A Broken Concrete Patio

It is done-it's finally finished! And how I love my new broken concrete patio. The idea of building a patio from broken concrete was a good one-I thought anyhow. The only cost would be for the gravel and metal edging. Concrete is durable and easily found if you know where to look. I just knew I had a good idea to build this patio out of broken concrete until...

We started the patio a bit differently than we normally would. I decided to lay out the landscape fabric first then add the gravel. I did not plan to add any sand to the base of this patio. I theorized the gravel would allow me to level the chunks of concrete and the sand would just wash away anyhow. Normally I would put the gravel down, then the landscape fabric then about two inches of sand. Not with this patio. All was well until....

We (Mr. Fix-it and I) began placing the huge chunks of concrete in their places. The right side of this patio is higher than the left so we had to compensate for the grade change. We did this by building up the lower side with more gravel and by using the thicker pieces of concrete on that side. By the way, we drove to Evansville Indiana for these chunks of concrete. Mr. Fix-it and I loaded his truck-in the pouring rain. What a mess! I think it was worth it though. The concrete came from a man who broke it up and replaced it with flagstone. Funny enough you can see this concrete once started life as a broken concrete patio too-but the person added in mortar to hold the pieces together; whereas we only added gravel. 


When we first laid out all of these chunks of concrete I was quite skeptical. I thought the idea of a broken concrete patio was not going to work. The concrete did not fit together well at all and the gaps between the chunks were dangerous. One could easily break an ankle if one was not careful. The patio sat without a gravel filling or edging for about a month and it was not used at all. Finally, I had enough time to insert the metal edging ($15) along the outside of the patio (the back and sides are held in by limestone blocks) in order to level the patio and hold in the gravel. I then added two and one half wheelbarrows of crushed limestone. The crushed limestone worked like a charm to make a sturdy and firm footing for the concrete chunks! Due to the wide range of sizes of the grave the gravel packed into the cracks and gaps wonderfully and the patio became a real work of art. A work of art that was very sturdy with no fear of breaking one's ankle in the cracks. I'd say it is even strong enough to hold a chair leg in the cracks that is how well the crushed limestone packed down. I was so happy it worked out well and I did not have to start from square one again. The broken concrete of the patio base ties in with my other beds out front where I use broken concrete as garden edging and is a simple natural way to reuse what otherwise would be bound for the landfill. The broken concrete serves a purpose and looks good to boot. I find I am now spending a lot of time in the chaise out front....


in the garden....

Come back Friday to see how this patio is tucked into a large island bed garden. 
Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden