been created to help you understand what we need from you, when we need it, and why it matters.

The planning milestones below are not there to make life difficult. They simply allow us enough time to reserve equipment, coordinate suppliers, plan logistics and deliver your marquee exactly as intended.

Our aim is always to be as helpful and flexible as possible. However, during peak season, particularly between May and September, our equipment, vehicles, crews, furniture, flooring, lighting and power supplies are planned and allocated well in advance. The earlier we receive key information, the greater the opportunity we have to accommodate your requests.

This webpage will take 10-15 minutes of your time – however it will be invaluable to ensure your marquee hire experience is a seamless as possible. It will answer many of the questions couples commonly ask and will help ensure your marquee installation is every bit as enjoyable as the celebration itself.

Your Wedding Marquee Timeline

6 Months Before Your Wedding

To help keep your planning on track, we recommend adding the following dates to your diary.

These are the key milestones we work towards when planning your marquee installation.

6 Months Before Your Wedding

Start considering your final guest numbers, confirming furniture style and any additional hire items you may require.

This is a good time to think about:

If you are working with a wedding planner, we kindly ask that you introduce them to us as early as possible in your planning journey. Now would be the best time for us to be introduced!

If your guest numbers are not fully confirmed, we recommend allowing for a small amount of flexibility. It is often sensible to book approximately five additional chairs/table above your expected number, especially during the summer months.

It is usually much easier to reduce quantities slightly than it is to source additional furniture at short notice once stock has been allocated elsewhere. That said please ensure you make reductions to your booking no later than 4 weeks before your event date, otherwise you will be charged 50% of the reduced hire items.

3 Months Before Your Wedding

3 Months Before Your Wedding

This is one of the most important planning milestones.

By this stage, we ask that you confirm:

Final furniture quantities & tables
Carpet colour

Your guest numbers affect far more than just chairs. They influence your table layout, linen, dance floor, walkways, bar space and the overall flow of the marquee.

During the summer, our furniture is allocated across a large number of events. Confirming your requirements at least three months before your wedding gives us the best opportunity to reserve exactly what you need.

Whilst we will always do everything we reasonably can to help, furniture changes requested close to your wedding date cannot always be guaranteed.

Top tip: We recommend asking for your RSVP responses at least four months before your wedding. This gives you enough time to finalise your numbers and meet the three-month furniture deadline comfortably.

8 Weeks Before Your Wedding

8 Weeks Before Your Wedding

If we are supplying your generator or power distribution, this is the time to introduce us to any supplier who will require power.

This may include:

We will provide a simple link or form which you can forward to your suppliers. They can then confirm their power requirements directly to us.

This is very important. We need this information in good time so we can plan the correct generator, cabling, sockets and power distribution for your event. If we get this information too late we may not have enough cabling required to fulfil your entire wedding!

4 Weeks Before Your Wedding

4 Weeks Before Your Wedding

This is the final deadline for all power requirements.

By this point, we need to have received the full electrical requirements from every supplier requiring power. Your caterer is likely the most important supplier we ensure has the right amount of power, as they are likely going to be using 80% of your total power output.

Once we have this information, our team can plan:

Generator size
Socket locations for all suppliers including catering, band/DJ, bar, toilets etc
Lighting power

Every socket and cable is planned before installation. This allows us to ensure your suppliers have the right amount of power, in the right location, when they arrive on site.

If information is provided after this deadline, we may not be able to guarantee additional sockets, additional cabling or increased generator capacity. Where changes are possible, they may be subject to availability and additional charges.

Without accurate power information, suppliers may be unable to operate correctly. This is why we take this deadline seriously and ask all clients to help us gather this information in good time.

2 Weeks Before Your Wedding

2 Weeks Before Your Wedding

At this stage, we will send your balance payment email together with key installation information.

This may include:

Installation dates & dismantling dates
Third-party supplier timings
Final balance amount
Any remaining information we require

Your balance payment is due no later than two weeks before your event date.

If you live on a permit-controlled street or parking is restricted, please ensure any parking permits are arranged in advance. If you require vehicle registrations from us, please ask as early as possible.

Build Day

Once we arrive, it is over to us.

Please ensure the installation area is clear and that any agreed access routes are available. If we are parking on your driveway or require access through a particular area, please make sure vehicles are moved before our arrival.

Our team will then get to work installing your marquee, flooring, lighting, furniture and any additional items included within your booking.

For safety, we kindly ask that children and pets are kept away from the active build area while our team is working.

Collection Day

After your event, please ensure the marquee is ready for collection.

Before we arrive to dismantle, please:

Remove all personal belongings & decorations
Empty fridges
Remove food and drink
Clear tables
Remove supplier equipment
Sweep or hoover carpets (we try to do our bit for the environment and re use these carpets for smaller events)
Remove broken glass
Ensure access is clear for our vehicles

Broken glass is particularly important. Please make sure any broken glass is carefully cleared before our team arrives, as this helps protect our staff during dismantling.

If third-party suppliers have left equipment inside the marquee, please ensure it is collected before our scheduled removal. We are unable to delay dismantling because another supplier has not collected their items.

