What sort of concrete/mortar do I need?

Rusty190

In a bid to out wit the feral gangs of thieving squirrels round these parts, I'm hoping to make some pebble mosaic tiles/slabs to lay alongside the length of my garden paving stones just to cover a very narrow - approximately 9-10 inch - strip. The strip boundary has the paving slabs on one side and the gravel board for the boundary fence at the other so isn't really going to be walked on - not by humans anyway.

I know nothing about concrete/mortar.

What sort of concrete/mortar would I need for this job?

Anything else I should know?

I won't be making the tiles/slabs in situ but doing a few at a time in my garage then laying them in place.

All comments welcome.

sheenas

a 4:1 or 5:1 mix for slabs . Not sure I under the plan Thu.

Robin9

My local squirrels don't use paths - much to the annoyance of my cats - they use the tops of fences to get from A to B

Rusty190

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81924057#Comment_81924057

I don't know what 4:1 or 5:1 means @sheenas

stuart45

How thick are you making the slabs? Also how long and wide?

gefnew

How to Hand Mix Concrete With Rock,Sand,Cement and Water! Custom mixtures & Finishes!

Rusty190

This area is what I'm trying to fill in with mini pebble mosaic slabs.

Top photo is how the whole length should look - and it did until the squirrels raided all the cobbles and made off with them resulting in photo 2.

I've replaced them all once, but they've done it again, hence, I want to concrete them in, in a decorative manner, just for aesthetics.

So, they only need be 2-3 inches thick, by about 2 foot long and 9 or so inches wide (it will vary a bit as I get further down the garden as the fence is not perfectly straight).

I was planning on just getting concrete that is ready prepared, in a bag, just add water, but then read stuff about plastisisers etc and wondered if it was more complex than I thought, hence, my question here.

bjorn_toby_wilde

Ready mixed concrete in a bag would be fine, especially as you haven’t done anything like this before (4:1 and 5:1 in the earlier post refer to the ratio of sharp sand to cement). If it were me though I would mix it in a bucket to the right consistency then lay it where you’re going to use it, pressing the pebbles into it there. Making tiles/ slabs then taking them to the site and laying them would be trickier IMO.

You might want to mix some SBR into the concrete. It makes the concrete “stickier” and should improve adhesion to the pebbles.

I have to say this is the first time I’ve ever heard of squirrels doing this. Having searched online it seems it has been documented but nobody seems to know why the squirrels do it. Every day’s a school day!

Rusty190

Thanks @bjorn_toby_wilde

ic

Sorry, you're trying to lock the pebbles in place to prevent theft by kids? Or are squirrels actually hoisting pebbles up into the trees around you?

You could try bounding it all with resin - more expensive but should look better and likely better for drainage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xi0e4MUjLZg

Emmia

I'd probably use a pour on resin to preserve the gravel look. I think concrete would change the aesthetic.