Vertical Oak sleeper lawn edging advise please

lloydy97ZlGQO

Hi,Im wanting to intall some lawn edging in our garden made from Oak sleepers. I plan to install them vertically, quite low, staggers height between 150mm - 300mm. My question is how deep into the ground should i sit them, i was thinking half the longest piece,i.e 200mm deep trench, 50mm gravel drainage into trench then concrete front and back to hold them in place.Is this about the right depth would you think? Or is that going overboard, i really dont want them to move at all,but there in the other hand, Oak sleepers are pricey.Any advise greatly appreciated.  

Dovefromabove

Hi @lloydy97ZlGQO and welcome to the forum 

Are the sleepers going to be holding back an existing earth bank ... or are you constructing a raised bed?

KT53

Rather than concreting, drilling holes through the sleepers and driving reinforcing rods about 450 mm into the ground will hold them in place very effectively.  We had raised beds, 3 sleepers high, retained that way.  If you are going more than one sleeper high, as in the areas 300mm high,  use flat metal plates to join them.  Line the back of the timber with plastic or some other waterproof membrane too.  As you say, sleepers are not cheap and you want them to last as long as possible.

lloydy97ZlGQO

Dovefromabove said:

Hi @lloydy97ZlGQO and welcome to the forum 

Are the sleepers going to be holding back an existing earth bank ... or are you constructing a raised bed?

No there not retaining anything, purely for effect.

lloydy97ZlGQO

KT53 said:

Rather than concreting, drilling holes through the sleepers and driving reinforcing rods about 450 mm into the ground will hold them in place very effectively.  We had raised beds, 3 sleepers high, retained that way.  If you are going more than one sleeper high, as in the areas 300mm high,  use flat metal plates to join them.  Line the back of the timber with plastic or some other waterproof membrane too.  As you say, sleepers are not cheap and you want them to last as long as possible.

Hi, Thanks for your reply. I am wanting to instal the sleepers vertically for effect, tallest with be only 300mm from lawn level, and there not retaining/supporting any,purely for effect. The Green Oak sleepers are just over £40 a go so £1000 for the timber alone, but should look nice 

JennyJ

I can't comment on installing sleepers, but if you're going to have the grass growing right up to them, think about how you'll cut it. You won't be able to get the mower blades to the edge.

lloydy97ZlGQO

Hi, thanks. I am going to run a course of block paviers in front of the sleepers for the mower wheels to run around, so hopefully shouldnt be an issue

JennyJ

That sounds like a good plan

Wrigs21

As a general rule of thumb a third of the size in the ground. Use postcrete to set. I do warn you it’s a beast of an undertaking, here’s my efforts from last year 

Fairygirl

Do you have a suitable saw for cutting them too?
Otherwise, they could look awful. They can't really be cut properly 'square' with a standard hand saw or jigsaw or similar. 

Wrigs21

You need a large circular saw. Tried cutting first time round with a hand saw version and as you say look terrible as can never line it up properly