hi Jonathan I think you have a great space here with a lot of potential. sure it may cost a little but will only increase the value of your house A nice garden and clean up at the entry will brighten your mood when entering or leaving the house With the Australian lifestyle of always being outside levelling the big area and returfing or paving boarded by a nice garden screening of some old walls as well as feature plants will provide you with a space you and your friends will be able to enjoy. Weather your after a formal garden with some nice boxed hedges or a tropical garden could be more appropriate living by the beach. feel free to contact me for advice on suitable plants once you have worked out the theme your after.

a bathroom is a very challenging place to learn about renovating and needs a range of qualified trades people to do the skilled work in a complex sequence and is very difficult for a homeowner to organise unless you can wait many months for a completed job so it's much easier to employ a builder or specialist bathroom company to organise all the work for you and well worth the extra cost to save your sanity but, before looking for a bathroom builder, i would start by 1. as already suggested.. first learn about the existing spaces ie make a rough hand drawn plan of the existing spaces including all adjoining rooms including lengths of all walls, location of windows and doors and any existing builts ins (measure distance from corners of the room to the outside edge of the architraves around window and doors from both sides and up from the floor, include location of existing bathrooms fixtures and any restrictions like a brick chimney etc.. and what are the walls floors and ceilings built out of? 2. start a HOUZZ ideas book of suitable bathrooms and wiw and visit display homes for ideas ...especially useful to help understand what size spaces feel comfortable and to see the latest ideas for taps, screens etc 3. post your plan on HOUZZ and ask for ideas then 4. once you have an idea of how you want to arrange the spaces contact all the local bathroom renovating companies for a consultation and they will help guide you to find suitable tiles, taps etc...and keep in mind that a builder/bathroom company can easily do the measurements and suggest a floorplan but it's useful for you to first collect ideas so that you have a better idea of what to expect and what you would like to achieve.....

Having a garden drain in good and effective condition is essential to keep our garden dry and our house in optimal condition. A flooded garden can cause a number of landscaping problems and various annoyances that can ruin the backyard of our home. A garden with poor drainage can also direct water to structural locations in the home, which can attract pests, rot, fungus, and mold and ultimately damage the foundation and basement. The water will always reach the lowest point, which means that a poorly drained garden could start to drain the water into the basement. In order to have a dry garden with its drainage working in optimal conditions, it is necessary to effectively drain the flooded areas of the garden and prevent water from moving towards the foundation of the house and running into them. Consequently, we can follow the tips listed below in order to fix the poor drainage of the garden: Adding extensions to downspouts: Downspouts typically run down the sides and corners of a home and are there to draw water coming out of the roof from the foundation and into the home. Sometimes a downspout elbow extension of hydraulic tubing is added to the bottom to direct the water even further from the base, an property service professional can help you with the more complex installation. However, even with these elbows, you may still see water collecting around your house or in puddles too close to the house, so it is an excellent idea to attach these flexible tubes to the end of the downspout to move the water another 4 to 6 meters away from the base. Replace Flooded Soft Gardens with Hard Gardens: If we find too many muddy puddles around the house or parts of the lawn that just won't grow any longer because the water won't run off, let's consider replacing the wet areas with soft gardens with hard gardens. Hard gardens can be gravel, stone, or even concrete. Hard materials like gravel and stones are great because they promote even drainage and don't become puddles. Install a rain barrel: It is not always necessary for the water that runs down the downspouts to end up in puddles on the patio lawn. Instead, this water can be used. Especially in drier regions that experience prolonged periods of dryness and then heavy rains that can quickly flood a garden. In this way, a rain barrel can be the best way to collect rainwater that is totally useful for use at home and for different purposes. Seek help for professional property service and maintenance reconfiguring the downspout the water can be directed to the barrel to collect water and through hydraulic hoses, this same water can be used in the gardens. Lawn aeration: If the soil on your lawn is very compact, it may not adequately absorb rainwater. Aeration creates small holes in the grounds to get in more nutrients, air, and water. Rather than collecting water and puddling, aeration will direct the water into thousands of tiny holes to drain properly aprofessional ground maintenance or gardener/landscaper can do the job. French drain: This type of water system is a cheap and efficient way to manage surface water flow. Surface water moving across your lawn can be difficult to control, but a French drain is a good way to keep water flow under control. To build a French drain, a trench that is filled with permeable materials such as gravel must be dug on top of a perforated PVC hydraulic pipe. The water will flow into the ground, through the gravel, and into the pipe, redirecting the water elsewhere. Install a gutter: If water flows into the house or collects around a concrete driveway, patio, or walkway, then a gutter could help solve these problems. A drainage canal is basically a slim trench cut into cement or asphalt installed in a long drainage channel. When water hits the grate and falls into the gutter drain, the excess water is sent away from the house, garage, or other patio features. Build a stream bed: This is a fun and more creative solution. Instead of digging pipes in the ground, excess water can become a source of water. A stream bed offers the best of all worlds - functionality, and aesthetics. With a wide variety of rocks, river rocks, and gravel, a stream bed can be built that can serve as a channel to carry rainwater away from the house. Even when not in use, a creek bed is a beautiful landscaping feature that looks good and can also be accented with cute plants. Install a dry well: A dry well is simply a well that is installed underground and acts as a collection point for water. The dry well works to slowly distribute the water underground into the surrounding soil. This is a great solution for managing large amounts of water. Adding Underground Hydraulic Drainage Pipes: First, determine where water tends to collect in the garden, and from there install drains and PVC hydraulic pipes or hoses to divert water from the house and garden. Some hot spots of water accumulation are under downspouts and in the lower parts of your yard. Bury a long drain pipe that directs the water and install drains directly in the lawn or under downspouts near the house to effectively remove water and prevent soaking.

