Hi,
I'm currently doing a bit of flag relaying. Three years ago I built a new garden hut having dug out lots of wet soil/clay and laying heavy 3' x 2' x 2" flags; at the time it was mid summer with the rain belting down and even hailstones but I pressed on and got the job done. The flags have as expected settled and one in particular by the hut door was annoying in that it was rocking each time I stepped upon it; I've finally got round to sorting it out but it's not an easy job. Our site is a steep valley side where standing upright outside is challenging; the flags are laid at a slope but packing the hut supports compensate for this; low walls and steps add to the fun.
I'm getting there slowly but with heavy rain forecast I'm dodging in and out; here's progress to date with the method I'm using which might be of interest.
Kind regards, Colin.
How annoying this flag has been it standing proud by 3/4" at the corner and rocking when stepped upon.
Unfortunately the flags settled but not the low wall hence now the top of the wall was a bit too high; I'm an engineer and built these low walls to last many lifetimes and they are solid. I spent a couple of hours using hammer and cold chisel to remove a bit of height but I wasn't happy as I looked at it yesterday morning through the kitchen window; after breakfast I attacked it with my big SDS drill in chisel mode and removed the top stones which I shouild have done in the first place; no easy jobs for me living here the last 33 years and nothing changes.
I needed a way of accurately depositing new bedding mortar; just placing the usual five piles and tapping the flag level using the sledge hammer against a wooden block might work but then might not and these flags are very heavy with limited working space around them; it's so easy to cause back injuries.
I've used a similar method previously with great success but never with as many problems as these flags were throwing at me.
It took quite a bit of thought but here's my solution; nothing at all is level and with low walls and steps to contend with I put this together as a guide. I can now deposit the bedding mortar and rake it to suit using the gauge bar; the thinner stone needs bedding first. It looks so easy once the answer is known?
The hut is level due to packing the floor joists as seen. This is a bad place to be handling heavy flags so I'm being very careful indeed. Please note the flag pathway up the garden how steep it is; I use this during dragging the petrol mower and rotavator up; we also have other steps leading up the the garden.
I'm currently doing a bit of flag relaying. Three years ago I built a new garden hut having dug out lots of wet soil/clay and laying heavy 3' x 2' x 2" flags; at the time it was mid summer with the rain belting down and even hailstones but I pressed on and got the job done. The flags have as expected settled and one in particular by the hut door was annoying in that it was rocking each time I stepped upon it; I've finally got round to sorting it out but it's not an easy job. Our site is a steep valley side where standing upright outside is challenging; the flags are laid at a slope but packing the hut supports compensate for this; low walls and steps add to the fun.
I'm getting there slowly but with heavy rain forecast I'm dodging in and out; here's progress to date with the method I'm using which might be of interest.
Kind regards, Colin.
How annoying this flag has been it standing proud by 3/4" at the corner and rocking when stepped upon.
Unfortunately the flags settled but not the low wall hence now the top of the wall was a bit too high; I'm an engineer and built these low walls to last many lifetimes and they are solid. I spent a couple of hours using hammer and cold chisel to remove a bit of height but I wasn't happy as I looked at it yesterday morning through the kitchen window; after breakfast I attacked it with my big SDS drill in chisel mode and removed the top stones which I shouild have done in the first place; no easy jobs for me living here the last 33 years and nothing changes.
I needed a way of accurately depositing new bedding mortar; just placing the usual five piles and tapping the flag level using the sledge hammer against a wooden block might work but then might not and these flags are very heavy with limited working space around them; it's so easy to cause back injuries.
I've used a similar method previously with great success but never with as many problems as these flags were throwing at me.
It took quite a bit of thought but here's my solution; nothing at all is level and with low walls and steps to contend with I put this together as a guide. I can now deposit the bedding mortar and rake it to suit using the gauge bar; the thinner stone needs bedding first. It looks so easy once the answer is known?
The hut is level due to packing the floor joists as seen. This is a bad place to be handling heavy flags so I'm being very careful indeed. Please note the flag pathway up the garden how steep it is; I use this during dragging the petrol mower and rotavator up; we also have other steps leading up the the garden.
