Paving slabs

faolteam

can anyone tell me if i want to put paving slabs down as a stepping stone on a lawn can i put the slabs straight down on the soil???? or do i need cemnet or sand ??

HardyEustace

If you're going onto lawn then I think you need to cement them. Have a search through the forum and I think that people often recommend a site called paving expert.

Dizzyblonde

If you lay each slab on the grass where you want to put it and cut around it with a large knife, you can then just lift the sod out with a spade and the slab will sit in nicely. You might have to scrape at the soil a bit in order to get it level, but once it's done it will look great and the lawnmower will glide over the slabs easily. We did this and it looks great.

Fatswaldo

The above method works and looks good but its longterm success depends on how wet your garden gets and the amount of traffic on it. If the soil is very wet in winter (or summer) the slabs can move when stepped on causing the base to become uneven and you get wobbly slabs. If the soil you laid it on is uneven, it will crack over time as all pressures are on one or two points and not spread across the slab.

Heavy traffic just make this happen faster. Light traffic routes may get away with it!

Get some sand and mix in a litttle cement to create a dry mix. Cut out the sod as described by the OP. Put down a layer of the sand/cement under the slab, bed it in well and it will be a much better job. The sand evens out any irregularities and the cement helps create a solid sub-base.

backboiler

I would also recommend looking at paving expert, specifically http://www.pavingexpert.com/step_stones_01.htm
There's a lot of good advice on this page, including some things you may not have considered like how far apart to put the slabs.

Sonnenblumen

Ideally mark, cut and remove sod profile. Exacavate soil 50mm, lay slab on tampered coarse grit/sand. For a more permanent and stable finish, you could also lay slab on a dry mix of grit/sand mixed with cement, ratio of 4 (sand):1(cement). Ensure slab is level and use exacavated soil to make good any variance in immediate lawn area.

goat2

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

If you lay each slab on the grass where you want to put it and cut around it with a large knife, you can then just lift the sod out with a spade and the slab will sit in nicely. You might have to scrape at the soil a bit in order to get it level, but once it's done it will look great and the lawnmower will glide over the slabs easily. We did this and it looks great.

that is exactily what i did with mine, and it all works brilliantly, i just cut lawn as usual and they do not get in way, just keep shoes clean during wet winters

JuliusCaesar

Hi, I've put a couple of I think might be old roof tiles/corrugated stones to try this out as stepping stones to get to the bins. As it works, now I'd like to put real ones down, but can't find round /nice stepping stones anywhere. Has anyone any recommendations? I don't really want to use patio slabs cos they are too big.