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Landscape Design

Replace Cracked concrete patio and walkways

10 years ago

Hi,
I have a cracked patio and walkways surrounding a 1962 ranch house in Orange and was thinking about breaking up the patio and walkways and adding rock to make them more interesting. In otherwords, go with the cracks and make them a design element. The cement is very slippery when wet! So I want to solve that issue, too.

The house is on a slab, which seems ok, but the patios were huge slabs without reinforcement or stress joints.
Or, I could go with large architectural cement pavers and stone for a more modern look....

Is this even possible and would there be a drainage issue??
Thank you.

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Comments (4)

rosiew
10 years ago
bump
PRO
Yardvaark
10 years ago
"Or, I could go with large architectural cement pavers and stone for a more modern look....

Is this even possible and would there be a drainage issue??"

"Large pavers and stone" is so vague that I can't tell for certain what that look is. There are lots of different large pavers and lots of different stone and forms of stone. I also can't picture the situation from the verbal description alone. Why don't you add some pictures that show the problem paving relative to the house? And sure, there could be drainage issues (depending on how you do things) so that's another reason why you should show how the paved areas relate to the structure.
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no thanks-- I want a change. You see the patio is currently ALL concrete. It gets so hot it is not usable in the summer. I love the idea of having something usable. I figure if we are out there enjoying it, the maintenance will come. If it is just too difficult to maintain, then I'm willing to hire someone to help me out. Plus, I've got kids and isn't that what I had them for-- a little hard work pulling weeds is good for developing character (that's what my dad told me, and I've always been told I've got lots of character!) Anyway, I need a change from what I've got and patching up the concrete isn't enough of a change.
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Beauty of a patio Charlie, nice job. Nothing much is going to get under that patio. As for the posters question burying chicken wire below the footing will cost you thousands of $ less than a 2 foot deep concrete foundation wall, here we call it a rat wall. That is over building that comes with a bigger price tag than needed. Dig a trench as deep as you want, bury the mesh then form and pour your slab. Underpinning a foundation that isn't done right may cause you problems with your dwelling, if it results in cracks in your homes foundation wall you will have wished you had pest problems instead. I take it the foundation you speak of is the foundation of your home. I would stay away from going into your foundation wall with rebar. If done correctly a properly installed slab will not lift or sink or crack. Your concrete guy is covering his butt, I would look at another contractor. This post was edited by SouthernCanuck on Thu, Jun 20, 13 at 13:11
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deviant-deziner
10 years ago
Sounds like you have an 'urbanite' project on your hands.
That's arch-i-speak for the product known as recycled cracked concrete.

I think you have a variety of creative options that will give completely different looks.

1. - If you choose to work with your existing cracked concrete in place you can use a dry lay or a wet set technique of laying colored pebbles in between the cracks- this give a more rustic hand-made look. For great inspirational images google the work of Jeffery Bale. http://www.jeffreygardens.com/ ( his blog is quite wonderful too ) Fine Gardening Magazine interviewed him several years ago and he provided a "How to" article for them which is as wonderful as he is .

The second option is to saw cut the existing concrete into manageable square or rectangle sizes and refit them into a grid like pattern. This will render a fairly modern look. You can then fill in between them with groundcover plants or pebbles or tumbled glass or tumbles terracotta .
Take note that depending on how thick your original concrete was poured that these newly cut squares or rectangles are going to weigh a sh!t load.
A 3x3 foot section could potentially weight close to 200 lbs.
If you go with this method I would definitely have a massage therapist lined up at the end of the project.

If the concrete is too slippery as you mentioned you have a couple of options to roughen it up : sandblast or acid wash. Both techniques will change the color a bit .

As far as drainage goes - I really don't like to give any advice on these forums because one really needs to see the site to fully understand what one is up against. There are just too many variables when dealing with drainage to take into account to provide you with accurate and sound advice.

If you decide to take a modern approach to cutting the concrete check out the work of Shirley Watts and her 'blue garden'. Another example of a designer who is wonderfully creative and produces works of art form the landscape. - http://www.sawattsdesign.com/

... and one last bit of inspiration from another landscape designer who sculpts gardens ..check out the photo site of David Feix. He has done some very exciting work with coloring concrete slabs and installing colored Indonesian pebbles in between the colored slabs. link - http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=david%20feix%20trejo%20garden
PRO
Yardvaark
10 years ago
duplicate post (who knows why??) deleted.

This post was edited by Yardvaark on Fri, Aug 30, 13 at 12:45

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