How much does a patio cost?

[oldlongjohnson]

Sorry for the newb thread, but first time homeowner and I have no idea.

I have a 2x3m section at the end of my garden that is currently just weedstop membrane (the old owners had a trampoline here) it looks awful so I am keen to sort it.

I am reluctant to lay turf here because its a veryyy damp garden and we have a dog. I'd like decking but suspect area is too damp for this (tons of algae and moss) so I think realistically a patio is our best bet. I'm happy to go with cheap slabs (the grey square type!)

How much do you think it would cost to get someone in to do it?

Depends on how well it is done. If you have a proper concrete base laid and then flags in top I would guess circa £1000

Depends on lots of things, we are fairly handy and have left over sub base from building work, I bought some (40m²) used limestone pavers for £124 and we will do the work ourselves plus buy in some sand and adhesive. So can be done on the cheap but requires lots of work and patience, as it will take us 10xas long as a professional. I had budgeted £100 per m² prior to deciding to diy it but that didn't include site leveling as we did that.

we had ours done this year its 14 foot long 7 feet wide and with the digging out concrete base and flags was around £1000

oh my god! Its way more than I expected. I was hoping £300 haha.

Thanks anyway folks!

Just to give you an overview. First the area would need to be dug out which is likely by hand. The waste would need to put somewhere and skips are expensive to hire.

Then the area needs a sub base to be laid, followed by sand, slabs and then slabs on top. It is all pretty manual so easily 2-3 days work..at £200 a day plus skip/materials.

What about putting down some nice stones and gravel. Can you post a photo. Do you really need a patio.

Depends if you are going to bury the OH under it

@HappyHammy

Pics now attached. Maybe stones could work. What do you think?

Well gravel may be better if it is so wet...what do you want to actually use it for? Ie if sitting there, then a patio is better given you have a dog as removing dog muck etc from grave, isn't easy whereas you can jet wash a patio.

Looking at that...you will be doing a lot of jet washing😕

Is it just that area that is wet or the whole garden? If it's just the area it could be a result of the trampoline stopping sunlight getting to the wall/fence/grass and therefore it becoming very damp. Our garden is below all the other gardens so was prone to flooding (clay soil as well) we dug a lot of it out and mixed some sand in then returfed ourselves. It's been so much better since.

It probably needs sun to be used as a patio for sitting.
Does it get sun all day/ evening/ morning?

You could pull up the black stuff and just mow it as the weeds and grass grow. Plant shrubs and small trees round the wall and fence. In 3 years you'd be looking at a green area/ tree blossom/ flowering shrubs instead of walls and fence. Bark around the shrubs would keep weeds to a minimum

If your budget is tight, it's easy to lay slabs, just lay on a membrane and levelled sharp sand (not concrete) - you'll need a spirit level, wheelbarrow and spade on top of the slabs, membrane and sand. Should take a couple of hours max

So it is a very damp corner but it gets sun in the early morning, then it's in shade the rest of the day. The decking on the left is rotten, it was when we moved in.

I'm mainly thinking slabs not because it will be a lovely place to sit, but because what else will be practical there? Bark and stones might be problematic with the dog, turf I think will struggle and tbh we don't need more lawn.

Thank you @okiedokieme this is looking the best option I think.

We had quotes for a similar sized patio last year, £800-1200 depending on quality of flags. We have bought cheap flags and sand to do it ourselves, cost £200 and hoping it won't be too difficult, we aren't looking for a professional finish