The Brew Cabin

Hi Tony, An edge of my patio is to end at a wood fence. What's the best way to finish the edge? I assume it's not proper to use the bottom of the fence to hold the sub base, sand and pavers in place. Should I lay a 150mm high bed of concrete along the fence and lay the soldiers on that to hold in the sub base and sand?

Yep - lay a standard "edge course on concrete" retaining edge so that the back edge of the blocks is around 25mm clear of the fence. If you lay 'tight' to the fence, the contact between the blocks and the fence stays more or less permanently damp and accelerates rotting of the timber.

100mm thick for the bed is plenty for a patio - you could get away with 75mm, if you wanted. :)

I see. The dirt at the escavated level starts at the bottom of the fence. So basically the sub base, sand and blocks will be all at a level 'above' the fence. If I use only use 100mm of concrete bed, do I put sub base underneath that to get the soldier course up to the patio level? This means the sub base underneath the concrete bed will be right up against the fence. Would that be okay or should I just lay the whole 150mm depth with concrete so nothing touches the fence?
Also, do I just use a piece of wood while pouring concrete to shield the bed 25mm clear of the fence as you suggested?

Yes, that's correct, the bottom of the fence is where the sub base would meet soil, roughly 200mm below the finished paving level.

I'm not sure if I've got this right, but do you mean that the bottom of the fence is 150-200mm below the finished paving level? If not, what is the diff between finished paving level and the base of the fence panel?

also, my patio will be in two tiers. i'd like to make a wall to hold up the second tier much like the patio in this photo:


how is the wall constructed so that it can hold back the weight of the second level? mortar or just dry stack? what does it sit on?

thanks

If the fence has to stay put, then this sort of construction is what I would recommend....



...the Damp proof Membrane (DPM) offers some protection to the palings of the fence and you can top-dress the unsightly haunching concrete with a decorative gravel or whatever take your fancy.

As for the use of two tiers, well, the layout will determine what would be the most suitable method of construction. In the photo you cite as an example, the steps are more than likely constructed on concrete, as shown on the Steps page of the main website, so they act as a retainer as well as a means of accessing the various levels.

The walling is more problematic. I'm not sure what type of walling blocks have been used in that image, and as they hail from North Americaland, it's unlikely that we've ever seen 'em on this side of the Atlantic, but, using British/Irish equivalents, I would recommend using one of three methods...
<ul><li> - Mortared Brick- or Blockwork
<li> - Thinset adhesive bonded blockwork
<li> - Locking blocks, such as the Secura Stone from Tobermore</ul>
Obviously, how you see the finished look of the project will determine which products you should use and the various options will each have their own recoimmended laying method, each of which has its own pros and cons.

great drawing, i'll be working on that today. as for the step, the slope of the original surface was 1:15 (!), so i made it into two levels. with a 25cm step down about a third of the way from the house. what's the best way to build the steps shown in your steps section over a 'dirt step'? i made the dirt step down to save hauling away a lot of dirt, and it's needed anyways to build up the second level. if i had removed it, i would've had to put in a LOT of sub base to build up the second level, right? ofcourse there will be 10cm of sub base on the second level as well.

thanks

I hope I'm not too late with this, but do you mean summat like...



...perchance?

yes, that's exactly what i had in mind, and it's not too late as i've been a lazy sod!

Hi Tony, It's been a while but I just wanted to show you the fruits of my labor and your help! Without your advice I wouldn't of had the courage to take on this job in the first place.

before - tearing up concrete:


after - new paver patio and french doors:


thanks again!
Tim