Converting from grass to gravel - questions (Scottsdale: house, landscaping)

[gsm113]

I'm going the DIY route - doesn't seem too complicated. I just have a couple questions...

As the title mentions the yard is being converted from 100% grass to 80% gravel, 15% grass or fake grass and a bit of brick paver. From reading online I understand I have to dig up the yard a few inches - I am planning on hiring someone to come out with a bobcat, I just need to know how deep to go for gravel and pavers.

[ScottsdaleMark]

I think you should be fine as long as you get all that dark brown topsoil in which your yard is probably growing completely scraped out of your yard, or the weeds will just go crazy underneath your rock. If you get down the "natural" soil beneath the yard, that will help. A guy with a Bobcat like you're planning on is exactly what you need and they can help get your lot nice and level too.

If you're planning a mixed-surface area, I would recommend pouring in some concrete edging or something else to help keep the rock where it belongs so it doesn't slow migrate onto your other surfaces. Then they can just spread the rocks within that bordered area.

[gsm113]

Originally Posted by ScottsdaleMark

I think you should be fine as long as you get all that dark brown topsoil in which your yard is probably growing completely scraped out of your yard, or the weeds will just go crazy underneath your rock. If you get down the "natural" soil beneath the yard, that will help. A guy with a Bobcat like you're planning on is exactly what you need and they can help get your lot nice and level too.

If you're planning a mixed-surface area, I would recommend pouring in some concrete edging or something else to help keep the rock where it belongs so it doesn't slow migrate onto your other surfaces. Then they can just spread the rocks within that bordered area.

Thanks for the reply. A lot of the yard was barren due to neglect, and the areas with grass have been mostly killed off with roundup. I just did sprayed a few green patches this morning to finish it off.

For the barrier between the gravel and fake grass I was thinking either concrete edging or some kind of brick paver. Depends in part on cost but I do think concrete edging looks cleaner.


So back to the bobcat, do you think 4 inches down is overkill or about right?

[stevek64]

Really depends the look/what effect you want in your backyard. If one wants really wants a completely level backyard throughout, the bobcat option is your least amount of physical work. And level is needed of course if you are putting down your pavers and artificial turf. But if you are looking to add some elevation changes in parts of your backyard, you might not want to make everything perfectly flat with a bobcat. In the current house this is what I did. I did areas of the yard with various elevation changes, random mound hills with rocks and plants on and around them, etc. I think it looks much more interesting/natural than just a flat expanse. And contrasts nice to the flat areas in our yard where we have pavers and flagstone patios and some just plain flat areas with gravel. Especially in your situation, in areas of the yard where you are taking up some dirt to level, you can use this dirt to make your elevation changes. I got some free dirt from people doing various projects that they didn't need.

As for weeds, they grow anywhere, in rich soil or native soil. The reason I say this is I've had a garden area that had rich soil that I eventually covered with gravel and weeds grew no more or less in that area than other areas of the yard with native soil.

[Ponderosa]

When I did mine I didn't scape anything off. It was like yours, mostly scruff from not watering all summer. I just put roundup on it and then 3 inches of gravel. A couple places popped up bermuda next spring, but one round up treatment and that was over. Now, I used 1/4 minus which forms almost a concrete like surface so no light was getting in. Bigger gravel might allow more growth underneath.

[Zippyman]

I definitely wouldn't be taking out material I didn't need to take out - you'll want any topsoil or vegetation that could decompose over time out from underneath your pavers (to keep them from sinking), but for areas that are rocked in, that shouldn't matter. And you're unlikely to have more than a token amount of actual topsoil under your grass.

When setting the grade for my properties, my bobcat guy played off the footings for the block wall & the foundation exposure of the house (those should both be level & pretty consistent). I needed "depth" for a 4" thick concrete patio next to the house & he took the grade next to the block wall down to the top of the wall's "footer". From there, you kinda have to look at where the rain would puddle or flow if you had a massive downpour & either follow that or correct it. (In my yard, before grading - I'd get a deep pond right next to the house & the outer edges of the property were all draining towards the house.) Just a slight "cut" under the rv gate allowed that ponding water to go (slowly) towards the front yard instead of creating a pond. The deep "pool" next to the house wasn't really a problem after I put the cement patio in (the patio was 4" thick & tended to create a very slight "v" pointing right at the rv gate).

This might sound a little complex at first, but it should be grading "101" for your bobcat guy. Keep in mind, you're not trying to create a "flume" of water, 1" of grading height over say 20 or even 30 feet of yard will easily get the job done. And if you're doing any real grass, you might want to direct much of the water on your lot right towards it - you start your grass here by flooding it if you can. Obviously, you don't point any water at your neighbors unless you want to get sued, either..

[cacto]

Originally Posted by gsm113

I'm going the DIY route - doesn't seem too complicated. I just have a couple questions...

As the title mentions the yard is being converted from 100% grass to 80% gravel, 15% grass or fake grass and a bit of brick paver. From reading online I understand I have to dig up the yard a few inches - I am planning on hiring someone to come out with a bobcat, I just need to know how deep to go for gravel and pavers.

Wow, this sounds like a lovely new direction to take this yard. Try laying mirrors all over your yard, they'll reflect slightly more heat and light than your gravel if that's what you're going for. If you're feeling wild and experimental, consider native landscaping. You can have greenery, shade, low water use and beauty without grass or gravel, should you risk it. Que vayas bien.