??? garage base bring up to height of path or lay new all

[JohnHamer1977]

Hi,

I am laying a garage base...
I have a path that runs round the side of the house.

I want to use all the space at the side as a car port or garage base.
So...
should I just lay the concrete up to come level with the path?
or
should I dig up the path and lay the whole thing lower?

Laying it lower would be preffered by me as when I sort out the front garden and make into a drive it will be at a gentler angle from the new base to the street.
But digging the path up will be a lot more work.

Laying it to the hight of the existing path will be a whole lot less work as it's half ready but when I come to making the front garden into a drive the angle will be steeper between the new base and the street.

What would you guys do???

see pic's below

 

[noseall]

generally speaking a garage floor tends to be 150mm below the floor of the house.

if the garage is completely detached then common sense, ground levels and (if its a pitched roof) planning ultimately decide the levels.

 

[JohnHamer1977]

I have decided to bring the base up to the level of the path.

Can you tell me the right order to do things in please.
Is this right:
1. Clear top soil
2. Put in shuttering to same level as path, or do I do this after sub base is down and compacted?
3. Put in a level sub base (I will be using some "crusher" which I am told is crushed brick that they lay under roads etc from a mate who work in demolition). Leaving 100mm to path hight for concrete
4. Compact ground
5. Lay damp-proof membrane (dpm)
6. Fill with concrete just proud of he shuttering (any suggestion for suppliers to Droylsden, Manchester)
7. Rake and shovel the concrete into place
8. Tamp down the concrete to the correct level
9. Covering with plastic sheeting for 7 days

^^^ is that right?

 

[JohnD]

just to stick my oar in:

If you might ever put a car there, whose wheels might go on the path, the path is almost certainly built to carry a slim young person's weight, not a car, so it will probably crack and sink.

It doesn't look especially well laid to me anyway.

It will be much easier to dig out and lay one slab now, than to try and repair the path later.


ps. I think you are wise to put in a dpm, it will keep the building drier. Easy and cheap to do now, very difficult later.

 

[JohnHamer1977]

thanks JohnD
your comments are very welcome feel free.

yes it would be better doing as you suggest and I did think hard on it but I am gonna take a chance.

I agree the path isn't laid perfect but it's OK, it's has expantion joints (I think so whoever did lay it at least attempted to do it right).

 

[JohnHamer1977]

Put the shuttering in last night

I have been round it with a spirit level and across it as well and all is level with path.
Sub base will be droped outside the garden tomorrow so a lot of shoveling to come.
Sub base material is crushed concrete called MOT1. The bits are 4mm.
Will I need a bed of sand over this before the DPM?