Hi all,
I have a small concrete back yard (approx 3mx3m) contained by brick walls. I plan to build a wall round 3 sides to create a raised bed. The walls on opposite sides will be 3 blocks high. The wall that connects the two will be two blocks high. I'll render the top and outsides.
My question is how to accommodate the existing slope of the yard (away from the house). The fall means a height difference of approx 5cm from one end of the opposite walls to the other.
Questions are:
~ Can I absorb this difference by laying a mortar footing?
~ If so, can I continue the footing along the wall that joins the two (as this will need to be 5cm higher along its length)
~ Do I need to use a different mix for this? (I have bags of 'bricklaying mortar mix' from Wicks, plus some additional sharp sand).
~ If 5cm is too much to absorb, can I use something like flat concrete coping stones to raise the last block or two of the parallel walls, and as a first course of the joining walls?
I'd sooner use the stuff I have (I don't have a car), and I am limited to a 115mm angle grinder or a good old bolster chisel and hammer so cutting blocks is not easy (and I've never done it before). I'm also 30 weeks pregnant, but that's another story..........
Thanks for any advice you can offer.[/list]
I have a small concrete back yard (approx 3mx3m) contained by brick walls. I plan to build a wall round 3 sides to create a raised bed. The walls on opposite sides will be 3 blocks high. The wall that connects the two will be two blocks high. I'll render the top and outsides.
My question is how to accommodate the existing slope of the yard (away from the house). The fall means a height difference of approx 5cm from one end of the opposite walls to the other.
Questions are:
~ Can I absorb this difference by laying a mortar footing?
~ If so, can I continue the footing along the wall that joins the two (as this will need to be 5cm higher along its length)
~ Do I need to use a different mix for this? (I have bags of 'bricklaying mortar mix' from Wicks, plus some additional sharp sand).
~ If 5cm is too much to absorb, can I use something like flat concrete coping stones to raise the last block or two of the parallel walls, and as a first course of the joining walls?
I'd sooner use the stuff I have (I don't have a car), and I am limited to a 115mm angle grinder or a good old bolster chisel and hammer so cutting blocks is not easy (and I've never done it before). I'm also 30 weeks pregnant, but that's another story..........
Thanks for any advice you can offer.[/list]
