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Past Projects 2004
Operation "Moresley" - September 2004
This driveway needed deep excavation as the original concrete was very thick.
Operation "Thomas" - September 2004
We're back at the Thomas residence. Front drive this time.
Operation "Hayward" - September 2004
This driveway is the lowest point of the street and so during heavy rain
experiences its own little flash flood. The double drive way will have
interceptor drainage, however the fall is so steep and so much water comes down
at once, we must set the levels to channel the flow away from the buildings.
Operation "Atkinso" - August 2004
This is a fairly simple job. Richard is going to slab over the garden but leave
a retained wood chip area for a climbing frame.
The slabs are laid onto compacted M.O.T rock and the play area set between them.
The kiddy area is filled with woodchip & the frame cemented in place.
Operation "Folder Frame" - August 2004
This is an Industrial job that a factory has asked us to do for them. Their
car park is just bare concrete so we're going to enhance it with a pathway and a raised
sleeper border.
The first jobs will be to break out the tarmac and sub materials. Set the
lines and install the kerbing. The path is more for cosmetics and to protect the building against
parking vehicles than as a functioning path. Below, the kerbs are laid, the
base consolidated and now sharp sand is been poured between the edging. The
edging was set with precision so the blocks fit perfectly between. The sand is
compacted and levelled then the blocks laid. Finally, white car parking bays are
painted in.
On the other factory wall we are going to construct a sleeper border with
turrets to improve the approach to the reception. The area is excavated then a
triple layer of sleepers are fixed together. A membrane is installed to prevent
muddy water escaping and a plastic barrier to protect the building. The borders are filled with topsoil and planted out with Hebe, ground Flox
and Euonymous.
Operation "Harrison"
Now here is an interesting project. The customer has a large deep pond in the
garden and with a large young family are worried about safety. The initial idea
was to fill it all in but in the end a decking top not only proved cheaper, but
nicer. Also in years to come the pond could be easily repaired. The first job is
to clean the pond and remove the fish. Gareth dons some waders and gets muddy. A
pump is used to remove the majority of the water. Drainage is made to prevent
refilling.
A frame work is constructed using 2 x 6 timbers stretching across the shallow
shelves. Strong centre support is put in. The decking profiles are screwed in
place and carefully cut around the edges to leave a smooth edged finish.
Operation "Clerke & Wallace"
This next project is a fairly large. The garden is sloped. The customers
would like a large two tiered natural stone patio with steps. The higher patio
will be retained using old railway sleepers. The patio will also have
a circuit of recessed lighting and a Jacuzzi hot tub with power points.
After marking out the lower area is excavated. In total over 50 tons of soil and
clay is removed
The Jacuzzi base is laid. It needs to hold a lot of water without moving. Lee
cuts the retaining sleepers to size. The path edging is laid with coloured mortar.
 
The sleepers are installed into a deep footing and held in place with cement.
The first of two steps are installed. These will be angled in line with the
Jacuzzi hot tub.The Jacuzzi is installed and tested.
Flush lighting is installed around the lower patio and wired into a new consumer
unit.
Operation "Swan"
This customer has asked for the limited space in his garden to be maximized.
We going to deck half the garden with recessed steps into the house and shed.
The other half of the garden will be retained and turned into a deep wood chipped
play area for the children.
Operation "King" - April 2004
The patio is
much lower than the lawn area. We're going to construct a sleeper retainer
around the edge of the existing patio that the customer has already built, level
the garden area and re turf. First, we must plan how the sleepers will sit
together to form a wall and be able to hold back the pressure of the garden
over a long period of time.
Richards first job will be to finish digging the footings that were started
before. The he will pour in cement to create a solid anchor for the new wall to
hold on to.
After all the wood is cut to size it is stacked and secured to the posts set
deep into the cement. Cam plates are also screwed to the joins to hold
everything together. Steps are cut into the sleeper wall for lawn access. The
ground is leveled to the natural fall of the garden. Fresh topsoil is imported,
then the turf is laid.