Preparing Your Venue

Preparing Your Venue Before Installation

Grass Cutting

For garden and field installations, we recommend cutting the grass as short as possible one to two days before we arrive.

Long grass can make the flooring feel softer underfoot and may affect the overall finish. Short grass allows the flooring to sit more neatly and gives a better result once carpet or matting is laid.

If the marquee is being installed for several days, grass underneath may continue to grow slightly during the hire period, so cutting it short beforehand really does help.

Underground Services

Most marquees installed on grass are secured using 900mm long steel stakes driven into the ground.

Please tell us before your build date if you are aware of any underground services beneath or near the marquee area.

This may include:

If you know where these are located, please mark them clearly before we arrive.

This helps our installation team plan safely and avoid known services wherever possible. Any delays caused by not knowing where underground services could be could result in £60+VAT, per hour per team member in fees.

Working with Other Suppliers

Working with other Suppliers

Working With Other Suppliers

A successful wedding is a team effort. Alongside Abacus, you may have caterers, florists, bands, DJs, planners, photographers, bar teams, toilet suppliers, production companies and cake suppliers all working together.

To help everything run smoothly, supplier timings need to be considered carefully.

If you have external suppliers installing their own equipment, their installation should take place after the marquee has been completed, unless otherwise agreed with us.

Likewise, any third-party equipment should be collected before our scheduled marquee dismantling. We are unable to take responsibility for equipment left inside the marquee when we arrive to dismantle.

If you have booked items through us that are supplied by one of our trusted third-party partners, such as toilets, generators or specialist furniture, their timings will usually be confirmed in your balance payment email.

Occasionally, these delivery or collection times may fall outside our own marquee installation schedule. If this happens, you may simply need to provide access when they arrive.

Power & Generators (Important!)

Power & Generators

Power is one of the most important parts of a marquee wedding and one of the easiest areas to underestimate.

If we are supplying your generator, we need to know what every supplier requires so we can provide the correct generator, sockets, cabling and distribution.

This includes suppliers booked directly by you, not just suppliers booked through Abacus.

Common suppliers requiring power include:

We ask for supplier introductions eight weeks before your wedding, with all final power requirements confirmed no later than four weeks before.

This gives us time to allocate the correct equipment and make sure your suppliers have power exactly where they need it.

During peak season, we install thousands of metres of cabling every week across multiple events. Late changes can be difficult because cables, sockets and generators may already have been allocated to other weddings.

We will always try to help, but power requests received close to your event date cannot always be guaranteed - so please let us know as early as possible who needs power.

Furniture & Guest Numbers

Your furniture numbers need to be confirmed at least three months before your wedding.

This includes:

Chairs & Tables
Outdoor furniture
Ceremony furniture

We appreciate that guest numbers can move slightly. Guests may drop out, extras may be added and final numbers can take time to settle.

However, during peak season, furniture is allocated well in advance. If additional chairs, tables or other items are requested only a few weeks before your wedding, we may not have the stock available.

For this reason, we recommend confirming your RSVP deadline early enough to allow you to finalise quantities three months before your wedding.

If you are unsure, it is usually better to allow for a few extra guests rather than relying on last-minute additions.

Refrigeration

Refridgeration

Refrigeration is often overlooked, but it can make a big difference to the running of your event.

We can supply double glass-door commercial drinks fridges for bar areas. These are ideal for chilling bottles, wine and soft drinks throughout the event.

For larger weddings, we often recommend a refrigerated chiller trailer. This provides walk-in fridge space and is especially useful for:

Additional alcohol
Catering supplies
Wedding cake storage
Evening food

Bar fridges are useful, but they can only hold so much. A chiller trailer allows the bar team to replenish cold drinks throughout the day and evening without running out of chilled stock.

If you are unsure whether you need additional refrigeration, please ask us and we can advise based on your guest numbers and plans.

Flooring & Ground Conditions

Unless otherwise stated, our standard hard flooring system is an Ultradeck composite hard floor installed beneath your carpet.

This works very well on flat lawns and helps protect the grass underneath while creating a firm surface for guests.

However, it is important to understand that most marquee flooring follows the natural shape of the ground beneath it. If the ground slopes or has undulations, the flooring will follow those contours.

If your marquee is being installed on uneven ground, a field, rougher grass or an area with noticeable dips, please speak to us in advance. An upgraded wooden interlocking boarded floor may be more suitable for uneven surfaces.

For sites with significant height differences, cassette flooring may be recommended. This is a more specialist flooring system designed to create a level floor where the ground level changes more dramatically.

If you notice low points in the proposed marquee area, it may be worth improving them well ahead of your installation date. Ground preparation should not be left until the final few days.

Carpet Colours

Our standard carpet colours are usually Anthracite, which is a dark grey, and Biscuit, which is a warmer beige tone.

Other colours may be available at an additional cost.

Very light carpets can look beautiful, but they are not always practical for marquee events, particularly if the weather is wet. Guests moving between grass, toilets, car parks and outdoor areas can quickly mark light-coloured carpet.

