Gravel / chippings patio on concrete base

Hi,

My wife and I are trying to do up our very run down garden and have come to our patio. We would like to put down some kind of gravel or chippings but the base we currently have is concrete. I have read rigid on rigid and flexi on flexi, and see lot's of hows for putting down gravel on a dirt/compacted hardcore surface but none of concrete which is not advised.

However, what would people recommend doing in this situation? Could we build up with something above the gravel as a new based or just put down an adequate depth of gravel ontop of the concrete? The area is totally surrounded so theres no danger of the gravel being kicked away. I realise we may need to rake it from time to time.

Also, would size stone would people recommend? We're looking a something between 10mm to 20mm but would go for the smaller size if possible.

Thanks very much

 

Putting small round aggregates down on a solid surface is known as the, Ball bearing effect. If your not planning to have table and chairs then you need to look for aggregates that will bed. Going down the 10mm or 20mm aggregate route is not something I would advise to do, you will need an aggregate that has a proportion of different sizes to bind them. I think slate might be a better option if you want to go down that route.

 

I've just covered an area with red granite chippings, probably up to 20mm and to be honest I dont think it is going to bed down very well.
Its not really a problem as it just a cover up job on and awkward area and will probably end up covered in pot plants anyway.

But it wouldn't IMO be very good for the area you have there, far too much movement when you walk on it.

Bit more work I know but I think slabs would be better.

And you need to work out what you are going to do with the manhole.

 

To avoid slippery decking there are solutions. Anti slip strips, some are even designed to fit and screw into the grooves of the decking, they come in various colours.

 

To prevent movement of aggregates, there is a solution. Lay down some gravel grids, then just fill with your choice of aggregate.

 

Yeh i would use the gravel grids above, which help create a nice firm surface to work around on and stop movement.

 

Hi,

Probably the best solution would be to remove the concrete and lay either flag stones or block paving, quiet easy to diy in a small area like that, see the rest of the link below.
That also overcomes the problem putting something on top of the concrete which makes your ironworks too low.

Gravel seems a poor choice for an area like that which will be your main access to the garden.

Whatever you choose make sure it does not raise the height of that surface too much otherwise you could have problems with the walls damp proof course, which ideally needs to remain 150mm above the path.
Have seen folk ignore that and really had major damp problems.
All About Damp Proof Courses

 

Good point about DPC @ricky101

 

Thanks so much for all these replies, very helpful. We've got some quotes to have paving laid, though budget wise still looking towards gravel for now. Having to do a lot of work on the house with limited budget so just trying to pick our battles... Seems like it may help to have some kind of filling in the uneven spaces and then use the gravel grid. What would you guys recommend for the two drain covers if we did do this? We have one manhole and one 16.6 inch circle drain in the middle. I had been looking into filling in a recessed manhole cover if we got paving but not sure how this would work with gravel... Thanks very much.

 

To raise the manhole, some bricks and mortar. For the circle drain, which I assume is a inspection chamber going by your dimensions, then all you need is an extension.