The concrete floor in my yard is badly cracked and has big chunks of concrete missing. My questions (if you'd be so kind!) are as follows
It's about 6 ft by 18ft, what are my options for getting back to looking decent, cheapest option preferrable as I'm not going to be in the house for a long long time. How much approx would l be looking at?
The second issue is with the drain covers and gullies and backdoor steps and gates in the yard. Someone has suggested screeding it with concrete (I assume this is just like skimming plaster?) do they raise the level of the drain covers or just screed to the edge and then put a sort of camber in to bring the level down?
3.This is a shared yard so whats the best way top get the neighbours to cough up some cash!
Tarmac may be your cheapest option, and will ony bring the level up by a couple of inches. Probably not thick enough officially, but next door to us did that and have been running their Chelsea tractors up and down it for 3 or 4 years now. I think as long as the base is sound you'd be ok.
Drain covers are normally lifted and the frames re-positioned to suit the new level. Steps and gullies not quite so easy.
Remind your neighbours that (according to Sarah Beeny) spending £1,000 on smartening up the exterior can add £10,000 to the value of the property. Just doing the yard might not have as big an impact, but first impressions do count.
If they're non-resident landlords, point out that an attractive yard will make the property look more attractive to tenants and that they have a potential liability issue with the uneven yard surface.
Much depends on whether it's been raised several times in the past. What are the constraints on the height it can be? You mention drain covers, gullies, and steps, but what about where it meets any other paving, and, perhaps most important of all, where is it now in relation to the damp-proof courses of the two houses?
If you raise it too high, you may have trouble with rainwater splashing the walls above the dpc or even ponding against the wall above the dpc.
6 inches is often quoted, but realistically you can reduce that somewhat, depending on how exposed the site is. If you're getting down to 3 inches or less, you'd have to think about more awkward solutions, such as creating a gravel-filled channel lower than the yard and a few inches wide.
Concrete less than 2" thick as a screed is asking for trouble on a yard like yours, IMHO. An inch would cover it temporarily, but very soon look a mess again, I think.
If you're prepared to do a bit of work, dig it all out and block pave it: even using new paviors, you might get away with a couple of hundred quid for materials and wacker plate hire. Have a look at
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for some ideas, but I suggest comparing his recommendations with the manufacturer's instructions for your chosen blocks. You quite often see secondhand blocks offered now, and they're perhaps more likely to be 60 or 80mm thick than the daft little 50mm ones now sold for home use. (I know 50mm are theoretically strong enough, but block paving relies on the blocks wedging together, and I reckon thicker blocks do this much better)
Depends entirely how much effort or money you're putting in, but old gullies are very difficult to do anything with other than smooth round as you suggest.
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