The Brew Cabin

Hi all,

I'm doing up my garden and will be edging my lawn with block paving which is coming up from part of my drive way. I will be laying the paving short edge against the lawn.

I'd probably put in a bit of a subbase just incase, but what should I lay the blocks on, the same sand that they are currently lying on in the drive way or should they be laid on a concrete mix. I know that I should edge the other end of the blocks with concrete to stop movement but I'm unsure what I should lay the blocks on.

Thanks for any advice

Mike

As these blocks are forming the edge to your driveway, as well as abutting the lawn, they rerally ought to be laid on a cement-bound bed and haunched with same. A C20 equivalent concrete is adequate for this task.

If you really want to avoid using concrete, then one of the nailed-in edging restraints would also be suitable, provided nothing heavier than a car will be used on the driveway.


HTH

Sorry not clear with my topic

These blocks are being taken up and used to edge the lawn which wont be butting up to the driveway.

Mike

Aah - I'm with you now. They're to be a mowing strip!

I'd lay them on a 10:1 sand:cement bed and just haunch them enough to keep the line in place, Mike.

Being the total novice,

When you say sand, what type of sand. Can I use the sort if gritty sand that the blocks are current sitting on in the driveway?

Thanks

Mike

Yes, it's much better than building sand, which is only really suitable for making mortar.

back again,

I've just taken up the old lawn and I'm getting the ground prepared etc. Should I put the mowing strip in after reseeding the lawn? Or can I get the strip down first and then do the lawn in september? Also the strip will be circular in places. How best to lay the block in a curved pattern?? Get a template made which can be used to butt the blocks up too? I'd be afraid I wont get it right by sight alone..

Thanks

Mick

PS will the subbase for this one block strip need to be compacted/vibrated?

You can put in the mowing strip now and leave the seeding until September.

Cutting for the curves won't be as complicated as you imagine. What sort of radius do you envisage, and what type of block will you be using? If any cutting is needed, I will be able to tell you how much to cut.

I'm not sure what you mean by the sub-base for a one block strip - if this is just a mowing strip, then it's laid on the 10:1 concrete bedding; there is no sub-base required.

Hi Tony,

Its my dad, thinking we need a sub-base. He's from the construction industry and thinks everything must be earthquake proof!!. For 10:1 mix, I'll be using the grit sand that the blocks are currently sitting on in the driveway. I assume this mixture is a dry mix? What sort of depth would the mix be for the strip? The blocks are 200mm by 100mm by 50mm?. Not sure on the depth measurement but I guess you know the ones I mean. The outline shape of the lawn is firstly aprox. 2/3 of a 4m radius circle which then joins to a man made curve that you could compare with a 1/4 of an elliptical curve. I'm just concerned that when we start to lay the blocks we wont get the curves right?

(Edited by madunphy at 5:14 pm on July 28, 2002)

Well, tell your Da there's absolutely no need for a sub-base under a mowing strip!

For te 10:1 mix, use a grit sand - see the Concrete page for fuller info. You can substitute 5 parts gravel for 5 parts grit sand, if you prefer. 10:1 is usually fine, as it's only to hold the blocks in places, not to contain a trafficked pavement or anything like that, but, if you wanted, you can up the strength to 6:1.

For a 4m radius, you shouldn't need to trim the blocks at all.....



...as there is only a 5mm gap between adjacent blocks.

If you can mark the origin of the 4m arc, it's much easier to accurately lay out the arc. See the example on the Steps for Block Paving page.

Good luck! :)

Tony,

Is it possible to post images to this site? I couldn't find anything on the site to say otherwise? I could show you the lawn outline.

Thanks for the reply. I intended to lay the blocks the other way as I think the the 100mm width could be too narrow. Am I mad?? I have enough bricks. Would this make it harder to keep the curve "true"?

Thanks

Mick

(Edited by madunphy at 9:52 am on July 29, 2002)

Yep - you can post images if you have them uploaded to your own server or webspace. See the [help] link for fuller info. If you don't have webspace, send the images to me (info AT pavingexpert.com) and I'll upload them on your behalf.

If you use the blocks 200mm wide, it still wont make much difference on a 4m radius. You will find it even easier to create a sweet curve than it would be laying the blocks 100mm wide, as each unit is narrower relative to the arc.