How to lay a patio
Summer is on its way, the warm weather and lighter evenings mean we will all be spending a lot more time in our gardens. What better place to entertain friends with a BBQ or just to sit and relax, then a patio.
A patio can be constructed from various materials, from the low end concrete slabs to the more expensive granite. A very popular style of paving is Indian Sandstone, this comes in various sizes and colours. whichever style of patio you choose you can follow our how to lay a patio guide below to ensure it is fitted correctly.
Tools needed for the job:
- Wheel barrow
- Trowel
- Shovel
- Spirit level
- Tape measure
- Cement mixer ( if you have one )
- Compactor
Materials needed for the job:
- Slabs
- Sub base aggregates
- Sand ( sharp grit sand )
- Cement
Now your ready to begin:
- 1. To begin with you will need to dig out the area that is to be the patio to the required depth, bear in mind that a patio if it is to be laid against a building should generally be laid 2 bricks or 150mm below the DPC level. The depth you will need to dig will be the thickness of the slabs 40mm ( as an example ), 40mm for the mortar and 100mm for the sub base.
- 2. spread the sub base to a depth of 130mm, then using a compactor make 4-6 passes to compact the area down to a thicknes of 100mm.
- 3. Its now time to mix the mortar that you will lay your slabs on to. using your mixing or a shovel, mix 4 parts sand to 1 part cement, add enough water so that the mix can be made into a ball but not wet enough that it squashed through your fingers.
- 4. once you have your mix ready, you will need to spread it out in the area you wish to lay the patio. The thickness should be 15mm high to allow for the slab to be pushed down onto the mortar.
- 5. Your ready to lay your first slab. Put the slab onto the mortar and tap it with a rubber mallet so that it pushes firmly in. With your level check it for level across all sides and continue to lay the rest of the slabs allowing a 10-15mm gap between each slab.
- 6. The finishing touch is added by pushing mortar into the joints and pointing to the desired profile.
If you would prefer to have your patio installed by an expert then please do not hesitate to contact us @ info@johnsonlandservices.com
we are able to install your desired patio in Tunbridge Wells and throughout East Sussex and West Kent.
