Removing Concrete from terraced yard
Tracey Smith2
Posts: 2
Hi I need some help. I have lived in this terrace for ten years and have a beautiful cottage garden at the front facing the old railway embankment and my path has york stone flags which look nice.
My back yard is long and sloping towards the cobbles at the back entrance, it has three different types of concrete which is uneven on all levels. The bottom end near the gate is crumbling away and myself and my husband have loosened the concrete where it is worst and revealed the york stone flags underneath. We have a section in the middle that is wearing away under the washing line so we are going to remove a section there too to see if there are more flags. If there is we are considering removing it all and hiring a skip. The concrete is very slippery in winter and I know that york stone flag is also slippery but I think if they are ok and pitted we can restore the yard to how it was or reflag it completely.
I know york stone is expensive and I dont want to damage it with the digger, but my husband has one of these and has used it on his other drive.
I have photos of the yard. Has anyone done this before. The terraced street is the only one left in the area I live right next to old cotton mills and just wondered whether people are attracted to buying terraces with original flags????
I was also wondering whether i could plant camomile lawn in the gaps between the flags. Its very cold in winter at the back but baking in summer.
Posts
York flag stones are VERY desirable. People sometimes go on holiday and come home to find them gone. It would definitely be worth the effort to restore them but I don't know quite how to get the cement off them. Maybe lift and turn them over? Yes, they are slippery in wet weather but a power washer can fix that. They would look beautiful if you got them sorted.
Hi sara 4 and waterbutts, thanks for your comments. The concrete has not been put down very well and is loosening at the end of the yard, he has a breaker and he knows that he has to be careful so we will be making cracks in the concrete first on the surface. We will be breaking it very carefully. We are planning to do it gradually each weekend and when all the rubble is piled up we will hire a skip. The york stone flags (4 in total) at the front of my front door are lovely.
I wish old crazy paving were as desirable! I'm currently spending my two weeks holiday removing it (originally laid with 'proper' 2" thick broken concrete/granite slabs) from my front garden and will need another holiday to recover!
I've already broken the wheelbarrow and had to weld it up last night..
give it a hundred years and estate agents to come will gush over the "quaint features" and the wheelbarrow will be worth a fortune in some antique shop.