Condo Blues: How to Level a Rain Barrel Stand and Friday Favorites Week 546

Thursday, September 10, 2020

How to Level a Rain Barrel Stand and Friday Favorites Week 546

Last weekend was Labor Day Weekend in the US and I celebrated it by laboring in the front yard. The bricks around the pallet rain barrel stand I build have lately been in a constant state of wrecked no matter how many times my husband or I restack them.

I tried starting a Dilapidated Chic design movement but it didn't take.

I took the rain barrel off of the stand and removed the brick. The issue was obvious. The wood base was wearing away from sitting on often soggy ground and wasn't level any more. The best course of action was to relevel the ground if needed (and it was needed.) I used this exact do dig edging to keep the ground and paver base from shifting again, lined the area with weed block fabric like this kind and filled it with paver sand. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for your convenience.)

I take my landscaping projects very seriously. Can't you tell?

Normally you would put a layer of gravel base before you start stacking your pavers but I'm using recyceled brick I got for the price of hauling it away and brick tends to flop over when stacked (which is why smart people use landscaping pavers.) This is why I installed the no dig edging on the side of the brick border that shows because that's the direction my bricks tend to lean. I used a paver base panel like this one instead of gravel to discourage shifting and to guarantee that I am stacking my bricks on an entirely level surface. The paver panel worked like a charm and was so much lighter than hauling, dumping, and leveling bags of gravel ! I'll be using it again.

Finally, I restacked the bricks to make a lower, solid brick structure and brushed this polymeric paver lock sand in the seams to keep the bricks from shifting. While I was at it, I added a new layer of mulch to the flower beds.