Top Tips for Laying A Patio ?
12 July 2002, 03:57 PM
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Going to lay a patio at the weekend . . . .
Area to be patioed is 5m²
Ground is earth and has been evened out with a whacker-plate
Got rubber mallet
Got big spirit level
Got big piece of 2x2
Got 2 tonnes of sand
Got slabs
Okay . . . . now what ? Any top tips ?
Area to be patioed is 5m²
Ground is earth and has been evened out with a whacker-plate
Got rubber mallet
Got big spirit level
Got big piece of 2x2
Got 2 tonnes of sand
Got slabs
Okay . . . . now what ? Any top tips ?
12 July 2002, 04:22 PM
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Matstant - quote "JGM beat me to it
but seriousy make sure you have a slight fall away from the house
and take your time to work out where your cuts will come around any manholes etc."
the bit about having a fall away from the house, is this a pro-active stance for Claims Direct ?? to cover the cost of the materials & 2 days off work perhaps??
shunty
but seriousy make sure you have a slight fall away from the house
and take your time to work out where your cuts will come around any manholes etc."
the bit about having a fall away from the house, is this a pro-active stance for Claims Direct ?? to cover the cost of the materials & 2 days off work perhaps??
shunty
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12 July 2002, 04:29 PM
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Thanks (most of you )
Luke - Not sure what sand it is (my lady bought it
with my card ).
Not cutting any slabs. Going to fit them as best as possible then gravel round the outside.
)Luke - Not sure what sand it is (my lady bought it
with my card ).Not cutting any slabs. Going to fit them as best as possible then gravel round the outside.
and buried nice and deep in the centre.
12 July 2002, 05:55 PM
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Assuming its 5mx5m ie 25m2 (otherwise its gonna be a very high patio if you've got 2 tons of sand under an area 2.2m x 2.2m )...
...sorry to be a partypooper, but be prepared to relay it every 12-18 months if you're gonna put the slabs straight down on the sand. Flame suit on against 'I've had a patio laid on sand and it hasn't moved in 73 years bal blah blah....
Ultimate construction should be something like:
Earth - whacked
'Half inch to dust' chippings - 3 inches - whacked
Dressed with sand to make it smooth - whacked
Each slab on 5 points of mortar - sloped as required
Jointing - mortar - 2pts sharp sand, 2pts pit sand, 1 pt cement + colouring if reqd. Wet mixed with FebMix agent (or PVA) , applied with a small trowel.
Dry mix doesn't work - after a frost of two it will come out. It sets OK but doesn't bond to the sides of the slabs. Water goes down the side, expands etc etc and blows it out. Wet mix jointing is slow and boring - but it bonds to the slabs and won't come out.
I did 80m2 3 years ago like this, and it ain't moved at all (slabs or jointing).
)......sorry to be a partypooper, but be prepared to relay it every 12-18 months if you're gonna put the slabs straight down on the sand. Flame suit on against 'I've had a patio laid on sand and it hasn't moved in 73 years bal blah blah....
Ultimate construction should be something like:
Earth - whacked
'Half inch to dust' chippings - 3 inches - whacked
Dressed with sand to make it smooth - whacked
Each slab on 5 points of mortar - sloped as required
Jointing - mortar - 2pts sharp sand, 2pts pit sand, 1 pt cement + colouring if reqd. Wet mixed with FebMix agent (or PVA) , applied with a small trowel.
Dry mix doesn't work - after a frost of two it will come out. It sets OK but doesn't bond to the sides of the slabs. Water goes down the side, expands etc etc and blows it out. Wet mix jointing is slow and boring - but it bonds to the slabs and won't come out.
I did 80m2 3 years ago like this, and it ain't moved at all (slabs or jointing).
12 July 2002, 07:26 PM
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Martin
Very good point about the Wet/dry mix issue. But I have seen so many people and trads use a wet mix and make a right mess with mix etc all over the surface!!!
Very good point about the Wet/dry mix issue. But I have seen so many people and trads use a wet mix and make a right mess with mix etc all over the surface!!!
13 July 2002, 02:51 PM
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Be prepared to relay it after a few years after the ants excavate all the sand. Laying mine direct onto hardcore next year (what all the garden construction books are recommending these days).
07 December 2002, 04:04 PM
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On a more helpful note.... get some of that anti weed fabric or plastic sheeting to stop weeds coming through the gaps in the slabs. More useful for gravel but worth doing if your not going to cement the gaps/want to leave gaps for gravel/plants....
Have fun - did this last summer, but had a concrete base to lay most of the slabs on, which was nice.
Cheers
Richard
[Edited by Richard Work - 7/12/2002 4:04:31 PM]
get some of that anti weed fabric or plastic sheeting to stop weeds coming through the gaps in the slabs. More useful for gravel but worth doing if your not going to cement the gaps/want to leave gaps for gravel/plants....Have fun - did this last summer, but had a concrete base to lay most of the slabs on, which was nice.
Cheers
Richard
[Edited by Richard Work - 7/12/2002 4:04:31 PM]
07 December 2002, 07:42 PM
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dont mess around filling the gaps,use geofix,very very good stuff although pricey. they sell it at wickes, you just brush it over slabs and it sets rock hard,i give it 10 out of 10,before doing mine it was lay mot wack it down,lay sand wack it down,then sand cement dry mix lay slabs hey presto and they aint moved yet.
mike
edited to say dont forget that stuff on a roll to stop the weeds coming through
[Edited by mbc - 7/12/2002 7:43:55 PM]
mike
edited to say dont forget that stuff on a roll to stop the weeds coming through
[Edited by mbc - 7/12/2002 7:43:55 PM]
07 December 2002, 10:00 PM
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Basically what MartinM said. If you have good quality well drained soil and the patio will not take heavy traffic, you can dispense with the "hardcore/MOT" sub-base IMHO and go for an extra depth of sand - 4 inches or so. It is almost impossible to get a dead level finish straight on the sand and it washes away in heavy rain. So "whack" the sand down and then use fist size dabs of mortar - one on each corner and one in the middle ot each slab. You can then tap down until level with the surrounding slabs. If you have clay soil or other soil prone to water logging in the winter or cracking up in the summer then you need the sub-base to buffer the movement of the ground. With certain slabs it can look nice to use spacers of approx 1cm between all slabs and fill the gaps with mortar (or dry mix if lazy). This then effectively seals the underlying sand from heavy rain washing away whilst allowing a slightly greater tolerance in getting them all level than butt jointing would. For drainage away from the house go for a slope in about 1 in 60. You can do this by cutting a straight piece of wood 30 cm long and attaching a 0.5 cm shim to one end. Then when you sit a spirit level on top and get it "level" - you are really measuring a slope of 1 in 60. Also don't do your back in - paving slabs get quite heavy once you have been lifting all day. Another thing - if you have to dig out a hole for the foundations/sub-base - you will be suprised how big a pile of soil you will end up with! If you are joining up to a lawn - aim to get the level of the patio just below the grass, so you can just mow straight up to and over the edge easily.
I did this last summer - bit of a ball buster really, but it will probaly last a good long time. I was gutted when I ordered a couple of tons of bagged aggregates for my shed base later on and the delivery lorry dropped them on top of the new patio - but it didn't shift at all!
Good luck
[Edited by Boost II - 7/12/2002 10:04:33 PM]
I did this last summer - bit of a ball buster really, but it will probaly last a good long time. I was gutted when I ordered a couple of tons of bagged aggregates for my shed base later on and the delivery lorry dropped them on top of the new patio - but it didn't shift at all!
Good luck
[Edited by Boost II - 7/12/2002 10:04:33 PM]
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