Cellular plastic for paths - Is using cell systems a good idea?

[mgg1010]

Planning some paths in the garden - soil is clay, paths will total 30m2. Just footpaths and the odd wheelbarrow.

Looking at the normal suspects - Breedon self-binding or
maybe block paversl...

Then came across a link to this cell system http://www.nidagravel.co.uk/

Which seemed interesting: I like the look of gravel, but hate the feel underfoot and it getting kicked.

Then I found the page on the main site, and discovered there are many such systems. But Tony's tone seems a bit sniffy.... and there wasn't a pro/con as usual. I suspect he's unimpressed

Anyway, I notice that nidagravels' site shows pictures without the cell system plastic visible, and they talk about laying 10mm of gravel over the plastic. Yet most of the other sites show the gravel flush with the plastic which *is* visible.

I suspect there's a con going on here. I suspect that one can lay the gravel over the top, but then you get back
some of the disadvantages of normal gravel - it moves, gets kicked etc.

Any comments much appreciated!

Martin Green

[hillandtrail]

We have used one of the nidagravel panels, it was specified by a garden designer as a way for the customer to easily move a wheely bin over a gravel area. It seems to work fine for this purpose, I'm not sure about as a driveway though.
You can only use a maximum of 10mm gravel and you need a loose layer on top to cover the plastic.

[mgg1010]

Thanks!

I'm not actually planning to use it on a driveway - just garden paths.

Do you remember how it felt walking on it? Was the plastic visible through the loose top layer?

[Pablo]

Hows that woman in the brochure gonna ride that bike with a mini skirt and high heels. :p

[hillandtrail]

The path was solid to walk on and you could easily pull the bin over the gravel. The panel was laid over compacted type1. You could not see the panel once it had been covered with a small ammount of gravel. This was not installed in a high traffic area so the gravel was not frequently disturbed.
I would say it worked very well as a path with a lot more stability than using gravel alone.

[Tony McC]

I can't see how you come to the conclusion that I have a 'sniffy' attitude to cell matrices. I have reservation when they're used with grass, but that stems for having to look at dozens of installations that have failed due to shoddy workmanship rather than a problem with the product itself. When used with gravels, the cell matrices are generally good, but again, competent installation is the true key to success.

Nidaplast has a bit of a chequered history. It has been distributed/promoted by a number of different companies over recent years, but none have had real success with it, probably due to indifferent marketing. CED have now taken it onboard and are doing a much better job of getting it noticed. However, over the intervening years, just about every plastics moulding company has come up with their own version of a cell matrix, so Nidaplast, Hexapath, GroundGuard and the other "quality" products are battling for market share.

Nidaplast's claim to fame was the translucent nature of the placky, which some folk seem to think would make the product less visible when filled. Not so, I'm afraid. There was also a problem with fragility; the individual cells were prone to crushing and cracking, but I've been told (earlier this year) that a more pliable placky is now used and the product is much more resilient.

The idea of over-filling the cells works for a few days, but, once trafficked, the surplus migrates and the rest settles down roughly level with, or slightly below, the top of the cells.

I don't have a problem using them as gravel stabilisers, but just don't expect them to be shy and retiring.

Now, I'm off to blow my nose.

[mgg1010]

Tony

I'm sorry - must have been late when I wrote that post

I think you've answered the question - expecting the plastic to be invisible is just a bit too optimistic...

Thanks!

Martin