Patios and paths
Patios and paths on the Wirral
Laid on a full bed over a compacted base, falling away from the house, and set below the damp proof course where it meets it.
- Dig depth and sub base stated in writing
- Edge restraint haunched, not just laid
- Drainage designed, not left to the border
Patios and paths
The three details that go wrong on patios
The first is the fall. A patio must drain, and on a level garden that means a slight fall built in deliberately, running away from the house. A patio laid dead level holds water in every slight dip, and a patio that falls towards the house delivers it to your wall, which is a far worse outcome than a puddle.
The second is the damp proof course. Where a patio meets a house wall its finished surface has to sit clearly below the damp proof course, with a gap, so water cannot bridge it and get into the wall above the barrier. Patios laid level with or above the DPC are one of the commonest causes of damp in an otherwise dry house, and it is entirely avoidable at the design stage.
The third is bedding. Slabs want laying on a full bed of mortar, supported across their whole underside. The old practice of five blobs of mortar under each corner and the middle leaves the slab unsupported between them, and that is why slabs rock, crack across the middle and ring hollow when you walk on them. Often asked about alongside driveway repairs, dropped kerbs and driveway drainage.
Get a price for the patioBuilt in deliberately on level ground. Falling towards the house is worse than standing water.
With a clear gap, so water cannot bridge into the wall. One of the commonest causes of damp, and entirely avoidable.
Slabs supported across their whole underside, which is why they do not rock or crack across the middle.
Done across Wallasey, Bebington, West Kirby, and everywhere else on the peninsula. Cleaning, sealing and re-sanding an existing drive is a different trade: that goes to Wirral Exterior Cleaning.
Patios and paths on the Wirral
What this job looks like
These are placeholders, not photographs of our work. There are no job photographs on this site yet and nothing here is borrowed from anybody else's. Real ones go in as jobs are finished and customers are happy for us to use them.
Why people use us
Laid to last, not laid quickly
A patio is cheaper to build properly once than to lift and relay after two winters.
- Excavated and compacted like a driveway, not laid on soil
- A designed fall, away from the building
- Finished level kept clear of the damp proof course
- Full mortar bed under every slab
Frequently asked questions
Patios and paths: the questions people ask
The ones that come up most. If yours is not here, ring and ask.
Why do my patio slabs rock?
Almost always because they were laid on five blobs of mortar rather than a full bed, so they are unsupported between the blobs. Over time the blobs crush or the base settles and the slab moves. Relaying on a full bed fixes it permanently.
How much should a patio slope?
Enough to shed water, and away from the house. On a level garden that fall has to be designed in rather than hoped for, and it has to lead somewhere: a border, a channel or a soakaway.
Can a patio cause damp in my house?
Yes, and it is common. If the finished surface sits level with or above the damp proof course, rain splashing and water sitting there can bridge into the wall above the barrier. The patio has to finish clearly below it with a gap.
Do you clean and reseal existing patios?
No, that is a different trade. We lay them. For cleaning, re-pointing and sealing an existing patio we would point you at wirralexteriorcleaning.com.
Done across Wallasey, Bebington, West Kirby, and everywhere else on the peninsula. Cleaning, sealing and re-sanding an existing drive is a different trade: that goes to Wirral Exterior Cleaning.
Tell us the size and where it meets the house
Where the patio meets a wall is the detail that matters most, so a photograph of that corner is the useful one.
About Wirral Driveways
How the work is actually organised
Wirral Driveways takes the job as main contractor and puts the labour and the plant on it. One person quotes it, one person is answerable for it, and you are not chasing a groundworker and a paviour separately to find out who is coming.
What you get is a written scope with the build up stated, a date, and somebody whose problem it is if the date moves.
We install. We do not clean
This matters enough to say on its own page. Cleaning, sealing and re-sanding an existing driveway is a genuine trade and it is not this one. It needs different equipment, different materials and a different way of pricing.
So we do not offer it, we do not quote for it, and when you ask we will point you at wirralexteriorcleaning.com, which does it properly. Saying yes to work we are not set up for would be the easy answer and the wrong one.
What else we will tell you we are not
Structural retaining walls above a modest height, anything involving a highway other than a straightforward vehicle crossing, and tree surgery on a protected tree are all other people's work. All three come up on driveway jobs and all three are worth bringing the right person in for.
No photographs of our work, and why the site says so
There are no job photographs on this site. The slots are placeholders and they are labelled as placeholders. Nothing here is a stock picture presented as a job and nothing is borrowed from another company.
Real ones go in as jobs are finished and customers are happy for us to use them. The same goes for anything that looks like a customer quote: there is a section built and ready, switched off, until there are real ones with permission attached.
Get in touch
Tell us roughly how big the area is, what is on it now and which way it falls. A photograph from the pavement and one from the house answers most of it before anybody rings you back.
- Phone0151 453 8836
- Emailcontact@wirraldriveways.com
- WhatsAppSend us a photo of the job
- Based inWirral, Merseyside
- HoursMon to Fri 8 to 6, Sat 8 to 2, closed Sunday