Excavation
Down to ground that will not move. Topsoil, roots, old bases and buried rubble all come out, and they leave in our vehicles rather than living behind the shed.
Patios & paving
Patios laid to sit still
Porcelain, Indian sandstone and stone paths across Barnsley. Dug to firm ground, based in compacted layers and set with falls that take the water away from the house rather than towards it.
The part under the flags
A patio is a structure before it is a surface
Almost every failed patio comes back to the same handful of shortcuts. Here is the build-up we work to, and what each layer is actually for.
Sub-base
Type 1 laid and whacked in layers rather than one deep dump. Compaction is done by the number of passes, not by eye, and this is the layer that stops the sinking.
Falls and drainage
Levels set to run water away from the building, with channel drainage where a threshold sits low or the ground refuses to take it.
Laying and jointing
Full mortar bed, primer where the material needs it, edges restrained, then jointed with a proper compound and washed down before we go.
Porcelain
Porcelain paving
Dense, barely porous and colour stable, which is why it still looks like itself after a few Barnsley winters. Grease from the barbecue washes off, algae struggles to get a hold, and a rinse brings it back rather than a scrub. It asks more of whoever lays it: every slab is primed on the back, and the cutting has to be right first time because there is no forgiving edge.
- Slurry primer on the back of every unit
- Laid on a full wet bed rather than five dabs
- Falls set to shed water away from the house
- Cut clean around drains, gullies and steps
- Stepping stones and gravel margins where the run needs breaking up
Sandstone
Indian sandstone
The riven, mixed-tone look, and still the best value once an area gets large. It is a natural stone so it weathers and shifts tone over the years, which is either the appeal or the reason to pick porcelain instead. Cut and pointed properly it will outlive the fence, the shed and probably the decking.
- Riven, sawn and tumbled finishes
- Mixed-size patterns set out on paper before they are set out on the ground
- Curved runs and radius steps cut on site
- Brick or stone risers where the levels change
- Jointed with a proper compound, not brushed-in sand
Paths
Paths, side returns and steps
The strip down the side of the house is usually the worst bit of the garden and the first thing you walk on. Done properly it drains, it stays clean and it stops being the place the bins live in the mud. Narrow work is fiddly rather than quick, and it is worth the fiddle.
- Side returns paved to the same standard as the terrace
- Pebble margins to keep splash off the render and brick
- Steps set to a comfortable rise, not whatever the levels left over
- Gully and downpipe details worked around rather than paved over
- Gate thresholds levelled so nothing catches
Levels and steps
A garden that falls away is not a problem to solve. It is two rooms instead of one.
Split levels, generous steps and a retaining wall turn an awkward drop into a terrace you eat on and a lawn the kids get. Far better than pretending the whole plot is flat and paving it as though it were.
Customer reviews
Paving customers
“really happy with these had a full garden patio installtion and a sunmer hiuse built, astroturf in the middle looks so good i coukdnt he happier desfinetly worth going with”
Alfie H.Customer Review
“Got my turf levelled by Charlie and his team had a right hand full to get a decent landscaper and these did the job well which is hard to find without been messed about by others”
Bailey H.Customer Review
“Really pleased with the work carried out on my garden. Professional, reliable, and completed everything to a high standard. Would definitely recommend”
Charlie C.Customer Review
Reviews shown here were left for GreenForge and are reproduced word for word, spelling and all. Surnames are shortened to an initial.
Where we work
Barnsley town and the villages round it
BarnsleyPenistoneWombwellHoylandDartonDodworthCudworthRoystonDarfieldElsecarWorsbroughSilkstoneMapplewellMonk BrettonStairfootGrimethorpeGoldthorpeThurnscoeAthersleyKendrayBirdwellJumpGreat HoughtonHigham
Just outside the list? Ring 01226 652041 and we will tell you straight away whether it is one for us.
Free quote
Price up your paving
Send the form or ring. Someone comes out, walks the plot with you, checks the levels and the access, then you get a written price with the groundwork and the finish costed separately. Nothing to pay for the visit and nobody chasing you afterwards.
- Emailinfo@greenforgelandscapers.co.uk
- Based inBarnsley, South Yorkshire
- CoveringBarnsley and the surrounding villages
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