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Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:21 pm
by sassoor
Hi
I have had a number of people come to quote for block paving and different contractors seem to be suggesting different ground preparation:-
One suggested 150mm Type 1 MOT
Another suggest laying blocks ontop of a concrete base
A third suggest re-enforcing with steel
Can anyone advise what is the best ground prepsation. I live a part of long with clay soil.
Cheers
Robert
Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:49 pm
by Dave_L
What is the existing surface sassoor? Concrete?
Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 9:42 pm
by sassoor
At the moment its grass!
Robert
Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 9:59 pm
by Stuarty
Normally for a small domestic drive we dig out 200 below finished height, 100mm MOT, 50mm sand and 50mm block. If the soil at 200 below is still fairly soft, we would dig out a further 50mm to give it a sound base. Thats a flexible construction.
Rigid construction, would have a concrete base, id expect mesh to be in the concrete for additional stregnth. We very very rarely use this method for domestic drives. Usually only do this when specifically requested by the client or when it will have to take alot of weight, wagons and the likes.
Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 11:47 pm
by lutonlagerlout
seek and ye shall find robert
regards LLL 
Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:39 pm
by sassoor
I am getting the impression that for small domestic drives one usually expects MOT/sand and for commercial premises they lay on concrete - is that an accurate summary?
Our situation is that we have a wheelchair bound son which means that we will be taking relatively heavy vehicles onto the drive (and they are likely to get heavier as he grows up and the family size grows). Also, because of wheeling the wheelchair in and out, the drive sinking would be more of a problem for us than it might be for most people (where perhaps it might be unsightly, but is less likely to cause functional problems).
On that basis would you recommend laying on concrete for our domestic drive or are there other downsides about laying on concrete that would steer us away from that?
Thanks
Robert
PS I looked in the FAQ referred to, but could not find anything that indicated which of the methods (ie flexible versus rigid) were recommended in which circumstances, and certainly not whether in our case we should be looking for something different from the norm
Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:55 pm
by Stuarty
Its always depenadant on what kind of traffic will be used on the area. If there isnt much price difference between the rigid and flexi specs the choice is entirely up to yourself.
We done a similar job about a month ago for a scouts organization, dealing mainly with disabled children, and we used MOT on that job. Main thing is getting it all as compacted as possible. Where the lorry to empty the septic tank was to be driven onto we used thicker blocks, obviously the base was solid enough for the wagon to go on anyway.
It also depends how thick the proposed concrete base is to be, its no use if its a small scattering, know what i mean
Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 11:49 pm
by lutonlagerlout
ye sassoor i think the blocks make more difference,we use 90mm blocks for heavy use areas ,they dont move
50mm are biscuits IMHO
regards LLL 