Ideas to Use Timber Sleepers

In this blog, we're presenting a diverse array of softwood sleeper ideas that highlight their versatility and decorative potential. These examples showcase how previous customers have creatively incorporated them into their garden designs.

Ensure you select treated wooden sleepers with extended guarantees, such as our products covered by our 25-year Jakcure guarantee. Additionally, keep in mind that sleepers come in various variations beyond square-edged, as demonstrated by some of the ideas below.

BENCHES AND SEATS

A bench or seat crafted from sleepers adds a touch of simplicity and charm to any garden space. For safety and comfort, we highly recommend using sleepers or https://www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk/fencing/landscape-timber-sleepers/jakwall-ungrooved. Creating a basic bench could involve setting two sleepers securely into the ground, with another sleeper fastened onto the ends above. Alternatively, as shown in the image below, our Jakwall sleepers seamlessly integrate a bench into a raised bed, offering both functionality and aesthetic appeal.

RAISED PLANTER BEDS

When considering garden updates, opting for timber sleepers as raised planter beds emerges as a straightforward and popular choice, offering a versatile garden feature that is notably cost-effective compared to other alternatives.

Garden enthusiasts and designers frequently integrate raised beds into their designs, providing clients with the opportunity to cultivate their own produce—vegetables, herbs, and fruit—in a visually appealing and orderly manner. Positioned at a convenient height, these raised beds facilitate easy access for planting and maintenance, while also ensuring efficient drainage. Additionally, the elevated position offers plants a measure of protection, minimising the need for gardeners to continually invest time and money in purchasing, cultivating, and managing new crops. Furthermore, the raised beds can aid in weed control, contributing to a tidier and more manageable garden space. Find out How to Build a Raised Bed with Timber Sleepers in our blog.

RETAINING WALLS

Timber sleepers are a highly versatile building material, ideal when planning to create a retaining wall in your garden. Not only do they provide a natural appearance, but they provide a rugged use of wood which a lot of people find appealing in their gardens. Depending on what design you're going for you may favour a new, square edged softwood style sleeper which are more suited to a contemporary design overall compared to the traditional railway sleepers.

Unlike bricks or concrete options timber sleepers or Jakwall landscape timbers are a viable alternative for their rigidity, strength and ability to last a long time. Making them a very cost effective solution, especially when used horizontally to create a low level stylish wall. Unlike low level walls, they can usually be installed within just a few hours.  Not only are they good to retain soil but can also hide unsightly walls as seen in this customer project - 'Retaining wall hidden by Jakwall' 

An alternative method for constructing retaining walls is to install sleepers vertically, with their ends placed securely in the ground. This creates a modern, sleek design for your wall. When cutting sleepers or landscape timbers, ensure the cut ends face downward, buried in the ground and properly concreted for stability. Here’s a great example of treated timber sleepers used vertically to form a strong, durable, and visually appealing retaining wall installed by an Approved Installer of ours.

GARDEN EDGING

Commonly used to form garden edging they can be used in a single height or they can be stacked to form walls or dividers. Sawn with a straight edge finish with flat sides our timber sleepers are a great multipurpose garden product, ideal for forming edging around pathway, patios or dividers. The timber is pressure treated to deliver complete longevity, eliminating any requirement for annual re-treatment. A great garden product which provides a modern look to an outdoor space and help to clearly define the different sections of the garden.

PATHS OR STEPS

Timber sleepers can be utilised as an alternative to stepping stones to act as a way to break up your lawn by creating sleeper pathways. These beautiful paths give easy access across the garden space and protect your grass acting as a hardwearing and versatile walkway to the shed or pergola. Utilising a walkway can save the quality of your lawn as they prevent people from walking over your grass.  Unlike gravel paths, they are easily cut and you don’t really need too much expertise to install them, just a strong back and a little inspiration.

It should be noted that timber sleepers can become quite slippery when damp with a build up of mildew and mould. We recommend cleaning them regularly to avoid any accidents.

Another option is to dig out the whole area and use sleepers to fill it entirely, as you would with paving. This option would require a lot more effort to stabilise the sleepers since they’re likely to push at the earth around them or move against each other. The simple pathway above is often the best option for a low maintenance path, especially if you have a smaller garden. If you have a larger area and don’t mind a more intensive project, the possibilities are endless.

WATER FEATURES

Constructing a water feature with landscape timbers or sleepers serves as an excellent method to create a captivating centrepiece for any garden. Not only does it offer visual appeal, but it also provides an effortless solution for building tiers within the water feature while effectively concealing associated filters and pumps.  

HOW DO I LAY/INSTALL GARDEN SLEEPERS IN MY SPACE?

Choosing to install timber sleepers into your garden indicates you have made the conscious decision to use a heavy duty, natural, long lasting product but the end use will determine the type of project you are going to be undertaking. If you’re intending to use them as garden edging, we would recommend embedding them into concrete for added strength and stability.

Installing raised beds

Should your timber sleeper design require multiple rows, if you are building a raised bed for example, then it’s essential to fasten or stake the sleepers together. We recommend using 2x 150mm timber screws at each corner of the raised bed to attach the sleepers together. 50mm of the length of the screw needs to drill into the adjoining sleeper in order to ensure a secure connection. Installing the timber sleepers using this method will ensure they are secure and the raised bed remains firm, otherwise there could be a risk of them becoming unstable.

For more information we have produced a blog detailing: How to Install Raised Beds 

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