A full dig-out at scale
Digging out 105m² by hand would have taken days. We used a mini digger to excavate the whole area to depth, and a grab lorry to take the soil and old paving away, which kept the site clear and the job on programme.
Case study · Forest Hill SE23 · July 2026
105m² porcelain patio in Forest Hill
Elian's house in Forest Hill now has 105m² of new porcelain paving wrapping around the back and side. We dug the whole area out with a mini digger, built new bases, installed French drains all along the house, and laid five pallets of London Stone porcelain to an exact 1:60 fall. Two weeks, £23,850 all in.
- Location
- Forest Hill, SE23
- Client
- Elian
- Price
- £23,850 inc. VAT
- Time on site
- 2 weeks
- Area
- 105m² of porcelain
- Fall
- Exactly 1:60
Where we started
The brief
Elian's detached house in Forest Hill had an old, worn patio and uneven ground around the back and side. The plan was one large, level, modern surface linking every door to the garden and staying dry against the house.
At 105m², this was a big area to get right. The levels had to carry rainwater away from the building, and water collecting along the walls had to be dealt with properly. It is the kind of large project we take on for patios in Forest Hill, where many homes sit on sloping clay ground.
Before & after
The same garden, two weeks apart
The tricky parts
What made this job work
Step by step
How we built it
Dig-out with a mini digger
The old patio and soil were dug out across all 105m² with a mini digger, and a grab lorry removed the waste.
Mini digger digging out the old patio in Forest Hill 
Excavating around the side of the house French drains along the house
A trench was dug along the house and French drains were installed with perforated pipe, so water is carried away from the walls.
French drain pipe laid in the trench along the house wall 
Drainage trench beside the brickwork New bases set to a 1:60 fall
New bases were laid and levelled across the whole area, set to an exact 1:60 fall away from the house.
New base laid across the patio area 
Base levelled to the planned fall Laying the porcelain
Five pallets of London Stone porcelain were laid across the back and side of the house, then the joints were finished and the patio cleaned for handover.
Laying the large-format porcelain slabs 
Porcelain patio taking shape around the house
Video
Before and after on video
The old patio and ground around the house before the dig-out.
A walk round the new porcelain patio, laid to a 1:60 fall with French drains along the house.
The finished work
Photos from handover
Budget
What it cost
This project cost £23,850 including VAT, all in: the full dig-out with a mini digger, grab lorry waste removal, new bases, French drains along the house, five pallets of London Stone porcelain and labour, over two weeks. That works out at roughly £227 per square metre for the complete job. See our patios in Forest Hill page for smaller projects.
Get a free quote- Price
- £23,850 inc. VAT
- Time on site
- 2 weeks
- Area
- 105m² of porcelain
Questions
About large porcelain patios
Thinking about something similar? These are the questions we hear most.
How much does a large porcelain patio cost in Forest Hill?
Elian's 105m² porcelain patio in Forest Hill SE23 cost £23,850 including VAT, covering the dig-out, new bases, French drains, London Stone porcelain, waste removal and labour. That is roughly £227 per square metre for the full job.
What fall should a patio have?
A patio needs a gentle fall so rain runs off instead of pooling. We set this one to exactly 1:60, which means it drops 1cm for every 60cm, away from the house towards the garden.
Why install French drains along the house?
Water collecting against a house wall can cause damp and staining. A French drain is a gravel-filled trench with a perforated pipe that collects that water and carries it away, keeping the walls and the patio edge dry.
How long does a 105m² patio take?
This one took two weeks from dig-out to handover, including the drainage and new bases. A mini digger and grab lorry make a big difference on an area this size.
Do you work near Forest Hill?
Yes, including Sydenham, Honor Oak, Brockley and Catford. See all our landscaping in Forest Hill.
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Planning a big patio project?
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020 3633 5529 info@finelandscape.co.ukFine Landscape Ltd
31 Tylecroft Road, Norbury, London SW16 4BL
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