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The prefabricated bungalow, or prefab as it became popularly known, was designed as a means of providing large numbers of houses quickly after the Second World War, to replace some of those lost through bombing. This prefab was one of forty such prefabs that were built in Llandinam Crescent, Gabalfa, Cardiff, in 1948. Designed with a short life expectancy, very few still survive today. This building may be the only aluminium prefab left in Britain.

Each dwelling contained two bedrooms with built-in wardrobes, a living room, entrance hallway, fitted kitchen and bathroom. It boasted hot and cold running water, a cooker (gas or electric), a 'copper' for washing, as well as a built-in refrigerator. In all, more than 153,000 prefabs were manufactured, as well as prefabricated two-storeyed houses. Four different versions were produced, all using more or less the same layout, but made of different materials. The aluminium bungalows, like the version at the Museum (the 'Type B2'), were made in factories that had produced aircraft during the War.

Prefabricated aluminium bungalow. Built around a frame and ‘chassis’ of extruded aluminium, the external walls of each section were clad in aluminium sheet with profiled aluminium sheets on the roof; the floors were timber-boarded. When bolted together, the bungalow comprised a living room, two bedrooms, a bathroom, entrance hall, and kitchen. One of the sections contained the fireplace to the living room (with a back boiler which was connected to the airing cupboard in the bathroom behind); the fitted bathroom and built-in kitchen (complete with water boiler, fridge and cooker). The fire was also designed to heat cold air drawn from the entrance hall which was then ducted back into the two bedrooms.