Relaying edge to patio - what do I need to check.

silvercar

I’ve had a quote to repair a patio. I’m near London so prices are expensive, but I’d appreciate any guidance on the things I should check out before agreeing to the work.

There a cement area at the top that has a ‘pot hole’ at the edge of it. The first task is fill the hole and secure the existing borders.

Then there is the main patio area where the 100mm edge borders have moved and fallen in some cases. The trades guy has suggested laying these flat with a second new layer on top of them to add support. Thus forming a retaining wall to the patio.

The patio is not much higher than the grass area. The patio is about 5m width.

I don’t know what questions I should be asking to ensure a solid job. The main aim is to have a safe area, aesthetics aren’t crucial.

FreeBear

I'm assuming the edging is block like you would find used with a brick weave drive ?

If so, I'd be looking at how thick the cement/concrete bedding is for the existing blocks. Ideally, it wants to be ~150mm deep and banked up at around a 45° angle. Just relaying the existing blocks on their side and cementing another layer on top is likely to see the same problem(s) reoccurring in the future. See here for recommendations → https://www.pavingexpert.com/edging3

So the main question to ask is: How thick is the bedding (concrete) for the blocks going to be ?