Garden Project

[spiidey]

We’re planning on doing a bit of landscaping in our backgarden and are toying between doing it ourselves and hiring someone in to do the job.

If anyone could give a bit of guidance on level of difficulty given the images and descriptions below that would be greatly appreciated.

I attach four images:-

The first two showing the existing layout of the garden (plan view plus cross-section view);






The second two our preferred layout of the new garden (again, plan view plus cross-section view).






Some of our initial queries:-



1. We have moderate DIY experience – how difficult a job is it to do what we are looking to do?

2. Access to the garden for excavation of earth – access through the gate to the top left in the plan view is a maximum of XX metres wide – is it possible to get a mini mechanical digger through this gate?

3. The retaining wall to go around the left, bottom, and right-hand sides of the garden – how far away does this have to be from the fence?

4. What drainage would be required?

5. Anything else we need to bear in mind?

 

[Mursal]

If you get a few quotes, see what the ball park figure is, from the professionals. This will allow you to make a better call, whether to start it yourself.
Uneven/sloping sites are generally difficult to get right, so if you proceed give yourself plenty of time, especially on the final fixings.

Will you have to export topsoil, where you are putting down the decking? If so. will the limited garden gate allow this? The back wall will be a focal point from the house, are you planning to build a new one?

A mini digger will fit, drainage will depend on the actual site conditions. New wall can become your new boundary wall.

Good luck with it, whatever you decide

 

[r896neo]

Whilst it will be a larger cost of getting rid of spoil it may be worth digging out to form 1 level.

3 x 3m wide terraces will look very unusual considering how wide they are. Also 3m is really the bare minimum width for an area with table and chairs.

a 1m high wall at the very back of the garden is not big and will not be super expensive. once you get above a metre it begins to get much dearer as it needs designed. It will also be cheaper than building 3 small retaining walls.

It would make your garden massively more usable and saleable so is money well spent.

If your getting a digger in anyway it is not that much extra work (diggers are fast)

Keep the walls all about 3 feet in from the boundaries which mean fences etc don;t need disturbed and planting will soften the edges.

 

[grahamw286]

I'd say this is doable yourself. I think the only problem is with the earth. If you can find a place to ditch the top soil then the rest is simple. But then again, first ask for a few quotes, see what sort of price your looking at.

 

[spiidey]

Thanks for all the replies, and I take the point about 3 levels each of 3 metres width perhaps being too small and not very functional and potentially impacting on the ultimate saleability of the property.

I wonder if two levels of 4.5 metres each would work better / have any adverse impact on the saleability of the property compared to a 9m wide cut all on one level?

Also, what problems are there re getting uneven/sloping sites correct?

For the back wall, we're planning on keeping the existing fence at the same height at the back and having a retaining wall 2/3 feet from this, such that the top of the wall will be approximately level with the bottom of the fence.

Is there any good guidance out there on building a retaining wall?

Also, what about drainage, any guidance?