Lower patio next to house

joelk2 · 10 May 2020 at 15:20

I want to dig up my patio and lower it to the same level as the garden. The issue being the patio is around a few courses lower than the engineering bricks (old style damp proofing) and I'd be lowering it about another 2.5ft or so.

This makes me think I'll be unearthing the foundations of the house.

Is this likely to be an issue?

The other option I have it to leave a couple of slab widths at the current level and drop the rest?

Hopefully you can see what I mean in the picture.

JRJ · 10 May 2020 at 17:42

2.5ft? that's hell of a drop?

*Is there a lower garden out of shot?

joelk2 · 10 May 2020 at 18:51

JRJ said:
2.5ft? that's hell of a drop?

*Is there a lower garden out of shot?

Edit. Is more 2 ft. It's the green part in the picture.

From the other angle.

jellybeard999 · 10 May 2020 at 19:03

I think it would be safer to leave a small patio at the top a few slabs deep and then step down to the patio thereafter.

PurplePhoenix · 11 May 2020 at 08:12

It looks like it the bit the table is on is newer than the bit around the house and door. It could look ok if you jetwash all of it and do a repair on the step down to the garden.

Fist thing to do it find out what is under the slabs, if it a solid base/ full of rubble is going to cost a bit just to get rid of all of it.

flea.rider · 11 May 2020 at 09:29

it would be far easier to lift the grass and raise that end ..
btw where your pool is use to be a coal bunker ..
so that wall will be a supporting wall .don't really want to play with that

Abyss · 11 May 2020 at 14:52

That's a hell of a job digging all that out. Various different areas of concrete, brick walls etc and having to use vibrating machinary right up to your building and down 2ft below the brick level isn't a good idea. You risk causing damage to the foundations, causing cracking to your brickwork etc.

I'd tier it with 2 levels or just have steps down to the garden.

Bickaxe · 11 May 2020 at 15:31

What sort of area is the part you want to lower?
What area is the rest of the garden?
Could you go down a foot and shift it to fill the rest in so it's all level?

Back breaking work either way in unless you contract someone else.

Psycho Sonny · 11 May 2020 at 16:04

flea.rider said:
it would be far easier to lift the grass and raise that end ..
btw where your pool is use to be a coal bunker ..
so that wall will be a supporting wall .don't really want to play with that

plus 1

joelk2 · 11 May 2020 at 17:44

Hmm. Cheers for the advice folks. I'm going to get a landscaper to come and take a look I think.

I've dug under one of the slabs and it appears to be just rubble.

But even pricing it up myself to do things I'm looking at 4k so would rather get pros in and pay a bit more.

JRJ · 11 May 2020 at 21:27

joelk2 said:
Edit. Is more 2 ft. It's the green part in the picture.

From the other angle.

Ha its easier to see from that angle, relay the whole patio at a similar level to where the gate is and bring the garden up to match, break up the old slabs/bricks and concrete and use to bring the garden up to meet the new patio level.

joelk2 · 11 May 2020 at 21:34

JRJ said:
Ha its easier to see from that angle, relay the whole patio at a similar level to where the gate is and bring the garden up to match, break up the old slabs/bricks and concrete and use to bring the garden up to meet the new patio level.

Raising the lawn is a no goer really. Would make the lawn 2ft higher than every other garden in the road.

Hopefully will get the pro in to either say he can do it or convince the missus to do it another way.