ᐅ What slope is still comfortable?

Hello everyone,

I am planning to build a slope from the driveway, which is 2.5m (8 feet) above garden level, so that I can also access the garden with a wheelbarrow.
To calculate the angle stones, I need to consider the slope.

What slope do you think is still manageable to avoid picking up too much speed?
Is 15° (26.79%) too steep?

What are your experiences?

Regards,
Tito

titoz schrieb:
Hello everyone,

I am planning to create a downward slope from the driveway, which is 2.5m (8 feet) above garden level, so that I can also get into the garden with a wheelbarrow.
To calculate the retaining wall blocks, I need to consider the slope.

What slope do you find still acceptable to avoid gaining too much speed?
Is 15° (26.79%) too steep?

What are your experiences?

Regards,
Tito

I have no idea if there are any regulations for this. But with that slope, you would have to close off the ramp as soon as it rains, otherwise you risk falling badly. And with the slope you mentioned, the ramp would be almost 10m (33 feet) long... Maybe someone with practical experience can chime in, but I would rather consider steps.

Just as a comparison: for an accessible ramp for wheelchairs, a maximum slope of 6% is allowed. At 10%, cyclists start to walk their bikes down slowly. Your 26% might be manageable with a wheelbarrow, but it definitely won’t be fun. Plus, there’s a high risk of slipping, especially when carrying a load down. I’d advise against it.

MarcWen schrieb:
That’s too much. If you also have children or neighbors can get in, you won’t be happy with it anymore.

I do have children, small children...
What do you mean by “access from the neighborhood”?
I should mention that the exit is really only supposed to serve as a “driveway” for the 500 m² (5,380 sq ft) garden to move materials. We have access via stairs on the other side of the house from the terrace.

At some point, I get annoyed that I can only get down via steps when I need to transport things for the landscaping, the garden shed, etc. Or when I store the bicycles down there... or put the trash bins down there so they don’t look unsightly in front of the house...

Well, if you have children, they will likely have visitors to play with. Something could easily happen on the ramp, especially since children don’t usually hold onto stairs and slopes naturally attract them.

How did you imagine getting up there?

My father once had a similar basement access with a slope for a cart. He then screwed U-profiles across the ramp; otherwise, you can’t get back up the ramp.

You should think this through carefully. Maybe a small spiral walkway could work, to lengthen the path and reduce the slope.

Maybe I just need to get a feel for the slope first. I’ll have to see where and how I can best test it.
I would have thought roughly 25% isn’t much. A 1-meter (3.3 feet) height difference over 4 meters (13 feet) distance.

If you enter a gym, this is usually done very easily using the wall bars with a gym bench.