Whats going on under this patio? (pictures)

[reoreborn85]

(Kind of a follow up post to my previous post here but you don't have to read it as this is pretty much a standalone question)
We Moved in not so long ago and sadly bad luck bit us in the arse hard. My wife became ill and had to give up work and it'll be that way for around 2-3 more years. Ive had to cut my hours down to a minimum. So, we have zero savings. So, once again WE HAVE NO SAVINGS lol (just adding that as sometimes the replies are "Just pay somebody to lay a new one etc" <3

Due to my wife being ill I wanted to make the outside look nice and for it to be somewhere nice to sit.
Outside of the backdoor is a small patio area but the slabs are broken or raised etc. So, I started looking into what I could do to make it look a bit more peaceful out there.

At first i thought about a decking kit (Cheap and cheerful) but I decided to go out and JUST check they'd been laid correctly. As in if it had MOT under it etc. We were told when we moved in it had been laid professionally 12-15 years back..
So, yesterday I decided to lift one up and take a look.. I did so and found this (see photo). Does this mean there is no mortar and no MOT? It looks like there's a trace of sand but that's it. Am i correct in thinking it's just been laid on mud with a BIT of sand? It would Explain why the slabs are broken/raised in some areas. Thank you.


EDIT: Added extra pictures once i got home from work.

AS said below i've stuck a pole in and it's easily pushed in a good 1-2Ft without any resistance.

 

[stevie888]

That looks like full bed mortar with some fine roots having found their way between it and the slabs. (Good start)

You'll need to dig down a bit to see what's below but if it's solid then it doesn't really matter,

 

[reoreborn85]

That looks like full bed mortar with some fine roots having found their way between it and the slabs. (Good start)

You'll need to dig down a bit to see what's below but if it's solid then it doesn't really matter,

oh really?!?! It didn't look like many pics i'd seen online. Especially as the back of the slap (Not pictured) was clean apart from some actual dirt and mud. Thats good news then! Thank god lol


UPDATE:
Just lifted it again and this time took some extra pics. I stuck a pole into the 'dirt' and it went down a good 1-2ft without any resistance (i think it could have gone deeper but the pole wasn't long enough). It just feels like mud. I've included some better pics


(ignore the state of the area. I haven't jet washed/cleared it at all. Wanted to plan out what to do with it before fully cleaning/clearing./

 

[stevie888]

That shows how deceptive single pictures can be.

If your pole went in that easy then the ground is really soft and it's not likely you'll be able to do much on the cheap with any hope of it lasting. It might be worth lifting a couple more slabs and maybe digging a hole to see whats actually there.

How far below DPC are you at the moment?

 

[reoreborn85]

That shows how deceptive single pictures can be.

If your pole went in that easy then the ground is really soft and it's not likely you'll be able to do much on the cheap with any hope of it lasting. It might be worth lifting a couple more slabs and maybe digging a hole to see whats actually there.

How far below DPC are you at the moment?

Ah bugger, thought not. I wonder if the person who we got the house from who said very confidently "We paid to have the patio done professionally but it's seen better days" knew it was just resting on mud with a bit of sand?

I'm not gunna lie I had to google what DPC means so this MAY not be correct. The patio is on level with the house so not that far under DPC? I'd say maybe about 8-10 inchs? (if I have that right)

 

[stevie888]

PPC is your damp proof course plastic these days but you may see a bituminy felt materia; in older properties. It will usual;ly be at floor level and you want your patio to be 150 below it. If you have 8-10 inches then you could afford to raise your level a bit