Gravel board too high

[Sard]

Hi all,

I recently had a new fence done but the contractor set the concrete posts too high and now the concrete gravel boards are not flush with the earth/land underneath. Eventually I want the area paved as it is the side access to my house. Also my neighbours own the land on the other side which is graveled and I'm worried the gravel will pass through the gap.

In light of the above, I wanted some advice one whether it would be a good idea to lift out the gravel boards and use an angle grinder to cut the notch out from the concrete posts and have the gravel boards sit level with the path and rest on the earth below?

 

[Tigercubrider]

I’d just add a bit of concrete there. Are you intending to lower the existing ground before paving?
If not, the paving will take up the slack

 

[Sard]

I’d just add a bit of concrete there. Are you intending to lower the existing ground before paving?
If not, the paving will take up the slack

Yeah, we dont want to raise the ground level when we pave, so we want the ground to be roughly where it is now after paving.

 

[daviesm1976]

Surely it would be easier to remove the gravel board and cut notches in the bottom corners.

 

[Sard]

Surely it would be easier to remove the gravel board and cut notches in the bottom corners.

I think it's the same or easier to cut the lip/notch from the concrete post itself? I was thinking I could raise the gravel board onto a trolley jack and use the clearance to cut the lip out from the post. This way I dont have to lift the gravel board out of the post nor do I have to make a precise cut on the board.

I'm open to suggestions if this doesnt sound right still

 

[Sard]

I’d just add a bit of concrete there. Are you intending to lower the existing ground before paving?
If not, the paving will take up the slack

Curious to know what you meant by adding a bit of concrete?

 

[daviesm1976]

"was thinking I could raise the gravel board onto a trolley jack and use the clearance"

I guess I was thinking more that the cut out on the baseboard doesn't have to be that accurate as it will rest on the uncut part of the board.

Sure lifting the board is a pain but doable with 2 people.

Using an angle grinder in a small space it might be hard to make the cut you need and you might need to knock out bits of concrete and I'd be thinking about what a pain it would be if the post got cracked or damaged. Concrete gravel boards are cheap and more easily replaceable.

 

[Tigercubrider]

Curious to know what you meant by adding a bit of concrete?

just mix some cement/ concrete and shove it in the gap

 

[Notch7]

just mix some cement/ concrete and shove it in the gap

That’s what I’d do, sod messing about with gravel boards.

 

[JohnD]

don't just lay concrete on the ground

scrape a narrow trench in the ground under the gravel boards, say 100mm deep and put boards in to act as shuttering, flush with the posts below ground and a little wider than the existing gravel boards above

and shovel you mix into the trench so it does not move, and fractionally above the gravel boards so they sit in it. It will slump and settle a little after placing so ram it down so there is no gap under the gravel boards

this will prevent burrowing animals getting underneath.

 

[Charlie George]

The fence looks level, if you drop the gravel board then you will have a lower panel,or a gap under the panel, the ground level must drop at that point.

Just noticed you want to drop all the panels, i can only see one with a gap, a lot of work for a 20mm? gap,just raise the path slightly.

 

[Odds]

Yeah, we dont want to raise the ground level when we pave, so we want the ground to be roughly where it is now after paving.

If you plan on paving the passageway then you don't need to concrete under the boards: just run a course of pea-gravel (10mm) about an inch wide to the depth of your slab; sand under the slab and lay on top. The slab will butt up against the board and hold the gravel in place.
No worries.
If you concrete under the boards, rainwater will be held along the fence and eventually crack the concrete - a little flexibility will keep things happy.

 

[TriesHard]

Hi Sard, apologies for gate-crashing your post! Please can I ask if that’s a composite fence, and if so, would you recommend? Thanks

 

[Sard]

Hi Sard, apologies for gate-crashing your post! Please can I ask if that’s a composite fence, and if so, would you recommend? Thanks

No worries at all, it is a composite fence. Expensive but worth it in my opinion. We went with Saige composites.