patio

[juddie]

how hard is it to lay a patio? Is it something I can do myself? I like to try these things, but I am an idiot.

[Simon Pieman]

My top tip is to buy more sand than you need. Wrap a couple in bin liners and bury underneath the patio you are just about to lay. This doesn't work so well if you get on with the neighbours.

[Samdy Gray]

I'm planning on re-doing my patio this summer. The difficulty depends on what size and shape it is really.

If you haven't already got a decent base to lay it on you'll need to dig it out, fill with about a foot of hardcore and compact it before laying the slabs.

Mine's only about 14ft by 8ft and is oblong shaped and I already have the base there from the existing patio so should be easy to do.

[Phil_S]

My top tip is to buy more sand than you need. Wrap a couple in bin liners and bury underneath the patio you are just about to lay. This doesn't work so well if you get on with the neighbours.

The hardest bit apart from digging out the base (you may need a skip for the rubbish) is ensuring that you have a slight even slope.
I alwasy put the slabs on a base of compacted hardcore & use a 1:5 cement/sharp sand mix (damp but not wet). You can lay just on sand, but weeds may grow through & the patio may move too.
It is well worth hiring a "plate vibrator" to compact & smooth the base, & a cement mixer to mix sharp sand. If you need to cut any slabs a cheap angle grinder will be useful.
(Before you put the base in it may be worth laying a 1 " pipe to take any elctricity cables in the future).
It's sheaper to get hard core & sand delivered in a big sack (i x ton)

[suttonred]

Cheers for that, sounds like the tef activity of choice this summer, i'll be redoing mine also.

[BANGKOK RED]

I don't have a patio.

[Rustle]

Dont forget to have a slight slope for the water to run away,otherwise when you have downpours the water will just lay there in big puddles.

[land_of_bo]

I just removed one...

[juddie]

I think I'm going to do this. I'm going to take a few days off and do it, fock paying someone else in these tough times, eh?

Gonna have to hire an angle grinder and plate vibrating thing. Are these by the day presumably?

[suttonred]

I think I'm going to do this. I'm going to take a few days off and do it, fock paying someone else in these tough times, eh?

Gonna have to hire an angle grinder and plate vibrating thing. Are these by the day presumably?

Yes most of the tool hire shops do them, if they are any good that is.

[Sippo]

speedy hire

[strooood]

I layed my dad's patio when i was 16 for a pair of Adidas reissues.

[Batch]

how hard is it to lay a patio? Is it something I can do myself? I like to try these things, but I am an idiot.

[url width=238 height=339]http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r247/XP141271/westy.jpg[/url]

It wouldn't be TEF if there wasn't a needless reference to a sicko.

[nevillew]

If you haven't already got a decent base to lay it on you'll need to dig it out, fill with about a foot of hardcore and compact it before laying the slabs.

Have you got that many magazines Juddie ?

[donkey]

The hardest bit apart from digging out the base (you may need a skip for the rubbish) is ensuring that you have a slight even slope.
I alwasy put the slabs on a base of compacted hardcore & use a 1:5 cement/sharp sand mix (damp but not wet). You can lay just on sand, but weeds may grow through & the patio may move too.
It is well worth hiring a "plate vibrator" to compact & smooth the base, & a cement mixer to mix sharp sand. If you need to cut any slabs a cheap angle grinder will be useful.
(Before you put the base in it may be worth laying a 1 " pipe to take any elctricity cables in the future).
It's sheaper to get hard core & sand delivered in a big sack (i x ton)

Just wanted to highlight that, nothing else.