Laying A New Patio In Your Garden

If you have recently purchased a new house or are giving your garden a makeover, one of the tasks which will give a great appearance to the garden is the laying of a new patio.

Prior to starting work it is important to have in mind a design you like but which at the same time will add character and value to the house. The location should be surveyed to ensure the patio planned is both feasible in size as well as practical. Obstacles such as drains, manholes, paths, and access to the house and the garden all need to be taken into account.

Preparation: Groundwork needs to be undertaken to give the patio a sound base on which to be laid making sure the foundation is strong and water run-off is accounted for. All plantlife should be removed from the area before it is excavated. A basic foundation should then be laid to achieve the correct footings for the patio and adequate drainage.

This could simply be a mix of “crush n run”, or it might be concrete or just sharp sand and aggregates. It is simply a case of using the right foundation for the use and size of the patio.

The patio stones or slabs should be laid on a bed of mortar to ensure stability and no movement in its lifespan. The actual mix of the mortar is simple to determine and is created using just a mixture of sand, aggregates, and cement. This can be mixed in small quantities manually using a mortar board and spade or for larger quantities a cement mixer would be the ideal piece of equipment to use.

Purchasing a cement mixer is normally out of the question for the average homeowner. Unless you intend to complete the job over several weeks (or use the mixer on other tasks) it would be beneficial to hire a cement mixer instead from a local tool hire company. 

If you need to cut any patio stones to size the best tool to use would be a petrol stone cutting saw. The purchase price of these is several hundred pounds, if you decide to buy one of these several different ones are available – the most favoured one being a Stihl TS410.  This particular machine is the most manageable and reliable and is also used by professional landscapers and groundworkers.

As with the mixer it is probably best to rent a stone saw for the average gardener / homeowner.

After the patio is laid make sure the joints are filled using either a stiff mortar mix or by brushing sand into them. Different coloured patio mortar is available to either blend in or constrast with the slabs themselves.   

Finally, after the job is complete the only thing left to do is to “dress” the patio to your requirements; patio furniture, a heater perhaps, or even just a barbeque, it is simply a case of enjoying the new patio you have laid in your garden.