DIY block paved driveway

[rufusgti]

Ok, bear with me.
My drive is rather large for what is a low value semi on an ex council estate in Cardiff. It's also in very poor scruffy condition. A mix of Cotswold chippings, concrete handstand and broken slabs make it unsightly. I've done a fair bit of work to the house and the drive lets it down. Because of its size the cost of having professionals in is too high for the value of the house, I haven't actually had anyone round to quote but speaking to others that have had quotes and work done on drives half my size tells me it's just not an option. Driveway companies around here seem to vary from utter crooks who leave jobs unfinished or try and add huge costs or they are very well recommended but very expensive for what is usually a fairly straightforward job.

I'm a big fan of the pavingexpert.com website which shows in huge detail every aspect of the process and any issues I may face. I'm considering going ahead and doing the bulk of the work myself, and getting friends in the trade to help. The process would go a little like this.

Hire of a mini digger to dig down to the required 250mm below finish. Now I can hire a digger for £180 for 5 days through a friend. However in my experience a good driver is worth every penny, in which case it's £150 per day for digger and driver. Hopefully one day to dig down?

I'd need a grab lorry to take the broken concrete and earth away. I've been quoted £400 as a rough estimate although i don't know the exact amount and there's also a substantial wall to demolish and remove.

The sub base would be spread using the mini digger and I believe I'd need a whacker to compress the hardcore or stone dust etc. So there's more costs there.

I'm then going to lay the edgings. There's a tree to go round in a semi circle, and flower beds on both sides so they would need laying in cement to a string line then haunching. I can do all that myself.

Next would be the sand base. I can lay that and smooth to a level myself ready for the blocks.

Next would be the blocks and the cuts. This is where I would probably employ a bricklayer I know on a day rate. Let's say £150 a day there. I think two days would see it done as he's done it plenty of times and although not his bread and butter, has done some nice jobs on driveways I've seen.

I could do the final filling with sand and if needed sealing.

I think it could all be done for a very reasonable cost.

Have I missed any obvious problems or issues I will run into with my method. It will probably take a matter of weeks rather than days. But that's ok. I can work on the bits I will be doing in the evenings during the summer.

Any thoughts on this or if you have any experience I'd be really interested to hear.

I'm a tradesman myself and have friends who are bricklayers who would work for me on a day rate basis.

[rufusgti]

Sorry, should have said its approx 100m/sq

[Spudler]

Wacker no good for that area, hire a roller, no ifs or buts,
Sounds like you've got most things covered, especially as you know brickies etc.

[Vincecj]

We use recycled glass under the pavior bricks rather than sand, more stable.

[rufusgti]

Vincecj said:

We use recycled glass under the pavior bricks rather than sand, more stable.

That's interesting. I've never seen that. Is it fine like sand or coarser? Where would I source recycled glass?

[HotJambalaya]

Cant help on that side of things, but when I looked into sealers here this was the one that everyone recommended

http://www.resiblock.com/

[LordHaveMurci]

My neighbour did his himself with the guidance of a builder mate, he isn't majorly handy but managed to do a good job on a sloping garden.

Do you need PP tthese days due to water run off etc?

[Wacky Racer]

Done this myself, very time consuming to do it well, like most things preparation is everything. Pay attention to the edges, to have a nice firm area to work to.

Finish off to seal with silica sand from Wickes, around a fiver a bag, two bags should be plenty.

[DrDeAtH]

You could use 4mm crush instead of sand as a sub base. It's just crushed brick. Drains well.

[Vincecj]

rufusgti said:

Vincecj said:

We use recycled glass under the pavior bricks rather than sand, more stable.

That's interesting. I've never seen that. Is it fine like sand or coarser? Where would I source recycled glass?

There's a place in Skewen called Glasstech.

[cobain]

I did mine last summer, just under 100m2.....which was 10 pallets (nearly 12 tons of blocks!).

Luckily I was able to borrow a whacker plate and a mini digger though. Also 4 tonnes of sharp sand to do a 1" blinding layer over the base.

I'm really pleased with it, blocks are bradstone tumble in autumn colour.