Some lighter carpets (beige) also come with a protective film which is designed to keep the carpet clean during installation. This film will usually need to be removed by the client or event team once all suppliers have finished setting up.

If you would like a lighter finish, Biscuit is often the most practical choice. It gives a softer appearance than dark grey while being far more forgiving than very pale carpet.

Anthracite Grey Carpet Example

Biscuit Carpet Example

Beige Carpet Example

Toilets

If you are hiring luxury toilet trailers through us, they are self-contained and do not need to be connected to mains water or sewage.

They arrive stocked with essentials such as toilet roll, paper towels and soap, so there is very little you need to prepare.

Luxury toilet trailers do require power, which we will arrange if we are providing your generator or power distribution.

If you are holding more than one event across the hire period, please let us know the guest numbers for each event. This helps ensure the toilet facilities are suitable for the total usage.

Some couples also like to provide a small basket of toiletries, deodorant, sanitary products or mints inside the toilets for guests. This is completely optional, but it can be a thoughtful touch.

Walkways & Guest Movement

It is worth thinking about how guests will move around the site, especially if your wedding is taking place in a garden or field.

Coir matting walkways can be useful between:

The marquee and toilets
The marquee and car park
The marquee and ceremony area
The marquee and reception drinks area
The house and marquee

They provide a more comfortable surface for guests, particularly those wearing heels.

Lighting is also worth considering. Weddings often finish late in the evening, and guests may need to walk back to cars, toilets or nearby paths in the dark.

Festoon lighting on poles can create an attractive and practical route through the garden or field while improving guest safety.

Weather Planning

British weather can be unpredictable, so it is worth considering both warm and cold conditions.

Wet Weather Planning at Your Venue

Marquees are designed for outdoor events, but wet weather can still affect the surrounding ground.

If there has been heavy or prolonged rain before your wedding, lawns and fields may become soft. This can make vehicle access for set up/de rig more difficult and may increase the chance of tyre marks on grass.

Where possible, our vehicles need to access the marquee area to unload equipment safely and efficiently. Towed items such as toilet trailers, generators and chiller trailers may also need to be positioned close to the marquee.

If you are concerned about protecting lawns, driveways or event areas, temporary trackway may be worth considering. Trackway creates a temporary roadway for vehicles and can be removed once deliveries and collections are complete.

Please speak to us early if you have concerns about wet ground. The more notice we have, the more options we can explore.

Hot Weather

In warmer weather, we usually recommend opening side walls where possible to improve airflow.

Marquees can be very comfortable in summer when ventilation is planned properly. Air conditioning is rarely required for marquee weddings and can be expensive, noisy and visually intrusive.

Cold Weather

For weddings in early spring, late September, October or colder periods, heating may be worth considering.

We have diesel heaters available and can advise whether they are likely to be needed based on the time of year and style of event.

For dates where the weather is difficult to predict, it may be sensible to make a decision closer to the time, as heaters are an expensive item for them not to be utilised.

Timings & Weather Delays

We always do our utmost to stick to agreed installation and delivery timings. However, severe weather, difficult ground conditions, traffic delays or circumstances outside our control can occasionally affect schedules.

If we are delayed, we will keep you updated and work hard to get everything completed as efficiently as possible.

Decorating Your Marquee

We love seeing clients add personal touches to their marquee!

Flowers, signage, table styling, candles, lighting and décor can completely transform the space.

However, please help us protect the marquee and lining by following the guidance below:

Please do not use safety pins on linings
Please do not use sticky tape on linings, walls or framework
Please do not use nails, screws or staples
Cable ties, ribbon and fishing wire are usually much better options
Please ask us before hanging anything heavy for hanging advice
Please avoid attaching anything that may mark, stain or damage the marquee

Live candles may be used, but please ensure they are positioned safely and that appropriate fire safety precautions are in place.

If you are using a florist, stylist or production company, please ask them to speak to us before attaching anything to the marquee structure.

Working With Wedding Planners

If you are working with a wedding planner, please introduce them to us as early as possible.

Planners often help coordinate supplier timings, layouts, power requirements, catering logistics, floral installations, access arrangements and final wedding schedules. The earlier we are connected, the easier it is for us to make sure the marquee, furniture, power and supplier plans all work smoothly together.

We are very happy to work directly with your planner, provided we have your permission. Clear communication between Abacus, your planner and your wider supplier team helps avoid duplicated messages, missed information and last-minute changes.

Ideally, we should be introduced as soon as your planner is appointed.

Final Thoughts

We know there is a lot to think about when planning a wedding, and our role is to make the marquee element as smooth and stress-free as possible.

The information in this guide is based on years of experience and hundreds of successful events. Every deadline, recommendation and request is there for one reason: to help us deliver the best possible result for you.

The earlier we receive key information, the more flexibility we have. The more prepared the site is, the better the finish. The more coordinated your suppliers are, the smoother your build week will feel.

We will always do everything we reasonably can to help, but late changes cannot always be guaranteed, especially during the busiest months of the year.

Thank you for taking the time to read this guide. We cannot wait to help bring your wedding marquee to life!