How to add drainage before laying artificial turf?

Hi there first time home owner, need to get my hands dirty to lay an artificial grass.

house has L shaped landscape where corner of house is wider and back has tiered volcanic rocks.

Need some advice on below

- drainage: is it ok to lay french drain on highlighted corner next to the fence ( already has marked gradient slope running down to fence) or does it need to be in the middle? (Pic1 side)

soil is quite clayish and sticks to boots when wet so should i use pvc or ag pipe with sleeve?

planning to put artificial grass here and it already has a slope using no infill balm tuff turf from Bunnings that needs no infill

- do i need to dig at all and if yes then which equipment i need to hire from Bunnings to dig and level before i lay road base (pic 2 side) above

I was thinking not to dig and just compact everything after laying french drain

- have volcanic rocks at back which are quite permeable so should i concrete at the back at all to the rock or dont do concrete rather go for mulch with some top soil or pebbles.? (Pic 3 and 4 back) not laying grass here

professional landcapers i cant afford so reached out to local bunnings store who said he cant help and would really appreciate any help ^^

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Comments

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Vaz. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about landscaping.

For the drainage, putting the French drain next to the fence should work well since the slope is already directing water that way. You don't necessarily need to put it in the middle as long as it's catching the water. Since you're dealing with clay soil, I'd recommend using socked draincoil. This will help prevent clogging from the fine particles in the soil.

As for digging, yes, you’ll need to dig to prepare the ground for the road base, especially if you're laying a French drain. After the digging, compacting everything will give you a solid base for the artificial grass. We hire compactors if you need one.

For the volcanic rocks at the back, I'd avoid concreting them. It's better to use mulch, topsoil, or even pebbles to keep the area more natural and drainable. Since you're not laying grass here, keeping it simple with mulch or pebbles would be a cost-effective and practical solution.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

Vaz

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/43025#Comment_43025

Thanks Mitchell, what a legend.thanks for your support.

I will stay in touch and cant wait to showcase my progress.

Can i please ask how much should I aim to dig for road base before i lay the turf

aiming to go for this brand - https://www.bunnings.com.au/tuff-turf-1-8-x-5m-40mm-pile-balm-tuff-synthetic-turf_p0333040

thanks in advance

MitchellMc

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/83630#Comment_83630

Here's the installation video for Tuff Turf @Vaz.

You want to lower the ground 100mm from your desired finished height. You'll then lay 60-70mm of roadbase and compact it. A 20mm of crusher dust or sand over the top of that and compact again. You'll then be 10-15mm below your finished height. Next, you can lay the turf and you should be bang on your finished height.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

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