Frequently asked questions

The price depends mainly on the condition of the ground and the thickness of the surface, rather than on the asphalt itself. A yard with a sound existing base costs considerably less than ground that has to be excavated, carted away and rebuilt. That is why we quote after a site visit — the figure is then accurate and does not change as the work goes on.

Cars can normally use it after 24 hours, once the surface has cooled completely. For heavy goods traffic we recommend 48 to 72 hours. On hot summer days cooling takes longer.

Asphalt laying needs dry weather and temperatures above 5°C, which in practice means April to the end of October. Excavation and sub-base preparation can be done outside that window, so the site is ready to pave as soon as the weather allows.

Yes, provided the old surface is sound and the sub-base is not broken up. In that case the top layer is milled off and a new wearing course laid. If the base is compromised, covering it with new asphalt only postpones the problem by a year or two.

Yes. We organise loading and haulage to a licensed tip. If part of the soil is suitable for backfill we leave it on site, so you pay to cart away a smaller volume.

Yes. For confined areas we use a mini excavator that fits through a standard gateway and works in narrow yards. Close to foundations and underground services we switch to careful and, where needed, hand excavation.

Both are possible and are raised with you immediately. Rock excavation needs different plant and is priced separately. Groundwater calls for dewatering, which is also agreed separately — which is why the quotation always states what is included.

It depends on the site. Excavation within your own property usually needs none, but work in the public highway or near underground services requires a street works permit from the municipality and agreement with the utility companies. We will advise what is needed in your particular case.

For asphalt and concrete a fall of 1 to 2 per cent is normally enough, and slightly more is allowed for block paving because of the joints. Around a building the fall must run away from it. Exact figures depend on the design and on where the water can actually be discharged.

For the yard of a single house, usually yes — we set the levels on site relative to the existing levels of the building, the street and the gullies. For larger projects and anything in the public highway a design is mandatory, because the levels must tie in with the street network.

A yard of around 500 square metres is normally shaped in two to four working days, provided large volumes of material do not have to be imported or carted away. Access for machinery affects the programme more than the area itself.

Block paving lets water through, looks better and allows local repair by lifting and replacing individual blocks. Asphalt is quicker to lay, usually cheaper per square metre over larger areas and easier to clean. For a prestige yard we normally recommend block paving; for a large hardstanding or car park, asphalt.

In almost every case the cause is the base, not the blocks. Laid over uncompacted ground or on sand alone, the surface settles unevenly. The second common cause is missing or poorly bedded kerbs, which lets the paving spread sideways.

Yes, given the right thickness and base. For pedestrian areas 60 mm blocks are usually sufficient; for accesses, garages and car parks 80 mm blocks are used over a thicker, well-compacted base.

Very little. Every few years the joints are best topped up with sand, particularly after jet washing, which washes them out. Where the work has been done properly, no other maintenance is needed in practice.

With existing access and suitable ground, a run of around 100 metres is normally built in one to two working days. Most of the time goes into preparing the subgrade, not into the stone itself.

Yes, and that is often the most economical answer. The compacted crushed-stone base can be used directly as the base for asphalt or block paving once construction is finished, rather than being broken out and rebuilt.

On weak soil we lay geotextile between the subgrade and the crushed stone. It separates the layers and stops the stone from disappearing into the mud, which extends the life of the road many times over while using considerably less material.

No. We work in structural concrete — foundations, footings, slabs, retaining walls and hardstandings. Power-floated floors are a separate trade with different equipment, and for those you are better off with a firm that does only that.

We supply it. Delivery is in the quotation, so that class, quantity and pour time do not fall between two suppliers.

Three common reasons: an uncompacted base, missing or badly placed joints, and drying too quickly. The first is solved before the pour, the second at planning, the third by curing afterwards.

On foot usually the next day, with a car after about a week, with heavy plant once the concrete has reached its design strength. Exact times depend on the class and the weather, and we give them on site.

Yes. We are often brought in for the excavation and footings alone, with the frame built by others. We say honestly which parts are sensible to split and which lose by being split.

Because water behind it creates pressure the wall was never designed to take. It is not the weight of the soil that topples it, but the water in the soil. Drainage behind costs a small fraction of the wall and decides whether it stands or leans within a few years.

Reinforced concrete is for tall walls, walls next to a road, a building or someone else's property, and anything that must stand for a long time under a heavy load. Blocks are faster, need no formwork and can be moved — for embankments, partitions and temporary walls. At the site visit we will say which makes sense for you.

It depends on the height of the wall, what it holds and where it is. A wall next to a road, a building or a neighbouring property almost always needs a structural design. At the site visit we will tell you what your case requires, before any digging starts.

A block wall is stacked in days. A concrete wall takes longer: excavation, footing, reinforcement, formwork and waiting for the concrete to gain strength before backfilling behind it. The timescale is given in the quotation after the site visit.

Sometimes. If it moved because of water, drainage comes first — otherwise any repair is temporary. If the footing is undermined or the wall is badly cracked, rebuilding is the safer choice. We say which after a site visit.

Damp or mould on basement walls, water standing in the yard days after rain, a wet patch in the same place, a retaining wall starting to lean. If any of that sounds familiar, probably yes. At the site visit we will say whether the problem is one for drainage or for something else.

Ordinary crushed stone carries fines that work their way into the pipe over time and block it. Washed river gravel has none, and leaves space between the stones for the water.

To keep the soil from mixing with the gravel. Without geotextile, silt seeps into the layer, fills the voids, and the drainage stops working within a season or two.

Into a chamber, a ditch or a place where discharge is permitted. That is settled at the site visit before anything else — drainage with nowhere to send the water only gathers it in one spot.

Yes. The trench along the foundations is dug in sections and with care, so as not to undermine the building. While it is open, a drainage membrane can also be laid against the wall.