Aberdare has more variety in its garden walls than most valley towns. The larger older houses often sit behind long stone boundaries, sometimes with mature trees growing right beside them. The Victorian terraces have their own mix of stone and brick walls holding up sloping back gardens. And the newer estates on the valley floor and sides bring brick and block walls of a very different age. Almost all of them share one thing: a lot of Cynon Valley rain.
Tony and the team repair, rebuild and build new brickwork and garden walls across Aberdare, along with steps, piers and raised beds. Every visit and quote is free, so tell us about your wall. Our Aberdare landscaping page covers the rest of what we do in town.
Our six kinds of brickwork, and how each tends to come up in Aberdare's mix of period houses, terraces and estates.
Long boundary walls around Aberdare's larger older houses were often built in local stone, and when we build new sections we try to carry on the same character rather than dropping a modern brick run into the middle.
Behind the terraces on the valley sides, Aberdare gardens usually need retaining walls to hold the levels, and we build them with stone backfill and weep holes because the ground here is so often wet.
Stone steps on older Aberdare plots are frequently worn, uneven or loose, and we reset or rebuild them so every rise is the same and the treads sit firm.
On the newer estates around Aberdare, brick planters and low patio walls give a flat, open garden some shape and a place for shrubs with better soil than the ground left behind by the builders.
Gate piers on period houses in Aberdare are often the first thing to go, cracked by a heavy gate or pushed by roots, and we rebuild them on a proper footing with a cap that sheds the rain.
Repointing, taking out ivy, rebuilding bowed sections and replacing broken coping are a large part of our Aberdare work, because so many of the town's walls are well over a century old.
A long stone boundary is part of what gives a period house its presence, and it is worth keeping. The trouble is that these walls were usually built in lime mortar, which slowly washes out in wet weather, and many have been patched over the years with hard cement that traps water in the stone. Frost then does the damage, and sections start to bow or drop their coping.
We look at each length separately. Sound stretches are repointed in a mortar that suits the wall, loose copes are reset, and only sections that have really moved are taken down and rebuilt on a new footing, reusing the original stone where it is good. Matching the joint colour and finish matters as much as matching the stone.
Many of Aberdare's larger gardens have big trees near their boundaries. As a trunk thickens and roots spread, they can lift a footing, push a wall out of line or crack it from below. Ivy growing through the joints adds to the problem by prising the stones apart.
Sometimes the tree needs pruning or its roots need bridging with a lintel or a gap in the footing; sometimes the wall is best rebuilt a little further away. Removing a large tree is not always the answer, and trees in conservation areas or under a preservation order need consent before work. Check with Rhondda Cynon Taf council first, and see our tree surgery in Aberdare page if the tree itself needs attention.
Careful repair of what is worth keeping, and new walls built for the valley's weather.
We only take down what has really moved, and reuse sound stone so the wall keeps its character.
Older walls get a mortar that suits them, not a hard mix that traps water and speeds up frost damage.
Drainage behind retaining walls and coping that sheds rain are part of every job we price.
Walls sit alongside fencing in Aberdare, paving and lawns, so we plan them together.
Behind the terraces, the jobs are about levels. A garden that climbs from the back door is usually split into two or three flat areas, each held by a retaining wall and joined by steps. We set the footings on firm ground, drain the back of every retaining wall and build the steps with an even rise so the garden is easy to use in all weathers.
Our local guide to garden walls and steps in Aberdare goes into the options, and terraced garden design in the Cynon Valley looks at how to plan the levels as a whole.
Aberdare gets a lot of rain, and garden walls feel it more than houses because they are exposed on every side. We use bricks rated for the exposure, keep flat tops to a minimum, and make sure water behind a retaining wall has somewhere to go. The guide to wet-weather garden planning in Aberdare covers the drainage side, and garden wall foundations explains the groundwork.
Real reviews from homeowners across Aberdare — rated 4.8 out of 5 on Google from 69 reviews and 10/10 on Checkatrade.
“Had my patio done by the company and could not be happier. Top quality work done and quickly too.”
“I was pleased to find Tony and his lads were absolutely great! Tony responded quickly & was very polite.”
“We were delighted with the work and materials, which were of very high quality. Tony and team helped us.”
Local and practical guides to help you plan the work.
One team for the whole garden, so a single visit can price everything you have in mind.
We cover Aberdare and the towns around it. Choose another area below.
T J Landscapes South Wales
24 Conway Road, Pontypool
Torfaen, NP4 6HL
We cover homes right across South Wales, from Cardiff and the coast up to the valleys and the Brecon Beacons.
In most cases, yes. We reuse the original stone where it is sound and look for reclaimed or new stone of a similar colour and size to make up the rest. Matching the mortar and joint style is just as important.
Not necessarily. Roots can sometimes be bridged, or the wall rebuilt slightly away from the trunk. If the tree is protected or you are in a conservation area, you will need consent before any tree work, so check with the council first.
Yes. On newer plots we build low front walls, boundary walls to replace worn fencing, planters and steps, usually in brick or rendered block to suit the house.
How much of the wall needs repointing or rebuilding, whether stone can be reused, footing depth, access, the height of the wall and how much waste has to go. We give free quotes, so get in touch.
Tell us whether it is a repair, a rebuild or something new, roughly how big it is and where in Aberdare you are, and we will arrange a free visit.