OPERATION "Thomas" - Decking & Play Area
 Tim's first job will be to organize the garden a bit. Lift the old patio and
dismantle the shed and fence. If all the rubbish can go at once this will help
to reduce costs. Then he will set his levels and begin constructing the
framework for the new decking. The frame is fixed to the house and posts are
installed into the ground at appropriate spaces. Then 2 x 4 lengths of wood will
befixed in lines that will support the decking.
Richard has come from the maintenance team to grind out some stumps that are
in the way.
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The decking is complete with a hatch to allow access to the drains
underneath.
The play area has now been installed and the shed base and shed erected. Four
tons of fresh top soil is imported and evenly spread. When the grounds levels
are right the garden is turfed.
Done!
Mrs. Thomas: "We are delighted with the garden. The service we have received
has been excellent and the level of workmanship & care taken has been 1st
class. It's beautifully finished & we are really looking forward to the
summer."
Operation "Burnett" - March 2004
The first job is to excavate all the existing crazy paving. After excavation
Richard must set his levels so he can determine how much of the sub soil needs
to come out to make room for the hard base.
 
Now the ground has been consolidated to the right level the 600mm x 900mm
grey slabs can be laid on a sharp mortar bed. Now this is done Mark sets his levels and excavates the patio
shed base that will run up one side of the garden and join to the new house
patio. Meanwhile Richard begins constructing the new picket fence to keep the
customers little dog off the grass. As you can see the rails have been properly azed and inserted into the posts, so
no unsightly nails or brackets. The new gate can be attached on Monday after the
post cement has gone hard.
Now the second patio is finished Richard can begin leveling the lawn
area.The turf is laid - Hey presto!
OPERATION "Beards" Front Driveway - March 2004
 This old driveway is just broken bricks, some concrete and a layer of tarmac.
The other half is grass and mud. Our first job is to locate all the services
that might be running under the ground. Then we begin excavating the top
surface. Space is limited so we will stock pile the spoils on the grass area. We
know that a certain amount of disruption will occur to the public path so we'll
have to replace it. The driveway slopes down to the house where a gully has
already been installed. We'll angle the lay of the new driveway so the water
quickly drains away from the house.
After the sub soils and old slabs have been dug up a grab lorry arrives to
remove the spoils. Now we set the levels and begin to spread type one
consolidator. As each layer is spread it is compacted into the clay with a
vibrating machine.
Sharp sand is spread over the consolidator and compacted down hard. Then
using leveling rods we pull off the surplus to give us a perfect level. The
blocks are laid straight down onto the sand in a herring bone fashion. Where the
bricks meet obstacles a perfect fit is unlikely so the blocks are cut into the
right shape using a diamond blade. Finally a super fine sand is vibrated into
the gaps between each block, locking everything in tight.
OPERATION "Copeland" Patio, path and lawn - March 2004
Richard's first job is to strip out the existing garden. He removes the old
crazy paving under the kitchen window and the top layer of old turf and soil.
Then he uses existing levels such as the damp course and the drain to
determine at what height the new patio will sit. Once he knows this he can peg
the ground. By measuring how much space he needs for consolidator, mortar and
the slab itself, he can calculate how much of the sub soil is to be removed.
Once enough has been dug out his team begins to import the type one
consolidator.
The tops of the pegs hammered into the ground at intervals will represent the
tops of the final layer. Using a long spirit level he can ensure that once
completed the water will run off the patio in the right direction.
Now the levels are correct Richard B & Mark begin to lay the slabs. The
circle had an enormous foul drain in the middle so a special lifting tray is
inserted into the pattern allowing access to the drain without spoiling the
patio. Once the slabs are laid blocks are installed around the edges.
Finally the turf is laid and the slabs are pointed in.
OPERATION "Jones"
For more pictures of our previous work visit the gallery.
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