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What can I put along the foundation of A pole building to prevent wee

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lbrown59
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2006-05-14          129354




What can I put along the foundation of A pole building to prevent weeds from growing so that I don't have to weed whack after mowing?


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kwschumm
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2006-05-14          129355

Chemical? There are non-selective herbicides and soil sterilizers that will keep anything from growing for a long time. NOXALL is one brand but there are others. ....

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lbrown59
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2006-05-15          129373

I've thought about laying 9 to 12 inch wide strips on the ground along the foundation wall.
The thing is what material do I use to make the strips out of?
....

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Murf
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2006-05-15          129374

The usual solution is to make a border along the edge of the wall by removing a little dirt, putting down landscaping cloth (to prevent growth,) and covering it with gravel.

In most areas you can also get coloured gravel if the 'decorator' in the family has any input.

If the gravel ends up flush with the grass, or slightly lower, then the added advantage is you can mow right over it and there is no trimming required.

Also, if there are no evestroughs, the gravel prevents erosion and mud splashing up the wals caused from rain water pouring off the roof.

Best of luck. ....

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JasonR
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2006-05-15          129376

I've down almost exactly what Murf is recommending for my building.

I went with thick plastic under the following: 8 x 16 x 1 blocks about 20 inches from the perimiter of the building. Between the blocks and the building colored lava rocks.

This solved two issues - mud splashing up on the side of the building, and I can easily mow around it, as there is an 8" buffer of block between the rocks and the grass. ....

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Iowafun
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2006-05-15          129386

Be careful using black plastic and watch the grade/slope. I have a pole barn and the previous owner/builder put down black plastic and covered it with decorative rock. My problems are described below:
1. The slope isn't right and the black plastic doesn't let water through. So the water runs into the barn on the one side producing and almost constant mud spot right by the light switch. Stand in mud and flip the electrical thingy...
2. The plastic doesn't let water through. So it has to go somewhere. Bad sloping caused it to concentrate in one area. It worked it's way through the sandy soil in the spot producing a sink-hole effect. Bad hole, I could see down a good 3-5 feet. That sucked to repair.
3. My repair for #2: Removed all the gravel into loader bucket by hand, pull up all the plastic, replace gravel.

If you use an anti-weed barrier, stick with something that will let the water through cause it has to go somewhere. I learned that lesson thanks to the previous owner. I still have more sections to fix, but that takes time and a lot of work that I dread doing. ....

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JasonR
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2006-05-15          129391

Yikes, and to think I never installed a barrier that let water through that didn't eventually let the weeds through.

Yes, you must be careful with plastic. Luckily, my application had about 4-6" of slope away from the building (over the 20") so water puddles aren't an issue. ....

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earthwrks
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2006-05-15          129400

I'd use new or old roofing shingles laid face down and end to end with about a 2" overlap. They're also good for laying under a fence line where it's hard to mow under the bottom rail. And since they're temporary you can always pull them up if need be. ....

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kwschumm
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2006-05-15          129401

Anyone ever try laying down strips of artificial turf? Seems like a good way to keep weeds from growing and it may not look to bad either. ....

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brokenarrow
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2006-05-15          129407

kwschumm (In my opinion) had it 100% correct in the very first answer. Chemical for the weed control. You can add anything you want for decoration, mud suppresants, etc. but
if you want low maintanance, easy to apply, weed control, use 41% glyshophate. ....

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lbrown59
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2006-05-16          129416

Anyone ever try laying down strips of artificial turf? Seems like a good way to keep weeds from growing and it may not look to bad either.
++++++++++++++++++
I think cost would be the biggest hurdle as I've herd that this stuff is pretty expensive .
....

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lbrown59
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2006-05-16          129417

I'd use new or old roofing shingles laid face down and end to end with about a 2'' overlap
***************
This is very close to what I had in mind.
I'm thinking about rolled roofing cut into 12 inch strips instead of the roofing shingles.
The thing I haven't figured out is how to cut off the 12" strips the length of the roll.

