I feel now that I ought to sort out the damp issue before moving on. Could it come to the point where I tell them to do it again? I haven't paid them yet!
I can say that they have only increased the height by no more than 1 inch but I don't know if that would or could make a difference?
How would I check? Are we talking about a DPC or DPM? I think I can see something inserted between the bottom visible brick and the one above it along the wall. That can't be the DPM can it because the floor is lower than that? Don't know much about the DPC....or DPM for that matter!
Looking at your first image again Gnome I agree it looks like the DPM is above the bottom brick. It would should look like a black line and normally this joint between the two courses is slightly wider than between other courses so I may have raised an unwarranted concern there.
It's quite possible that your floor level is lower than this course as it will have its own DPM which 'returns' up the inside of the wall. DPM is run under the door threshold or in uPVC doors they don't worry as the frame itself does the job. However with a wooden frame in contact with the turf it is likely to rot out. I think I would definitely be inclined to use papers in that immediate door area but they need to be inset or you will still have the height clash issue.
Having seen the picture and understood your original plan I would be inclined to do the following:
Stay off the turf as much as possible for a week or so
When the turf starts to 'take' lift the turf in front of the door and put in your small area of pavers. Set them so the finished height is just below (certainly no higher than) the surrounding soil. You will then be able to mow over the edges of them. You can use paving slabs but perhaps a small square of the same pavers you have on the patio might look nice - continuity and the dark colour will fade into the turf & be less noticeable.
Remove some small semi circles of turf from around the base of the shrubs so you don't damage them when mowing and to allow them to grow without competition from the grass.
Then wait and see for a bit
You will soon discover how close your mower gets to the walls and fence. You can then decide whether to use a strimmer, shears, an edging iron or any other tool to remove the excess. If you get bored with that you could lay a single strip of brick sizes pavers end to end all round to make a mow-over strip.
You will soon see if you need to make a path. Maybe you won't and you can leave the lawn looking much as it is now. Or a well worn track may emerge - in which case that is where a path should go. It can be either a solid path or slabs set stepping-stone style into the turf.
Good luck
Last edited: 10 March 2017 09:01:44
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
Set them so the finished height is just below (certainly no higher than) the surrounding soil. You will then be able to mow over the edges of them. You can use paving slabs but perhaps a small square of the same pavers you have on the patio might look nice - continuity and the dark colour will fade into the turf & be less noticeable.
To continue to be able to use the garage door the pavers will need setting at the height of the threshold which will mean setting them lower than the lawn level. It will therefore mean a small step from the lawn down to the pavers and a small retaining vertical edge to stop the lawn collapsing-in.
Dave Humby says:.....However with a wooden frame in contact with the turf it is likely to rot out....
That may explain why it already has done so! The bottom hinge of the door is no longer connected to the frame. It has been like that before in I moved there.
I have the guy whose company put the turf down coming this Saturday to arrange payment. What would I need to check and say to him about this, in a helpful and constructive way of course!?
If he agrees to simply put paving bricks down, would that be the end of it or could there still be problems? I hope it's not a case of asking him to start all over again by making the whole lawn lower. I'm sure there would be much bemoaning!
This all depends on what your original instructions were. If you said lay a lawn he has done that probably realising the door would be a problem but expecting you to know about it and have plans to fix it. If you told him the door opened out then he should lay some slab or brick lower than the door, we have to be specific when ordering work to be done although a good Gardener would probably have queried the door. You may just have to pay for the work done, fit your own blocks or ask the Gardener to do it as an extra, if nothing was written down or his estimate was To Lay Lawn then I cannot see you getting any joy. Mention it see what he or she says (one never knows these days) and then ask, if it is job done as agreed then arguing will not help though a fix may be suggested, try is all you can do but you will have to pay for the work done.
He said the turf was put down at the previous level.
He then said he will send someone to lower the ground around the door.
I asked if he could put pavers down instead and he said he could do that instead.
We agreed that I will contact him at some point over the coming days to let him know what I've decided.
However, is putting a dip in front of the door a perfectly acceptable method/idea or quick slap-dash repair?
I asked him if it would cause problems such as creating a puddle or running into the garage but he said it will just go down into the ground as normal.
