How to turn a gravel drive in my back garden in to a patio..

[tin foil hat]

Hi,

I think I've got myself in to a bit of bother....

We bought this, our first, house a year ago and have slowly but shorly got it in to some sort of shape.

Initally the drive way was a single one, but with help from this site, I've dug up a small strip of garden and turned it in to a driveway. I'm very pleased with the results.

BUT.....

The previous owner opted to have up and over doors at both ends of the garage, and another gravel drive in the back garden. (I assume he used it to do up old cars since I keep finding odd nuts and bolts). This proved useful when creating the front driveway as I could reuse some of the gravel from round the back, but I've promised SWMBO that I would convert the drive/hard standing at the back in to a patio.

I've dug most of the gravel out, and I'm now left with a very very uneven layer of MOT1/gravel mix that I want to stick some flags down on.

Around the outside is edging which is about 2 or 3 inches above the level of the base at the edges, and in the middle it can be as much as an inch above it!

So, options.... do I put another higher edge strip all the way around and then use a sand base for the flags having leveled it all or could I use an all mortar base and build the level up to that of the current edge and lay the flags in that.

Or, I'm sure, is there a better way?

I'll be doing most of the work myself, and so ideally I'm looking for the least labour approach, but producing something that will last for a good few years.

Cheers!

W

[84-1093879891]

Does the edging have to stay in place or can it be removed?

If it has to stay, I'd suggest levelling off the existing base with some sub-base material (DTp1) and then lay the new paving on a bed of 10:1 grit and and cement over the top of that. Don't let the bedding get to more than 50mm thickness - build up with sub-base material rather than extra-thick bedding a sthat will give you a more relaiable pavement, less liable to settle.