Renovating an old shed base/concrete base

Aliktren

Hi there

Last year we removed a very old shed from out garden, it had been put up by the previous owners, and in the process we discovered that not only was the shed sat on a concrete base, but that the concrete base was sat on an older concrete base (maybe a previous outhouse as it backs onto the garage.

So what we have now is a large old concrete base with a smaller concrete base sat on top of it with a liner underneath

We've been trying to figure out what to do, in the meantime it's made a nice area to sit and have a BBQ and tomorrow we have a picnic bench turning up

I'm kind of torn on how to cost effectively renovate this area and I see three options, I'm looking for advice on whether 2 of them are pretty achievable by someone with a modicum of DIY skills.

a) we leave it and the 2 inch deep, foot wide gap round the shed base gets filled with slate so it forms a pretty border - this is the default cheap(ish) and cheerful option

b) we fill in the gap with concrete, would this need a petrol mixer?, the area to fill is probably about 3 metres squared in total, maybe a bit more. What is the best way of doing it, can we buy ready mixed concrete from a DIY and just add water ??

c) deck it, so we'd have to level it off, with a timber frame ? and then just overlay with decking, is this relatively easy or no job for a novice, I was looking at the decking kits you can get, I have no qualms about putting them together, just nervous about how to prepare the area to fit it

I suppose option D is we get a professional but I'd rather not go there as we already have a huge fencing job we need to pay for this year.

Anyone have any thoughts ?

Cheers

Alik,

rdpro

If you're paying for a huge fencing job, why not enquire if the contractors could 'throw in' the deckwork for free or a reduced cost?

Personally, I'd be happy with (a) or pop down to a builder's merchant and suss out (b) - you shouldn't need a concrete mixer for it.

Aliktren

rdpro wrote: »

If you're paying for a huge fencing job, why not enquire if the contractors could 'throw in' the deckwork for free or a reduced cost? .

now i hadnt though of that my wife would really love trying to negotiate that!