Overall he seemed quite willing so no disagreements or anything like that. Just hope he honors it after I've paid him the balance this weekend!
Posts
Again, thanks for all your input!
I feel now that I ought to sort out the damp issue before moving on. Could it come to the point where I tell them to do it again? I haven't paid them yet!
I can say that they have only increased the height by no more than 1 inch but I don't know if that would or could make a difference?
How would I check? Are we talking about a DPC or DPM? I think I can see something inserted between the bottom visible brick and the one above it along the wall. That can't be the DPM can it because the floor is lower than that? Don't know much about the DPC....or DPM for that matter!
Thanks again.
Looking at your first image again Gnome I agree it looks like the DPM is above the bottom brick. It would should look like a black line and normally this joint between the two courses is slightly wider than between other courses so I may have raised an unwarranted concern there.
It's quite possible that your floor level is lower than this course as it will have its own DPM which 'returns' up the inside of the wall. DPM is run under the door threshold or in uPVC doors they don't worry as the frame itself does the job. However with a wooden frame in contact with the turf it is likely to rot out. I think I would definitely be inclined to use papers in that immediate door area but they need to be inset or you will still have the height clash issue.
#pavers not papers. Predictive text!
Nice lawn Gnome.
Having seen the picture and understood your original plan I would be inclined to do the following:
Stay off the turf as much as possible for a week or so
When the turf starts to 'take' lift the turf in front of the door and put in your small area of pavers. Set them so the finished height is just below (certainly no higher than) the surrounding soil. You will then be able to mow over the edges of them. You can use paving slabs but perhaps a small square of the same pavers you have on the patio might look nice - continuity and the dark colour will fade into the turf & be less noticeable.
Remove some small semi circles of turf from around the base of the shrubs so you don't damage them when mowing and to allow them to grow without competition from the grass.
Then wait and see for a bit
You will soon discover how close your mower gets to the walls and fence. You can then decide whether to use a strimmer, shears, an edging iron or any other tool to remove the excess. If you get bored with that you could lay a single strip of brick sizes pavers end to end all round to make a mow-over strip.
You will soon see if you need to make a path. Maybe you won't and you can leave the lawn looking much as it is now. Or a well worn track may emerge - in which case that is where a path should go. It can be either a solid path or slabs set stepping-stone style into the turf.
Good luck
Last edited: 10 March 2017 09:01:44
That may explain why it already has done so! The bottom hinge of the door is no longer connected to the frame. It has been like that before in I moved there.
I have the guy whose company put the turf down coming this Saturday to arrange payment. What would I need to check and say to him about this, in a helpful and constructive way of course!?
If he agrees to simply put paving bricks down, would that be the end of it or could there still be problems? I hope it's not a case of asking him to start all over again by making the whole lawn lower. I'm sure there would be much bemoaning!
Thanks.
Last edited: 10 March 2017 14:06:06
Apologies, I may have messed up my reply above by trying to edit a quote from Dave Humby to show the relevant point he made!
This all depends on what your original instructions were. If you said lay a lawn he has done that probably realising the door would be a problem but expecting you to know about it and have plans to fix it. If you told him the door opened out then he should lay some slab or brick lower than the door, we have to be specific when ordering work to be done although a good Gardener would probably have queried the door. You may just have to pay for the work done, fit your own blocks or ask the Gardener to do it as an extra, if nothing was written down or his estimate was To Lay Lawn then I cannot see you getting any joy. Mention it see what he or she says (one never knows these days) and then ask, if it is job done as agreed then arguing will not help though a fix may be suggested, try is all you can do but you will have to pay for the work done.
Frank.
Agree with the above.
He actually came round this evening.
He said the turf was put down at the previous level.
He then said he will send someone to lower the ground around the door.
I asked if he could put pavers down instead and he said he could do that instead.
We agreed that I will contact him at some point over the coming days to let him know what I've decided.
However, is putting a dip in front of the door a perfectly acceptable method/idea or quick slap-dash repair?
I asked him if it would cause problems such as creating a puddle or running into the garage but he said it will just go down into the ground as normal.
Overall he seemed quite willing so no disagreements or anything like that. Just hope he honors it after I've paid him the balance this weekend!