Durable Green and Eco-friendly bespoke garden structures
No bricks, no blocks nor mortar.
You have found the correct site for all garden design Devon, landscaping and rammed earth garden structures.
Welcome to the daily blog of Jackson’s Landscape Design, JLD, this blog will show you the daily garden build which will also include a rammed earth water feature with images and descriptions.
JLD, will provide sustainable environmentally friendly building materials, construct eco friendly structures that use locally sourced recycled and non toxic building materials.
Many of us recycle, JLD does more and goes one step further by designing and building garden structures using one of the oldest building materials known to man – earth.
JLD, has the facilities in sifting and separating all sub soil "waste", testing rammed earth soil samples, onsite quality control and rammed earth garden construction for all shapes and sizes.
Multi regional and national award winning Jackson’s Landscape Design, based in Newton Abbot, Devon are the only rammed earth installers in the Southwest, UK, who offer an extremely bespoke high end service to all our clients.
Any construction using rammed earth involves a process of compressing the correct mixture of damp earth that has suitable proportions of sand, gravel, clay and a small amount of cement into an externally supported frame, shutters, mould or formwork.
The oiled shutters mould the shape of a structure section creating a solid block of earth, for large seamless structures the shutters must be fabricated to the desired shape and length, as the rammed earth layers increase so will the shutter until the correct height and size is obtained.
On a concrete footing the shutters are erected to create the desired shape and a concrete splash plinth is poured within the shutter, it is imperative that all UK rammed earth structures have this plinth and capping as the concrete will stop any rain splash back eroding the base.
Damp mixed earth material is poured in the shutter to a depth of 100-150mm and a hand or pneumatic rammer, dependant on the structure, is used to compact the earth to 50% of its original volume, further layers are included and the process is repeated until the structure has reached the required design height.
After the earth compression, the shutters can be immediately removed. The structure will require covering for a week after construction in the winter to dry and harden, 2 warm days are required to harden and dry in the summer. Over all the structure can take up to two years to fully cure, dependent on the thickness, the more rammed earth cures the stronger the structure becomes. When the curing process is complete, it is much like a manmade wall of solid rock but with earth!.
With a little imagination the options are endless when using Rammed Earth......my next project will consist of a South facing solid translucent Rammed Earth screen!!
By planning and detailing we can ensure that the rammed earth is used to its maximum potential.
Should you have any quereies I’ll do my utmost to assist you.
Before Image:
Day 1:
Site preparation, clearance and excavation works.
Day 2:
Excavation works, concrete footings, reduce dig for circular paving.
Day 3:
Geotextile installation, 7N concrete blocks loaded out, block work quoins marked out, 100mm of sub base installed to circular paving, "waste" subsoil sifted for rammed earth water feature, continuation of shutter works and concrete footings to lower tier of garden.
Block work commenced to rammed earth water feature base, planters, pergola and water sump.
Day 4:
First stage of rammed earth sifting complete, 7N blocks loaded out, continuation of block work to raised planters, water sump and rammed earth water feature base, 40x4.8x150x22mm treated timber painted in graphite grey, pump hose installed.
Day 5:
All 600x600 existing paving lifted and stacked, the 5 spot paving bed and sub base removed, completion to all concrete footings, all conifer stumps removed, completion of block works, lower level of garden built up, half of the screened soil moved to raised planters, preparation and level adjustments to the black concrete and glass power floated slab.
Day 6:
8 tons of limestone was hand picked and loaded to tipper and carted from Ipplepen Devon to the project x 4 trips, all limestone loaded out, a huge bramble clearance commenced with 2 tipper loads carted to our offsite composting area, concrete and steel pins installed in the cavity of the water feature base, completion of all levels and preparation works, 50/50 sharp sand and cement collected from a local quarry for a flying start in the morning. Off hire excavator and track off the project....clean down mud!.
Must try to take photos in better daylight....
Lower tier
Higher tier
Day 7:
Installation of geotextile, 10 tons of 40mm scalpings collected from quarry, tipped and moved by hand to allocated position, raked, consolidated to falls and levels, lower tier stoneworks continuation, installation of stoneworks to higher level, a clean site at last....
