Is it possible to change back yard into garden?

Dotscotty

Hi, hoping someone can give me a bit of advice. We currently have a concrete yard which slopes into our house and is causing damp. We know we have to dig up the concrete by our wall and fix it so the rain runs away from our house, so while we're at it can we dig the rest of the yard up and put grass down?

Will this actually help the damp in our house?

Is it possible? And if so, why don't more people do it? Surely a garden is more desirable than concrete?

All advice gratefully received!

Wolfsbane2k

Dotscotty wrote: »

Hi, hoping someone can give me a bit of advice. We currently have a concrete yard which slopes into our house and is causing damp. We know we have to dig up the concrete by our wall and fix it so the rain runs away from our house, so while we're at it can we dig the rest of the yard up and put grass down?

Will this actually help the damp in our house?

Is it possible? And if so, why don't more people do it? Surely a garden is more desirable than concrete?

All advice gratefully received!

It depends what you want the space for. Concrete is easy to maintain, and if you only want somewhere to sit any time of the year that's maintenance free, it's a lot easier than a garden!

I've done this to my own house, and yes it is possible, It's a lot of hard work if you do it yourself, dependng on the concrete thickness, ( but theraputic with a sledgehammer) and then what's underneath that, but if you've got a slope running towards your house you'll probably find it useful to install a french drain or similar into a soakaway area rather than your back door, but if your going with a garden, you might find that the garden naturally soaks up a lot of the water before it gets to your house.

Expect to need a lot of topsoil as well.

Good luck!