Patio laying advice

Hi folks. I've been planning a patio layout and have it pretty much drawn out how I want it. It's not going to be decorative - more utility patio where the shed and wheelie bins are going to go, and so I'm using unwanted BS slabs that a mate is getting rid of.

I've had a read around about the best way to lay a patio, and most of them advise digging out to a depth and then layout a hardcore layer, followed by a mix of sand/cement then the paving. But all the ones I've read are laying 'decorative' patios that are going to be used/walked on regularly. As this patio isn't going to be used on a daily basis, would I still need to lay a hardcore layer, or could I get away with laying directly on the compacted soil?

 

You could do that, but you're bound to walk on it more than you realise and the slabs will soon become uneven. If you don't want to use mortar you can just put down a layer of hardcore: broken bricks and rubble, firm it in as much as possible then cover it with sharp sand to get an even finish. Then lay the slabs on top of that, tamping them down gently with a rubber mallet.

I laid a patio 25 years ago like that and only had to replace one or two broken slabs a couple of years ago.

Chris

 

or put down the hardocre, then a layer of dry mix of sand/cement and lay on that, as the rain seeps through it will harden the dry mix, much handier than mortaring in the first place

 

I've a crazy York stone patio, but I laid it on a mix of damp mortar on top of a concrete raft I had laid down by a construction company. I was thinking ahead as there was a possibility of having a conservatory added. This didn't happen but one could still be sited on the patio without any further strengthening of the base.
Several things to consider, apart from it getting more use than expected as has been mentioned.

Drainage. It needs to be laid with a slight incline away from the wall of the house, even an inch in ten feet is enough.

To get the right incline, use a straight piece of 3X2 the length of three slabs with a small piece of wood nailed to the underside of one end to lift it up the right amount to produce the required rate of "fall" when placed on the slabs and a spirit level placed on top.

Place a slab at all four corners and check the levels with a long piece of timber or a string line, before "digging out" You may have to remove more spoil in one area than another. No point in "over excavating" the foundation.
Set out a number of slabs where you can get a full run in both directions (if you need to cut any, the fewer the better) and check the "hypotenuse"

If you're using slabs of uneven thickness, lay the thickest first.
Now this is the important bit. With the piece of wood with the block under one end, turn it upside down and lay it across the first three slabs and start to tamp down all three by gently tapping on the wood so that there's no gaps under the wood between any of the slabs. Reverse the piece of wood and using the spirit level check that you've got the right fall and adjust as necessary checking with the "both sides" of the piece of wood. As you lay the slabs, check each new one by placing the wood across this and the previous two in all directions.

This photo is over 20 years old, but demonstrates the "fall" I have on mine. Rainwater runs away from the house and then towards the borders in both directions and despite using large pieces of York stone of random size and thickness, the patio is perfectly flat, by this I mean no area where "puddles" form. It's always dry in minutes after a rain shower. It was the first time I'd done anything like that.
The advice I'm giving was from the site agent of the building firm who were constructing an extension at the store I was managing at the time.
The pool I dug out later after forming a concrete "collar" and laid more York stone for the surround, path and steps.