Removed patio - what to replace it with???

[ric_uk]

Hi,

The previous owners of my house installed a patio which sat too high against the DPC. It was blocking the airbrick at the rear of the house, and looking generally uneven and tatty so I decided to rip it up and do something about it...

I was expecting to have a bit of a challenge getting it up, but to my surprise the patio was sat on top of a couple of inches of sand, and the slabs lifted straight up, not fixed down at all. I didn't expect to find a concrete path in place either, I thought it would be earth underneath... The previous owners were real DIY cowboys so I guess I shouldn't have been shocked!

So the patio is fully lifted up now, but I'm unsure what the best way to replace it is. The concrete path that goes around the house is right up to the bottom of the airbricks so I can't add anything on top of it. And if I just add a patio to the earth part I don't think it'll match up very well (aesthetically) with the path.

Can I rip up the concrete path or am I likely to damage the house brickwork doing this? What about cutting the concrete about 2-3" from the house wall and drains etc all the way round and then laying a patio up to this thin strip of concrete?

Easiest option I guess would be to dig down a bit and then add gravel, to tie in with the existing gravel section. However, I do like the flexibility of a nice flat workspace a patio would provide.

I'm at a point where I'm starting from scratch in the garden so I'm keen to get the hard landscaping sorted and just right from the start. I aim to replace the shed with a slightly larger one (shed is straight onto earth - no base) so I want the new patio/gravel/decking(?) area to extend out beyond the house about 8' or so.

Many thanks for any assistance given! I'm keen to get DIY'ing but I'm new to garden landscaping so I could use all the help I can get!!

 

[ColJack]

whatever you do, that manhole cover is going to something doing for it..

decking and leave a "cutout" for the air bricks? and a removable section for the manhole?

the "cutout" could have a decorative iron cover to it..

keep the slabs, will make good base to put the new shed on..

might need a few to put the deck bearers onto also..

it might be worth digging out round that air brick.. it looks like the water would run straight into it..
it's all bunged up and looks to extend below the level of the concrete anyway..

 

[ric_uk]

Thanks for the reply...

whatever you do, that manhole cover is going to something doing for it..

decking and leave a "cutout" for the air bricks? and a removable section for the manhole?

I lifted the manhole cover the other day to take a look - all that's in there is the water drainage which runs around the back of the property to next door. Whilst I may need access in the future it wont be on a regular basis. Because of this I was thinking of maybe just a wooden cover to bring it up to the level of whatever patio/decking etc I put in. I can then pop a large planted pot on top making access available if needed but effectively hidden it.

As for decking - I do like the look of decking, but I was wondering if decking can be above the DPC? Because the concrete path is right up to the airbrick and only one row of bricks below the bottom of the DPC I am uneasy about added more height.

keep the slabs, will make good base to put the new shed on..

I was thinking that. They're pretty ugly concrete slabs but perfectly usable for a shed base.

it might be worth digging out round that air brick.. it looks like the water would run straight into it..
it's all bunged up and looks to extend below the level of the concrete anyway..

The pic is a little misleading as I hadn't scraped away the 2" of sand at that point. However, the concrete path does come up to the bottom of the row of bricks the airbrick is part of (just noticeable in the second to last picture after the slabs and sand have been scraped away).





The more I look at it the more I am tempted to just go to town and rip up the concrete path - my only hesitation being the though of damaging the waste/vent pipe which is by the back door or the brickwork of the house...

 

[bobby spray]

That concrete has to come up. It's too high up and looks close to the DPC. I was in the same situation as you last year. I ripped all the patio up, relayed the drains, put a linear drain hard against the house and then relayed a new patio about six inches lower than the original. Not easy but if it's worth doing.....

 

[dextrous]

Get shot of the concrete - the manhole cover and its frame can be taken out and reset lower so that the new decking doesn't need to be raised in order to cover it as you suggest. The new level of the patio area should be 2 bricks below DPC, although if you leave a gap between the decking and the wall (infilled with gravel), it can be placed higher.

 

[WabbitPoo]

Decking does NOT have to be 2 courses lower than dpc. Just space it off the wall.