- How to build a shed base out of paving slabs
- Mix sand and cement together to make mortar or use a pre-mixed one
- Use a trowel to lay mortar for 1 slab at a time on the sub-base and lift a damp-sided slab onto the mortar, using a piece of timber and club hammer to tap the slab into position carefully. Continue to lay the first row of slabs
- Make equally-sized spacers in all the joints in the slabs to ensure they’re the same size, checking it’s level as you go along
- Next lay slabs along the two adjacent outer edges, filling in the central area row by row
- Leave the mortar to set according to the instructions or for at least 48 hours before filling in the joints with mortar or paving grout
- Building a shed base from concrete
- Create a wooden frame around your shed base area (also called formwork) to stop the concrete from spreading
- Mix pre-mixed concrete with water or use 1 part cement to 5 parts ballast
- Wet the sub-base using a watering can with a rose on the end
- Pour the concrete onto the framed base starting in one corner
- Push the blade of a shovel up and down in the edges of the concrete to get rid of air bubbles
- Use a rake to spread the concrete, leaving it around 18mm higher than the top of the frame. Work in sections of around 1-1.m2
- Compact the concrete using a straight piece of timber that’s longer than the width of the base. Move the timber along the site, hitting it along at about half of its thickness at a time until the surface is evenly ridged
- Remove excess concrete and level the surface by sliding the timber back and forwards from the edge that you started. Fill in any depressions and repeat until even
- Run an edging trowel along the frame to round off exposed edges of the concrete and prevent chipping
- Cover the concrete with a plastic sheet raised on wooden supports to allow slow drying. Weigh it down with bricks
- Once the concrete is set, you can install your shed and remove the wooden frame with a crowbar
Kinlochleven
Kinlochleven is a village located in Lochaber, in the Scottish Highlands and exists at the eastern end of Loch Leven. To the north lie the Mamores ridge; to the south lie the mountains flanking Glen Coe. The town was developed from two formerly separate little communities - Kinlochmore to the north of the River Leven in Inverness-shire and also Kinlochbeg to the south of the Leven in Argyll - adhering to the building and construction of an aluminium smelter and also associated housing for its employees. The handling plant was powered by a hydroelectric scheme located in the hills over, and made Kinlochleven the very first village in the world to have every home linked to electrical energy, creating the phrase "The Electric Village". In 1991, the town (according to yearly census returns) had just over 1000 residents in some 420 households. Today it is a significant visitor location and centre for mountain searches.