Need suggestions on how to do this. ....

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kwschumm
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2006-05-16          129419

Couldn't you just cut through the entire roll with a bow saw or band saw? ....

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earthwrks
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2006-05-16          129429

The shingles are going to be easier to lay down especially if the ground (and existing weeds) are irregular the rolled material will have a lot of waves in it. And the wind could catch it easier that way. ....

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kthompson
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2006-05-16          129430

Plastic, not letting water through!

I used black plastic for years before the stuff they now sell for weed control came out (yes I am old)with no water ponding problem.

Before you unfold the plastic take a pitchfork and push holes through it. You can do this with a nail after you unfold it but it takes much longer. The water will soak through and those holes are normally small enough weeds will not grow through. It does keep the ground more moist than the modern cloth does, but I like it much better.

Another method, plant flowers there or shrubs. ....

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Iowafun
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2006-05-16          129434

The rock down does prevent errosion off the roof. For weed control, I just mix up a gallon or so of roundup and spray every month or so. Usually takes care of the problem with little effort. ....

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DenisS
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2006-05-16          129436

I hate to say it, but the problem with all of these suggestions is that they are not long term. Sooner or later, dust and dirt with get on top of what ever barrier you're using and you'll have grass growing in that dirt. If you want a long term solution, put some time into it: dig 8-10 inches into the ground around the barn, lay down and level some gravel and pour concrete over the gravel, sloping away from the barn slightly. I know it's far more expensive than laying some roofing paper on the ground, but how long do you expect that paper to hold before it rots? ....

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kthompson
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2006-05-16          129444

I would not think roofing would rot very quickly. I would think the air from nature or mower would be the first thing that gets to it.


....

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SG8NUC
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2006-05-16          129447

I used roofing paper, it lasted for a couple of years with no traffic. It rotted and weeds came up through it. Landscaping material will last for years never seen any of it rot.

Horsefarmer is correct sooner or later, unless you provide year round maintance, dust and dirt will collect and grow weeds even on concrete. I have used carpet and that works as good as anything and its free. I use the carpet around the edge of my garden as a walk way and on the sea wall to hold in the backfilled dirt. Water will drain right through $15.00 a yard Burber carpet. Cenpede grass will grow right on top of the carpet thicker than in the yard. If you are going to use roundup buy a lot of it, concentrate, the brush killer is the best. ....

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earthwrks
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2006-05-16          129450

SG8: The rolled roofing we're talking about isn't felt or tar paper; it's like shingle material but in a wide roll like tar paper. As far as rotting, I've never seen anything with asphalt in it rot. ....

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SG8NUC
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2006-05-16          129451

you are correct, I just wanted him to know not to use the paper. I have used shingles and they worked fine. ....

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DenisS
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2006-05-16          129452

earthwrks,
rot was probably not the best word to use. But like KT said, it would degrade overtime. What's worse, it's gonna be degraded worse in some spots (where there's lots of sun) and less in others leading to irregular weed growth.

Also, unless you slide that paper right underneath the frame of the building (which may lead to flooding), you're going to have weeds growing just between the wall and the edge of the paper. They'll be pretty happy there, too.

I guess Murf had the best overall suggestion about laying gravel, but like I said, in 3 to 5 years you'll never know you had gravel there, unless you apply pesticides every couple of weeks of the growing season. Another thing to think about is how those pesticides will affect the finish on the pole building where you're applying it. You may get staining or bleaching, especially on the sunny side. ....

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DenisS
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2006-05-16          129453

correction: sorry, I meant rolled roofing, not paper in the last post. ....

