We need to do our patio. Anyone got any tricks and tips for getting cheap but nice paving slabs and other widgets?

I know I’m not meant to go to B&Q or Homebase or anything like that, they seem to be universally slated.

Depends what your after!

If its fabricated paving slabs then a builders merchant. If its natural sandstone then google indian sandstone.

Where are you based? I might be able to help

Neighbour’s place, 3am, crow-bar.

BlindMelon – Cardiff.

My b & q isn’t slated, more lots of vinyl flooring. Slates are nice but better on the roof. Try the small ads or your local builders merchant. Indian sandstone was cheaper than concrete slabs last time I bought.

Local builders merchants, them b n q ones are shite!

As mentioned above, Indian sandstone.
Got mine on ebay but have since found a local builder merchant that sells it too.

What are you after looks wise?? Rustic, modern, flat clean lines, cheap. There’s a whole world of options. Avoid black stone types, I laid a big lightly rivened one a couple of years ago and it’s faded to grey, unless it’s wet

Make up a fake letterhead, get a trade account at Travis Perkins and get some Marshalls paving.

I’m slowly but surely pulling up a load of patio slabs and replacing with turf. If you want the patio slabs, you’re welcome to them, obviously you would have to sort transport (they’re quite heavy)

They are 600 x 600 mm, and quite old, but would clean up well with a pressure washer. The whole back garden is patio, so there should be at least 30 odd available for you to take.

I`m in Pontyclun, near Llantrisant just off M4 J34

Let me know if you’re interested (sullivan dot gareth at gmail dot com)

Gareth

Llanaran concrete if want cheapest, made on site.
builders merchants eg Jewson, travis p, leeks for marshals slabs or pavings
Not sure if they sell slabs but selco are really good value on most building products

Try Accrington, quite a few folk turn up in the middle of the night with a van and lift them from the streets…

Happened all the time oustide my parents. Someone might as well take the rest cos the council just fills the gaps with tarmac which looks crap.

Went to B&Q today, would’ve come out to be £4-500 for some nice-ish stuff. We’ve got about 11.5m2 I think to cover. Looks like I can get Marshalls limestone or something else nice for about £250-300.

I’d like something that doesn’t have a huge carbon footprint or use Indian child labour though, so I’m considering limestone. Information about where it comes from is thin on the ground though.

dont need trade accounts at the big merchants anymore.. nip in tell em what you want and a very nice man will take you for a walk round yard.. easy..

Freecycle.

I’ve got all the flags in these pics for free , just needed to lift most of them myself.

dont need trade accounts at the big merchants anymore

No, you never have.

But there is quite a variance in price. B&Q trade card holders get 60% off some products.

Freecycle +1 especially at this time of year when people are thinking about outdoor projects.

Carlosg – where are you?

[*]LS16

Your limestone is cheap, then. I’m doing a very similar area and getting limestone from B&Q for 200, but that seems to be a line of special reduced ones – limestone at Travis came out at about 500.

Block paving (driveway style) is cheap – should set you back 150 plus sand.

I’m about 70 slabs through pulling up about 200 at the moment; they’ve all been going up the tip so far…