With all the rain this year, drainage issues on properties have become such an big problem. This could be the lack of drains, poorly set up falls and blocked stormwater lines. In fact, one out if every three project I visit have new drainage as part of their works. Some are small and minor changes or repairs and some are full stormwater system replacements, right to the street!
A couple of weeks ago we wrapped up this project in Pimpama. The owner had built this home just over a year ago and since had found that his backyard had such issues.
His main yard are to the rear had been turfed and a surface drain had been added but the drain was set up wrong and the area was just a boggy mess. His new pool area had also been setup up at very odd levels and water was now just trapped around it whenever it rained.
The customer had contacted us as he wanted to solve these issues, add a lot of new concrete including around 150m2 to the pool and yard area and also extend his exposed aggregate pathway to the front of the property.
He also wanted a tile effect to the new concrete to the rear to make it pop.
This was right up our alley…
THE SCOPE
Excavate all the areas, remove any grass and regrade to the correct levels. Remove all the stinky sludge that had been their backyard.
Add drainage channels to the pool area and add new drainage pits to take away all the water in their main yard area.
Construct new plain concrete to all the rear areas. Extend and match the exposed aggregate at the front of the property.
Return and apply a new decorative tile pattern surface to all of the rear concrete.
THE EXECUTION
Day 1:
Grass was removed. Sticky sludge was excavated out and removed from site. Access was tight, so small machinery and and hand excavation was used to get it ready.
New drains were installed at key points to take the water away.
Road base was imported and compacted creating a strong platform for their new concrete.
Steel was placed and tied ready for the pour to follow.
Day 2:
Concrete areas to the rear were placed and finished. On this project, a concrete pump was used to bring in all the concrete.
Expansion joints were added at strategic points to help with lessening the chance of cracking.
The day went very well and all tricky falls worked great.
Day 3:
After a couple of days, cuts were made with a concrete saw dividing the area up in the correct sizing to allow for expansion and helping reduce any cracking.
A full clean up was made and any formwork removed.
Day 4:
After enough time had passed for the concrete to cure, we returned to resurface the pool surround and main rear area.
The concrete was prepared and then a white base coat was applied.
This creates a great bond to the new or existing slab and creates the colour for the grout line depending on the customers design choice.
In this case it was a bone white to match the grout if the existing tiles.
Day 5: The Home Stetch
The customer had picked a tile design to work with what he had on his patio in a 500 - 600mm size. A combination on 3 colours was used to achieve the final look here.
Once textured, all the concrete was cleaned up, all sealing was done then a thorough site clean was completed.
The customer was very happy. Drainage issues were solved and he has a very striking… and very large, usable space to enjoy with his family for decades to come.
This is Decorative Concrete Done Right.
Cory Grant
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