[phantasm72]

Looking for a few ideas on landscaping over concrete.
I had a double attached garage that has been converted into living space and obviously I have the old driveway leading up to the house. Was hoping to get a few ideas on what to do with it. Tearing it out is not an option, as there is room beneath it. Im in Ontario, so I get the extreme temps in summer and winter.

 

[Nealtw]

Looking for a few ideas on landscaping over concrete.
I had a double attached garage that has been converted into living space and obviously I have the old driveway leading up to the house. Was hoping to get a few ideas on what to do with it. Tearing it out is not an option, as there is room beneath it. Im in Ontario, so I get the extreme temps in summer and winter.

The room below it extends under the driveway, are you sure?

 

[phantasm72]

The room below it extends under the driveway, are you sure?

haha of course, its my house. The area under the driveway is its own room - 20x30' - all below grade, so no windows or anything - lovingly known as the dungeon. Not sure its original purpose - but its there, and its not going away without a heck of a lot of material...

 

[Nealtw]

haha of course, its my house. The area under the driveway is its own room - 20x30' - all below grade, so no windows or anything - lovingly known as the dungeon. Not sure its original purpose - but its there, and its not going away without a heck of a lot of material...

I would imagine it is over engineered for the weight you put on it.
We put 2 ft high concrete walls on top a of an apartment parking garage, for raised gardens

 

[3onthetree]

If you put a soil layer on top of it, won't it then be above your sill plate/wall of the garage door fill-in, and above the adjacent grade that is probably even with the top of driveway?

 

[DoomsDave]

@phantasm72, could you take a picture? Or two from different angles?

Having concrete details to see will make it easier to come up with constructive suggestions.

Wow, a house with its very own dungeon! Bet that will be fun to market when the time comes! :devil3:

I'm originally from Ohio, your near neighbor (sort of) so I know a lot more about frost heaving, etc., than I'd like.

I'd be careful about just piling dirt on top of the slab.

Perhaps our stalwart contributors have ideas about waterproofing the bottoms of concrete planters.

Or, maybe plant urns or fancy pots with seasonal flowers/vegetables? Maybe turn it into a nice garden-like off-street parking space?

 

[phantasm72]

Building up isn't really an option, as since it use to be a garage, obviously their isn't much height difference between the interior and the grade of the driveway.
Was thinking of tiling it over, just to give it more of a patio appearance than old driveway, but worried it might be dangerously slick in winter plus snow removal would be much harder...

 

[dd57chevy]

A lot of people would keep it simple & use containers for flowers , vegetables , etc .

Raising the soil grade height in this case probably won't turn out well...…..

 

[DoomsDave]

Building up isn't really an option, as since it use to be a garage, obviously their isn't much height difference between the interior and the grade of the driveway.
Was thinking of tiling it over, just to give it more of a patio appearance than old driveway, but worried it might be dangerously slick in winter plus snow removal would be much harder...

Give us a picture! I'll bet one of our resident geniuses can come up with something specific and pretty.

There are relatively non-slippery tiles you could use to tile it over and make it prettier. Maybe put up canopy or umbrellas in the summer.

Some of the fired clay tiles are textured to make them less slippery, though snow removal might be a problem, especially if there's grout between the tiles.

DON'T just cover it up with dirt. It won't hide anything; it will stick out like a sore thumb because conditions will be different from the surrounding soil. It might also cause the dungeon to leak.

 

[Heathersdad]

Seems like ur implying the driveway is structurally part of the room below ? If it is not, just tear our the driveway; if it is, just paint it green to match surrounding lawn and be done with it.