DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Hello everyone! I just bought my first home in July 2022 so I am a very beginner DIY enthusiast.

I would like to restore an outdoor area because the concrete is really worn out, please see the pic attached.



I would like to do the following:

1. Repair the cracks and potholes;

2. Re-define the edges as per my red marks on picture, to create a flower bed with curved rather than sharp edges.

3. Re-level it slightly to improve drainage. At the moment the water sits in the wrong places (by the yellow hose near the wall of the house )

What is the best concrete product(s) for these jobs? Can I use some multi-purpose concrete for the new sections, the patching and the re-levelling and then come concrete resurfacer on top?

I hope this makes sense, I look forward to hearing your advice!

Hi dora_s,
It looks like there are a number of different concrete pours and if you try to add new sections plus a new surface coating over everything you will quickly see cracks following join lines. The existence of a concrete render on the bricks below DPC level may mean there have been problems so be careful with final levels.
The only way to avoid cracking is to break up the existing concrete and use this as a base for a new concrete surface. You should add expansion joins spaced at intervals of 25x the thickness of the concrete.
Regards S