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lbrown59
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2006-05-16          129459

1*I would not think roofing would rot very quickly. I would think the air from nature or the mower would be the first thing that gets to it.
2*I have used carpet and that works as good as anything and its free.
3*The rolled roofing we're talking about isn't felt or tar paper; it's like shingle material but in a wide roll like tar paper.
4*As far as rotting, I've never seen anything with asphalt in it rot.
5* I guess Murf had the best overall suggestion about laying gravel, but like I said, in 3 to 5 years you'll never know you had gravel there,

~~~~~~~~~~

1*Roof shingles have a 20 and 25 year warranty - I don't know what the life span of rolled roofing is but would assume it to be some where in that neighborhood also.
2* My cousin has a dirt floor in a garage he built several years ago. He covered the dirt floor with different sizes and pieces of carpet about ten years ago.
You don't even realize you are walking on carpet unless you stop and think about it.
3*Right It comes in 3 foot wide by 33 foot long rolls if I remember right. I have almost a full roll left over from a project I diid last summer. Might be enough in it. to do most of the pole barn as I only need 112 feet. I also have a pretty long piece of another older roll. Between the 2 I may not need to buy any more.
4* That's one reason they wont accept shingles and roofing in landfills. Another is some of the older stuff contains asbestos.
5*I know what you mean there. Last summer I had slag spread in front of my other pole building for a drive way. It was about 4'' deep. Today you can't even tell its there. The grass has already grown up through it to where it looks just like the rest of the yard.
....

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lbrown59
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2006-05-16          129460

A special thanks to all who replied . ....

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Murf
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2006-05-17          129470

I think a re-read is in order.

"The usual solution is to make a border along the edge of the wall by removing a little dirt, putting down landscaping cloth (to prevent growth,) and covering it with gravel."

Without the landscape fabric, the gravel will indeed disappear in short order. With it in place, and covered, it will be many, many years before anything grows there.

I have some down in places that has been there well over 15 years, and there is still no sign of any growth.

Best of luck. ....

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DenisS
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2006-05-17          129471

Murf, for sure I took notice of your mention of landscaping cloth. I would venture to say you've also been applying pesticides to those areas for 15 years. I think pesticides have had far more to do with the lack of growth than any landscaping cloth. I speak from my own experience. I bought a house with a lot of "cloth and gravel" landscaping all around the house, the shrubs and trees. I only found out that it was there after I started digging to lay new drainage or plant new shrubs, etc. I would have never even known the stuff was there! The grass and dirt was all over it.

Maybe another difference is in the climate. It gets pretty hot and humid here in NJ from May to September, so maybe things grow much easier here than up in Canada. ....

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JasonR
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2006-05-17          129472

I have to chime in here...

I have plastic under my gravel (lava rock), and I'm going on year 4 - and I haven't pulled a weed yet. No pesticides needed - as nothing grows there.

I know different people have different experiences, but if you put a high quality landscape cloth or plastic under your gravel you should have very little, if any, issues. ....

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Murf
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2006-05-17          129474

HF, no pesticides at all. Healthy turf doesn't need it.

I suspect it has more to do with "The grass and dirt was all over it." than anything else. Landscape fabric has no chemical growth inhibitors or anything in it that will stop plants growing ON TOP of it.

The weather is pretty warm here too, I'm only a little less than 300 miles north of you, and don't have the Atlantic Ocean to moderate the summer heat.

Best of luck. ....

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kwschumm
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2006-05-17          129475

The success or failure of the landscape fabric & gravel approach may have to due with how much dust and dirt blows around in your area. During dry periods we have quite a bit of dust blowing around. It accumulates in gutters and on the roof. Eventually enough dirt accumulates in the gutters to support weed growth. It takes a year or two for this to happen and then I need to clean the gutters. Weeds would grow on top of landscape fabric in a few years here. ....

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DenisS
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2006-05-17          129476

Murf, the moderating infuence of the Atlantic means that we in the plains of South Jersey get 80% and upwards humidity AND 90F and upwards heat for a good portion of the summer. If that's moderation, I don't want any part of it :)

I guess the point that I originally tried to make is that all lanscaping requires maintenance, the less work you want to get away with now will mean more work for you down the line. ....

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Murf
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2006-05-17          129478

HF, I know just how bad it gets, I spent some time at Quantico, it's not any cooler there.

But I do agree, there will always be some maintenance, it's just a matter of trying to keep it to a minimum.

Best of luck. ....

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