skirting

[Carol]

My skirting has dropped which makes the top of it that holds it in place, now sag.
I have a gravel stone base for the skirting and feel that with rain etc. this must have settled or something. A neighbor recommended that a 2 by 4 be placed under the skirting all the way around to give it the height it has lost and to tighten the top of the skirting up. Has anyone ever tried this or does anyone have other recommendations? I would appreciate any help with this since I want to get it taken care of when the weather warms up. Thanks

[Tom]

Carol, I dont like using the wood as a base. In colder climates, frost heave will push against the wood and possibly cause the skirting to bow. The opposite problem of what you have now. Skirting that is not cut correctly at the onset can give you lots of problems, such as what your experiencing. A correct installation is the key. If its cut to short, you will always have the problem. But, if you use gravel, which by the way is not a bad option, you probably should add more and compact it down as best you can. Eventually you will build up enough of a base that it wont be effected by frost heave so much. But for a period of time your going to have to keep an eye on it and add more each season, just not as much as time goes on. By the way, yours is not a unique problem, this time of year its not unusual to see skirting laying on the ground as the ground thaws. Its finding the happy medium that solves it. Tom

[rob]

place a landscape timber under your skirting. The new height will allow you to
weed eat around the placwe much easier too.