Patio Slabs moving / sinking

MrBrindle

Good afternoon,

Bit concerned about a row of slabs right outside our back patio doors that are moving / sinking. They are sinking at an angle towards the house if that makes sense. There's a row of 4, 450x450mm sized slabs affected. We are talking 5mm-10mm difference between a few of them. The worse affected is the one we step on when going out the door.

I raised a few in another part of the garden and it looks like the whole patio is laid on like a mix of sand and possibly some concrete to hold them in place. It's a 13 year old house on an estate so I know not the highest of installation standard.

Just getting concerned about this slight movement, even though my partner claims they have been like that since we moved in 5 months ago and it's just my anxiety talking!

Should I be concerned that this could be a symptom of foundation movement or something like that?

Thanks in advance.

Aylesbury_Duck

If you've had the long, hot, dry spell most of the country has had, it will probably just be the ground shifting. Where I live we have clay soil and our patio slabs have moved all over the place this summer. Our conservatory has also moved a bit to the point where the threshold has arched slightly, making the door a tight fit.

Once we're into autumn, cooler temperatures and hopefully some normal rainfall, things will probably return to normal.

savemoney

If you have clay ground could be as a result of shrinking as said.

Davesnave

It's unlikely to be foundation movement on such a recent house, as most have 1m depth these days.

It's more likely to be the result of the ground shrinking under the patio. If there are drains passing under there, a leak could cause a similar effect.