collapsing patio

[whellpower]

I would phone the man who did the work,ask him if he could have a look if it's definitely moved. Have you tried laying a spirit level on it,to see if it is moving downwards? Who's garden is that the other side & is it always flooded like that? The photo doesn't show the patio underneath area,just the decking? Do the patio slabs have a gap underneath? Im just trying to understand,is the patio floating too & pulling the wall down,or just the floating decking? Or is all that water sinking everything?

Thanks for your advice
I am unable to contact the guy who did the work unfortunately.
I will try to explain the situation better.
Before the structure was installed there was just a huge unsightly slab of concrete with a flower bed and some steps leading from the concrete down to the garden. They build a frame for the decking and laid that first. then they laid built the 'wall' and backfilled the area with hardcore and topped with sand then laid the slabs.
sorry to confuse, i think the water was just some dish water my wife threw out of the back door :-)

[whellpower]

Having now seen the photos, I'm a bit puzzled as to why the structure is needed in the first place. It should be possible to construct a timber deck without a "Backboard" I'd be for getting someone with a stihl type saw and cutting the posts down to deck level.

How are the posts fixed into the ground? How deep are they in and were they concreted in place?

Despite me criticising the "backboard" I appreciate you may like it and may wish to keep it. If a customer of mine asked me to rescue it, subject to knowing the posts were concreted into place, I'd be for making a simple buttress (or three to be precise) behind each of the three posts having made suitable foundations down to the hard using concrete blocks. Not pretty but normally effective.

If the posts are just set into the ground, I'd be for hoiking them out and then digging down to the hard and resetting them with concrete.

Thanks for your response.

The posts were concreted in and they looked pretty deep to me, I realise the boarding is not pretty but the plan was to decorate it better eventually, all the materials were reclaimed :-) it is only there because we were joining two areas of different heights.

I had hoped it wouldnt be a case of re-setting the fence posts but it looks like I maye have to do it!

[Guest]

IMO but I am not a tradesmen so feel free to ignore. You need a more substantial retaining wall don't just brace what you have as there is a lot of weight and pressure against it if it is 3ft high. Also it worries me if the slabs are laid on sand and just the joints mortared as this would definitely cause movement. I would expect hardcore, wacker plated down and cemented down.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Having read the short description of the way the work was carried out providing the hardcore was compacted properly i.e. roller or wacker plated then that should not be a problem. It is acceptable to lay slabs on sand, you will find most block pavers work this way and then grout the joints with sand to comply with building regs about free drainage.

If the hardcore was not compacted that could cause a problem and the patio could be sinking, this could also cause the uprights to lean.

Have you actually had a level on the uprights to prove the point that they are leaning?