Day 8:
Completion of all stoneworks to lower tier, move all excess stone to higher tier, level and compact subbase to lower tier, install geotextile to entire lower tier area with 300mm overlaps and pin all edges, continuation of curved stoneworks to higher level.
Gate posts, fencing and pergola posts installed, please note the post far right is placed not plumbed and fixed.
Day 9:
Mark out and dig post holes with scissor shovels, plumb posts and concrete to string line, lay 450x450 paving as capping to stonewalling, completion of all stoneworks...took delivery of Stonemarket Haus Dune smooth project packs, moved from driveway to rear garden and loaded out into individual sizes . Tomorrow the shutters are oiled and bolted together....as soon as the temperature allows, 3 degrees and rising, we start the rammed earth water feature....step by step images will then follow, until such time there's always plenty to be getting on with......
Day 10:
My garden build schedule is going to plan.....now the time has come for the rammed earth water feature to be built, in normal circumstances the rammed earth, RE, build would take less than a day, however, I totally refuse to construct any landscaping with cement works when the temperatures are 3 degrees and dropping......so for now....if you'll understand my and the professions current predicaments, I'll guide you through the rammed earth procedure as the weather permits.
The shutters, form-work, moulds must be completely clean from any existing rammed earth works as the shutter is the finish face of the rammed earth, RE.
The best ply to use is 11mm marine ply, or paper face.....should you scar the face of the ply then wood filler should be applied and sanded with a belt sander......as I said earlier the face of the shutter is the finish....any marks will be seen on the finished result....excatly the same as concrete. You'll note that 3 x 100mm ribs run the entire length of the shutter, this is to keep the shutters plumb, firm and upright when the 4x2 strong-backs are bolted in place.
Shutter cleaning:
Shutter oiling:
All RE shutters must be oiled, this ensures an easy release when the times comes to free the moulds and expose the compressed works within....excatly the same as concrete.....
To continue with the recycling scenario you could seek your oil from your local chinese or chip shop at a small cost.....but for speed I've taken Lizzy's, my wife, stir fry crisp and dry from the kitchen cupboard!
Rammed earth stop ends:
It is imperative to install stop ends to all rammed earth shutters, these shutters are either screwed or clamped into place....but you must make sure the stop ends are plumb, should the design and structure allow. Any angled stop end could be applied in accordance with the finished result.
For this water feature the width will be 200mm, as you can see I've used 200mm timber joists cut to the same height as the shutter....the thickness of rammed earth will vary dependant on the design and the height....for thicker structures you simply create the stop ends required to suit your needs....you'll also note that I've installed and screwed 2x45 degree ply fillets to the stop ends .....this is purely for aesthetic reasons, with a little creativity and imagination all manner of shaped stop ends can be implemented.
Positioning of the shutters:
Knowing that the base for the rammed earth water feature has been built at 1200mm wide and 200mm thick and my stop ends have been set up for this measurement the shutters are lifted into position, should you wish you can seal the bottom with translucent mastic, if the block work is level and to the millimetre then I don't see the need as the mastic will be seen when the shutters are released, making a small indentation.....very poor in my eyes.
The two steel bars inserted into the cavity and concreted are cut to the height of the concrete plinth, in this case 250mm, the centre tube is the pump hose which will travel up inside the rammed earth to an opening where it will cascade back to the water sump and pump below, the sump when the weather allows will have a scratch coat, render coat and 2 applications of Vandex BB75.
Front panel, oiled copper spacers, strong backs, M12 threaded bars, washers and nut applications:
With the front panel in place and lined up with the boltholes I can now install a nut to the end of a M12 threaded bar, next a M12 washer is threaded to the nut and threaded through a pre drilled strong back....this is then pushed through the pre drilled panel and an oiled copper tube cut at 200mm, the same length as the thickness of the shutter, is positioned so the bar goes through the tube and the rear pre drilled shutter, place the other pre drilled strong backs in place and push the bar through the hole, apply another washer and a nut to secure, make sure the nut is flush with the threaded bar as space could be limited........... I'm going to apply this procedure 4 times ...for larger panels the need for threaded bar will increase...the last thing you want is for the shutters to blow or warp!