[rufusgti]

That looks great!

[Pheo]

I've got he same problem (but nowhere near 100m2! more like 25m2 at the most.

Tempted to do it myself, but as noted above, its a lot of awkward work.

Mind you was quoted 4k just for the block work not including going over the pavement (not dropped at the moment)!

Might just do the front path instead, that looks a lot easier.

[HotJambalaya]

Oh, and while you have all your drive etc up, check your drainage, maybe have a camera stuck down and see if any pipes need replacing, rather then bringing it all up again later. Do not ask me how I know this...

[bogie]

How much do you save by DIY though ? just your time ? the labour cost? I would imagine the pros are getting material etc a bit cheaper and no vat etc

so if its 2 or 3 guys for 2 or 3 days at £100 a day each how much saving is there ? £1k, £2k ?

I guess if you have plenty of free time and enjoy the work it then any saving is good....

[alock]

bogie said:

How much do you save by DIY though ? just your time ? the labour cost? I would imagine the pros are getting material etc a bit cheaper and no vat etc

so if its 2 or 3 guys for 2 or 3 days at £100 a day each how much saving is there ? £1k, £2k ?

I guess if you have plenty of free time and enjoy the work it then any saving is good....

If they're VAT registered and hence not paying the VAT on materials they purchase, surely they are charging you VAT on the entire job of materials and labor?

[bogie]

alock said:

bogie said:

How much do you save by DIY though ? just your time ? the labour cost? I would imagine the pros are getting material etc a bit cheaper and no vat etc

so if its 2 or 3 guys for 2 or 3 days at £100 a day each how much saving is there ? £1k, £2k ?

I guess if you have plenty of free time and enjoy the work it then any saving is good....

If they're VAT registered and hence not paying the VAT on materials they purchase, surely they are charging you VAT on the entire job of materials and labor?

yes, sorry for poor English, thats what I meant. You are paying the vat

[rufusgti]

Regards the savings, I'm not yet sure as I haven't priced up the materials.
If the savings are less than 2k I will probably just pay to get it done, as I have to factor in the cost of my time. I have a feeling speaking to various people that the savings will be much larger. Now some of those savings could be gained or lost (depending how you look at it) by being able to afford a nicer block. To be able to go for maybe a deeper sub base for extra strength. I will be parking my fully loaded transit plus the family car on the drive every day so need it to be slightly higher spec perhaps than your average driveway company may throw down for a little old lady. But it seems a good company would be looking at 5-10k so I'm looking to do it for less than 5k if I'm honest.

Anyone in the business care to advise wether 5k or less is feasible for a DIY drive of 100m2

[Muppet32]

For 100m2:
You'll need a digger for at least a week (2-3 days to dig out and a couple spreading the hardcore etc): £220+VAT (1.5tonne mini digger)

Muckaway: 3 to 4 loads @ £160+VAT per load. £640+VAT

Hardcore (150mm thick): 15m3 or 33tonnes @ £17.50/ tonne = £577.50+VAT (Use MOT Type 1 or blended MOT/Scalpings - avoid recycled)

Wacker Plate: Maybe 1.5 weeks: £65+VAT

Sharp Sand (50mm): 11 tonnes: £300+VAT

Blocks (100m2): Normal 200x100x50 are about £10/m2, Nice 'Tegula types' are £17/m2 so say a total of £1700+VAT

Kerbs: If you want kerbs, they start at £12/lin m. Let's say 25m: £300+VAT

Concrete: To haunch the kerbs/blocks/edging: £35+VAT

Disc Cutter/Block splitter: £40+VAT

Recessed manhole covers: £45+VAT ea

Kiln Dried Sand: £55+VAT

Plus a few other bits and bobs and you're up to £4000+VAT. So there's your 5 grand

You can see why a drive company would charge around £65-75/m2...

ETA: I forgot grid drainage at £10/lin m. In theory they should run to a soakaway too...

Edited by Muppet32 on Friday 5th February 17:48

[Muppet32]

You may also find that certain elements of the above are available VAT free in exchange for some folding...