Investing in Quality With Landscape Construction

NOVATO — One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make with landscape construction is cutting costs with quality. While this may save money in the short term, it often ends up costing more later when things need to be repaired or rebuilt.

One area where this often occurs is materials. For example, when building a retaining wall, some homeowners opt for hollow concrete blocks to save money. However, since they aren’t solid concrete, these blocks often lack the weight to ensure structural stability. Most homeowners don’t realize that hollow concrete blocks aren’t intended for building structures higher than three feet tall, so when their five-foot retaining wall fails after a couple of years, it can be a rude awakening.

Another example is patio stones. Some homeowners will opt for a cheap sandstone product only to find that it breaks down after a couple of seasons. A better choice for an outdoor patio is a hardy material like travertine stone.

Another thing homeowners sometimes skimp on with landscape construction is proper drainage measures. Since it’s not a cosmetic thing, they think they don’t need it. However, when the ground swells up during the rainy season, it can cause parts of the installation to buckle. This scenario can be easily avoided by implementing proper drainage measures during construction.

Rather than forgoing crucial measures to save a few dollars on your landscape construction project, a better strategy is to invest in quality up front to maximize long-term value.