The patio offers the privacy you deserve in the backyard.
But if you are in the process of rethinking how it is laid, the information you are about to get here could help you turn the space into it a remarkable centerpiece.
So, Should Your Patio Be Higher Than the Lawn?
The answer is YES, here are two reasons why:
1. An Elevation Is Necessary to Create Distinction and Prevent Grass Encroachment
Patios are raised slightly by default so you don’t have to deal with creeping grass that crawls into the space to ruin it with unwanted moisture.
Turf grass can overgrow with minimal rain and sun, eventually overtaking the structure and crawling inside.
Once the grass encroaches into your patio, keeping bugs and pests away becomes a challenge.
It alters the health and look of your beautiful relaxing space and makes it more demanding to maintain or restore its original look.
Need for Distinction
A clear border is necessary for orderliness on your flower bed, especially if it borders the patio.
Building your patio level with the garden may make it difficult to define the border because the soil will keep spilling over during maintenance.
It only makes you elevate your patio and repurpose the time you would’ve spent restoring the border.
Ease Of Maintenance
Still, on grass – a raised patio makes cutting the grass and maintaining the lawn easier.
You just run your mower on it or trim the grass against the patio’s edge.
2. Raised Patios Rarely Flood or Get Waterlogged
Just picture the scenario – you built your patio level with the rest of your backyard but didn’t know the area is prone to flooding in rainy seasons.
Since it lacks the elevation to keep off the water, instead of the floodwater stopping at the border – the water flows in and turns into a pool.
In addition to flooding, waterlogging is common on patios built level with the backyard.
If your locality is prone to flooding, raise your patio just in case.
The Patio Floor Should Slope Too
Raising your patio above the lawn does a great job of nipping your moisture problems in the bud, but that alone is not enough.
For maximum protection, the patio’s floor should be built to slope slightly to one side.
The sloping floor prevents rainwater from forming pools and works with the elevation to avoid flooding.
What’s the Difference Between a Deck and A Patio?
Elevation can be understood better by understanding the difference between outdoor structures.
Many people need clarification on decks/porches and patios.
- Decks/porches are roofed that extend slightly from the property.
- Decks are traditionally raised 5.5” off the ground, about three times higher than patios.
On the other hand, a patio is a paved section laid directly on the ground. It can be detached or attached to the home.
The main difference is that decks are typically attached to the home, whereas patios may be detached depending on the owner’s goals.
Also, the deck floor rarely comes into direct contact with the ground.
While patios are traditionally built to sit directly on the ground, using certain materials may warrant a separation, but that’s still rare.
So We Agreed the Patio Should Be Higher Than the Lawn, But How High?
The perfect patio must stand 5″ – 1.5″ above the ground.
That specific range is recommended for two reasons.
Firstly, this height is significant enough to discourage creepers and other invasive grasses from invading the patio’s floor.
The second advantage of this height is that it prevents dirt and water from washing into the patio.
Get The Slope Right
Another feature of an ideal patio is a 1 – 2 percent slope difference between it and the yard.
The slope should increase with every 1 ft. traveled.
A slope outside the above range would be either too low to show any difference or too steep to give you trouble walking in from the yard.
For homeowners with inconsistent yards, the best approach is to locate the easiest part to level up and build your patio there.
The Patio May Still Appear Level Even If It’s Already Raised
It is also worth knowing that the recommended height of 5″ – 1-5″ and slope of 1 – 2 can be hard to detect even at close range.
That’s why some patios appear flat with the rest of the yard until you get close enough.
Should A Patio Stand Level with Backyard Grass?
The answer is YES but not worth the trouble. While the patio should be consistent with the rest of the landscape (height-wise), an inch above the grass would be alright.
Also, whether to level up with grass or not will boil down to your taste.
Different types of lawn grass are only cut at specific heights.
Different heights take different periods to achieve.
It’s too difficult to try and match the heights of the grass and the patio.
Be Moderate With Your Grass
Remember to keep your grass reasonably cut for better results. If you trim it too lowly, the patio will appear to stand too much above the ground, which may not be very appealing.
On the other hand, trimming it too high makes the patio appear to sink into the grass, which is just as unappealing.
My Contractor Made a Mistake. Should I Raise My Patio Above the Lawn?
Raising the patio any further would be unwise because you will keep raising it until you blow a ton of money and time.
So, you must have a lot of time and money to go down that route.
Conclusion
Your patio has to stand taller than your lawn though smaller than your deck.
There are several good reasons for that.
Firstly, height is necessary to keep the lawn grass in check.
Secondly, the border between your patio and the lawn may be less defined if the grass is allowed to overgrow it.
Such a situation would ruin the lawn’s and the patio’s aesthetics.
