Garden Paving

[matthewburton79]

Evening all,
I am in desperate need of a landscaper from over my way to do some paving for me in my back garden ASAP. Theres approx 40m2 to do. I have dug all the turf off and now need the paving suppied and laying.

If anyone can be of help it would be great. I am in Bradford, West Yorkshire.


Cheers, Matt

[B B Leo]

youll pay for that m8!
look it ur local paper for people and get a few prices.
on the down side the work u think youve done to save money wont.
people will think ur tight! and u wont have saved much anyway. as its still going to need dug up and leveled etc

[matthewburton79]

Got some quotes from people who are too busy..... ranging from £650-£900 depending on the type of paving, I just want ya bog standard paving. cheap an cheerful!!!
The digging of the turf myself was more a pride thing as our dog shits like there's no tomorrow, lol!!!
So i thought i'd save the hassle!!
Gonna get some more quotes this week, needs doing ASAP so i can begin the BBQ season and the little lad has some where to play.

[B B Leo]

let us know how u get on m8

[Welsh Pete]

I tried a similar thing 3 yrs back...and after I got all my (salty) quotes I took the job on myself. It was ok actually...local builders merchants supplied all the materials (dont remember the price...possible `bout £150-200 for all slabs, 2 ton stone dust, weed membrane and whatever else I cant remember. Then me and my trusty BandQ "You can do it!" book got to work.

My first patio, and even today it is weed free, level and well, still there.

[Tommy J]

what exactly do you want done?

I did mine a few years back, piece of pi$$. I've not got a huge garden but I think it still look alright. Grass was out of the question as we don't get a lot of sun out the back

Just need to make sure you have a good base first, you could always get someone to do that for you, the paving is easy just mix up some cement andaway you go.

I used 18mm stones with a few size slabs to make a patio area.

I've attached a pic, please excuse the mess and colour of the slabs, need a bit of a clean.
Attachment 14383

[rmj2663]

You've done most of the hard work m8, you may as well carry on now.
Just make sure its all level and you are away. Easy to lay slabs on sand IMO, but beware the weeds as said above.

[I Black Belt]

You need a solid base for the slabs for 2 reasons.
1 - To spread the weight of people/objects effectively
2 - To act as "free drainage" and prevent your slabs floating away (yes they will)
If you lay em on compacted earth, with sand "dabs" to level them out, the water will turn the ground underneath to mud, wash away your dabs and the whole lot will sink.
You need to dig out 200mm + slab thickness depth wise,
lay 150mm compacted type 1 or "MOT"
then put your slabs on a 2" screed of sharp sand mixed with cement.
Screed the sand level, then lay the slabs on and tamp gently to bed em in.
water the area lightly when finished laying and leave for 24hrs.
Job done and will last a lifetime mate..

[B B Leo]

i could have went down that road i black belt. but thought it would have been to long. still think if u want it done right get in the pros!!. no offence. it can make a big difference

[I Black Belt]

No offence taken mate, I'm just a lowly Civil Engineer offering a few pearls of wisdom for you

[B B Leo]

wasnt getting at u m8 more agreeing with u. just think to many diyer think its a great and easy. but the important part is what lies beneath

[B B Leo]

Yes of course it is. They're all my fault

so u really are a (aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnttttttt then

[matthewburton79]

Cheers guys, got a local guy who actually lives on the end of our road to do the job. I've seen his van on his drive and never really thought of asking him, i gave him a knock on my way in yesterday. He's been round and given the best quote, we had a few beers turns out he's a pretty cool guy! Gonna be starting the job in the next couple of weeks. So I'll get some pictures sorted and post them.

[B B Leo]

dont forget now m8

[matthewburton79]

dont forget now m8

The before shots of the turf removed and 85 bags of it are on my camera...... Got a guy collecting it all with some other stuff for the tip at lunch time on monday for £60.00. A bonus as a skip is £85+ vat.

[Welsh Pete]

The before shots of the turf removed and 85 bags of it are on my camera...... Got a guy collecting it all with some other stuff for the tip at lunch time on monday for £60.00. A bonus as a skip is £85+ vat.

Do what I do...chuck it over the neighbours wall...easy!

[rmj2663]

A bonus as a skip is £85+ vat.

Feck, what size skip is that? Full size skip is £150 around here.

[matthewburton79]

Feck, what size skip is that? Full size skip is £150 around here.

Thats for the midi skip, one up from the small ones. They can be a real rip off and lazy when it comes to collectin the skip.
Getting a skip is more hassle as i live in a mid terrace and the skip would have to be outside our house, we have two cars so this is a real pain. Plus getting someone in saves my back, money and people dumping their rubbish in my skip... LOL.