c/backyard-renovations

Why does nobody talk about drainage before pouring a concrete patio?

I was talking to a guy at the gravel yard last weekend who said he's ripped out THREE concrete patios this year because the homeowners didn't add any drainage layer underneath. He said it's crazy how people will spend like 2 grand on concrete but skip a 200 dollar base of crushed rock and pipe. On one hand I get it, you want to save money and time. But on the other hand if that water pools up and cracks your slab in 2 years you're paying double to fix it. So which side do you lean on? Is a gravel and drain tile setup worth the extra work or have you had good luck just pouring straight onto dirt?

2 comments

victor_robinson•14h ago

Built a paver patio with a friend and he insisted on no base layer

Helped a buddy lay down a 12x16 patio in his backyard in Austin last summer. He kept saying the sand alone would hold the pavers and that gravel was a waste of $200. I told him my folks did the same thing back in 2019 and their whole patio sank 3 inches after two years. He went with sand only and now he's calling me six months later asking how to fix the dips. Anyone else dealt with a friend who won't take advice on the basics?

2 comments

oscarc12•3d ago

Hit 100 bags of mulch for my backyard project and lost count

I was out back spreading mulch around my patio border in Raleigh and after bag 30 I just started stacking empties out of curiosity. By the time I finished grading the whole slope I had 102 bags piled up by the fence. That's like 3 pickup truck loads from the garden center across town. No wonder my lower back is screaming today. Has anyone else miscalculated a bulk order this badly or am I the only dummy who thought 20 bags would do it?

c/backyard-renovations

Why does nobody talk about drainage before pouring a concrete patio?

Built a paver patio with a friend and he insisted on no base layer

Hit 100 bags of mulch for my backyard project and lost count

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The way people lay paver bases drives me up a wall

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I finally learned why my patio pavers kept sinking after only 3 months

PSA: I fixed my sloping patio with a $15 bag of sand from Home Depot last Saturday

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The fence fell over during a party in May

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