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I was dead wrong about those fancy stone pathways...
Last spring I had a guy quote me $4,800 for a flagstone path through my backyard in Portland... I laughed him off because I figured I could just pour concrete stepping stones myself for a fraction of the cost. After three weekends of trying to level those stupid forms and having them crack in the freezing rain, I gave up. My neighbor's flagstone path looked amazing and I finally asked him who did it. Turns out the guy who gave me the quote was the same one who did his yard... so I called him back. $4,800 later I have a path that actually drains right and doesn't look like a third grader made it. What's something you were totally skeptical about that ended up being worth every penny?
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lilya761d ago
Have you looked into the drainage issues under those forms? I spent two summers fighting wet concrete before I realized the ground itself was the problem. Portland clay holds water like a sponge, and if you don't put down proper gravel base and drainage fabric, everything shifts and cracks no matter how careful you are. My neighbor finally talked me into paying for a French drain along the side of my path last fall, and I wish I'd just done it right the first time instead of wasting money on cheap bags of concrete that never cured right in the damp weather.
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jessica1301d ago
Did you end up having to rip out any of your own concrete work before the flagstone went in @lilya76? I feel your pain on the Portland clay, my first attempt turned into a frost heave disaster that looked like a weird art project.
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