Should you always take into account the value when doing home improvements?

louisa_84

Thanks for the advice I shall have a look around at other options and get some new quotes for paving on 2 levels instead of decking and go from there. I just want a nice garden for april - thats the month booked for summer this year right lol

BitterAndTwisted

Hehe. I'd leave it a bit longer. There's nothing like visiting National Trust properties and what have you or taking photos of other people's gardens to give you ideas of what's possible.

breadlinebetty

louisa_84 wrote: »

Thanks, you are confirming my opinion. We bought this house as a family home for us and our 3 children to grow in, not as an investment. Its perfect for our needs, not only the house, but the location and the surrounds (nice park for the kids, old trees for them to climb, etc) only, there are some things i would like, such as a garden sorted for family BBQ's with a laid out area for seating separate from the football playing part, a fireplace installed to make winters eves that bit more cosy etc. But, my partner thinks we should do it "cheaper", like lay paving instead of decking, so end product is similar, but cheaper, so we dont "loose the money" spending it. i see it as spending it on what i want, seeing as we plan to stay there until the children have finished education atleast.


I think he is just being tight lol.

I thought paving was more expensive to lay tan decking?:cool:

Also, decking has now become very unfashionable and dated, and you can get vermin (rats) nesting underneath it!!!:eek:

Gem_

Another vote for paving here. We had decking and it got really slippery, a visitor of ours had a nasty fall and my son skidded over on it several times. I don't think it is at all safe for children. ours was soft wood so as another poster mentioned hard wood decking would be better.

Good luck I hope you find a compromise that looks fab

Gem

sunshinetours

louisa_84 wrote: »

the garden isnt flat though, so would require leveling in 2 sections, with 2 dif levels of paving to do the area i want doing, adding railings to decking wasnt an issue, to limit accidents of children tripping, but i cant find anything, that looks as nice, to do that to paving

Could you build up the lower part of the area you want doing and then put in sleeper retaining wall and then pave the flat area? Harder work than decking but more permanent and would look much nicer IMO.
Raised decking may also require planning permission in certain case if over a certain height I believe

chris_m

louisa_84 wrote: »

I just want a nice garden for april - thats the month booked for summer this year right lol

April for summer eh?
Why not really stick you neck out and specify which day in April?
:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

louisa_84

chris_m wrote: »

April for summer eh?
Why not really stick you neck out and specify which day in April?
:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Well, i specifically remember it being on the 29th April last year, as we had a royal wedding BBQ and it was roasting, as it seems to get earlier each year, ill put my money of the 21st

I have a man coming round next week to give me some advice

NeverAgain_2

Paving would be my choice.

But the garden is not flat, so you need to be think more about drainage than if you used decking.

firsttimetom

Paving over decking everytime. I work in a shop that sells mouse/rat poison and traps and you would not believe how many people have whole colonies of rats under their decking. I'ts put me off decking for life.

Not to mention the fact that to look good and keep the wood good it will want preserving every year, and it is horrid and slippery when wet.

Regarding 'adding value', watch an episode of property ladder from 2003/2004 and watch how many people spend tens of thousands of pounds doing things which added little or no value to the house and only made a propfit because house prices were rising so rapidly. A lot of then would have sold the house for the same amount without spending £15k on a new kitchen bathroom and decking.