A well-designed garden adds enormous economic and functional value to any home, enhancing its appeal, whether for living or for sale. When it comes to landscaping and gardening, a well-designed landscape can add value to your home and ensure that you and your family fully enjoy the outdoors. What is landscaping? Landscaping is the art of designing and building a garden. There are two elements to soft scaping, landscaping and hardscaping. Softscaping is the living part of the garden, plants, trees, and grasses. Gardening is both science and art and needs keen details orientation and creative skills, as well as planning, creativity, and imagination, to project the evolution of that intervened space. What do landscapers do? Landscape Design - Most landscapers will come up with a design to enhance the look and practicality of outdoor space. This includes the choice of flora and design, putting a little more cosmetic touches such as paving, paths, water features, walls, and other creative input to make it more attractive. Landscape Construction: After the landscape design is completed, the landscaper will carry out the construction. If it is a new property, the landscape will be designed from scratch. Existing spaces can be renovated or improved. Brick, woodwork and mosaic, even water fountains, will also come into play if this is part of the design. Hiring a project manager is an important factor to consider, as he or she will manage and coordinate the many contractors who will turn your plans into reality. Frompool builders, bricklayers, carpenters, to painters, among others. Typically landscaping professionals design the garden, put the project in place, manage the project, and ensure that the various elements of the work are completed on time. And how is gardening different? Gardening, more than landscaping, is about the ongoing maintenance of the garden to keep it looking its best. This well-designed landscape remains as planned, just as beautiful and functional. There are a lot of maintenance tasks to carry out, such as: Irrigation Lawn pruning Weed removal Replacement and/or addition of plants. Shrub pruning Tree felling Fertilization Fumigation Something interesting to ask yourself is if you are prepared to perform the required maintenance or if you prefer to hire a professional to do it for you. There are many professional landscaping and landscaping companies that will do quality work for a reasonable cost. If you are planting new plants yourself, a nursery can help you select the correct ones for your garden. Keep in mind issues such as the luminosity of the place where you will go, the necessary amount of irrigation, and the type of soil, in addition to the temperature. Choosing plants for your local conditions means that they will thrive. Things to consider before hiring a landscaper. There are several things that will affect a landscape design. These include the presence of pets, if you have children, if you want something functional or simply a relaxation space if you need a pool or Jacuzzi, other uses such as the construction of gardens, the amount of maintenance you are prepared to perform, and the budget you have. A landscaping project can be quite costly, so a good rule of thumb to try to maintain it is to spend no more than ten percent of your home's total value on the garden. This amount of money includes all the elements of the garden, not just the plants. If you are initially on a limited budget, try to spread the project over several years as your budget allows. Because a new garden is such a big expense, try to keep the design as simple and classic as possible, to make it durable and timeless. Then you can go incorporating plants and decorative elements. When to hire ground maintenance? A landscaping professional can perform many tasks for you, such as design consultations, vendor coordination, obtaining municipal permits, supplying materials, and handling payments. This is included in project management and theprofessional ground maintenance may charge a fee for this service, so it is best to ask what their fee is, if any, before hiring them. How to hire a landscaper? If you need a landscaper or gardener, First request estimates. Try to give as much data as possible so that the budget fits your needs. A visit is likely required. Then review the professional's qualifications and references and ask what experience they have had. Another important point is to be able to see photos or videos of previous work. You may want to make sure the professionals share your design taste. Minimalist style garden There are those with minimalist tendencies, to the use of native, exotic, or succulent plants. There are those who prefer trees and those who prefer bushes and bushes. Check first. If you hire aprofessional for garden maintenance, ask what their service fees are. Compare rates to get an idea of how much things cost. Ask what experience they have and be sure to see their qualifications. If possible, get referrals from other clients. If you need a landscaper or gardener, you can Note: All HomeSolution.net professionals have been recommended by the community and have gone through an identity and professional data review process. Then they have been acquiring different professional labels and have received the qualification for each job carried out through the platform.