You'll note the water hose is at the centre of the structure.... you'll see why this is important later.
Screwing the front panel to the stop ends.
Once all the components mentioned are in place you can wind the nuts up with an adjustable spanner until the spacers are tight to the internal shutters, remember to screw the front panel to the stop ends. recheck that all is plumb and positioned correctly over your base. When the weather allows we can pour the black concrete and glass plinth at 250mm high...I'll add a splash of rapid cement to the mix for speed.....sounds like Blue Peter!
Day 11:
Having observed the met office, of which I do as a ritual, I have a gap in the weather window which allows me to apply the concrete and grushed glass plinth, you'll note that for asthetic reasons I've also mixed black cement dye to the concrete mixture.
The water pump hose remains central.
The 4x2 frameworks or studworks are fabricated and bolted to the tops of the blockwork, the frame work for the double doors giving access to the oil drum are built and clad with 150x22mm treated sawn timber, all fixings are placed too.
Day 12:
With the current temperatures around the 8-9 degrees for the next few days in the Southwest, I am able to install the rammed earth mixture, plus some other interesting additions, continuing the recycled theme I've also inserted a piece of toughen glass that I kept from a water feature I created in my own garden, for space reasons I've since removed the entire contents of my garden and created a new contemporary space....the image below shows you the water feature and glass I've salvaged for recycling into the rammed earth water feature.
The water feature and "recycled" glass from my own garden.
The shutters have been removed exposing the consolidated "waste" soil, I've kept the stop ends in place as the concrete capping and water outlet hole are formed.
A close up of the rammed earth behind the glass.
Day 13:
All The timber screens are erected and screwed in a clean vertical line, the planters are filled with rich topsoil, the capping to the screens are screwed in place, you'll note that the water feature is slightly lower than the cappings...this is to allow for the water feature capping to be inserted level with the timber.
The pergola posts are concreted in the ground, levelled and plumb. The pergola frame work is attached and painted with black timbercare.
The topsoil for the turf is placed , raked and levelled as is the subbase for the circular paving.
Another angle of the garden, Marshalls utility paving acts as a capping to the stone walling.
Day 14:
I hope that the worst of the cold snap has passed us by now.....like you, I'm sure it slowed your works down too...any way onwards and upwards.
The 450x450 paving slabs have been cut in half and cut again to create a curved copping stone, the water pump has been installed and the cable threaded through the ducting, sufficient cable has been left in the sump for the cleaning of the pump when required, a scratch coat to the water sump was applied, the black pergola has been completed and painted, a capping stone to the water feature has been installed with the fall away from the face of the water feature, both raised planters have been filled with top soil, all top soil has been tested and is verified as PH 7 neutral.
The slate water outlet has been cut and bonded together, a hole has been bored for the flow of the water and sealed when secured in position, 6 tons of top soil has been levelled and rake prior to the turf installation, the new lawn will be proud of the perimeter edgings and paving for easy maintenance.
Two raised paving planters have been secured in place around the pergola posts,
Day 15:
Both planters either side of the rammed earth water feature have been topped up before the paving went down, both raised pergola planters are also topped up with topsoil, the clients exsisting plants have been removed from their pots and planted in the lower tier area, additional posts and fencing have been erected...not too high that it mars the view.
The final render coat to the water sump has been applied and sponge finished, top soil has been added to the lawn area to create a level lawn which ties in with the paving.
Road pins and string lines were placed around the paving to allow for the correct falls and levels, the patio paving has been installed on a full bed of mortar, SBR is applied to the underside of all paving units, the joints are a nominal 10mm.
All cuts around the pergola posts are carried out and the units installed as are the curved radius cuts to the stone walling, the finesse curved cut will be carried out with a diamond blade angle grinder once the mortar has gone off, but for now all the paving units are down, going off and scrubbed ready for pointing.
Clean paving, lets go home and enjoy valentines!
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