Gabion Retaining Wall: Swanvale, Falmouth

Swanvale is a brand new development situated in the beautiful harbour town of Falmouth, Cornwall. Tucked away just behind Bickland Water Road, Swanvale offers a stunning range of 3, 4 & 5 bedroom homes. 

It is also the site of an impressive 4m high staggered gabion retaining wall. Devoran Metals have supplied over 670 BBA approved gabion baskets to site since the build started in June 2014. The contractor, Fred Champion Groundworks, have used 3/4mm galfan coated gabions which are comprised of a 3mm carcass and a 4mm facing panel (for a better aesthetic finish), fixed with helical connectors. 

We think they have done a fantastic job installing the gabion baskets and it is a fine example of quality workmanship to be admired for many years to come. See for yourself...

Cornwall Home & Lifestyle Show 2015

This year, we decided to exhibit our range of Small Garden Gabions at the Cornwall Home and Lifestyle Show 2015. The 2 day event took place at the Royal Cornwall Showground over the bank holiday weekend on 2nd & 3rd May. The event was organised by Live Events South West and showcased the best of Cornwall's home related products and services. 

We have always been interested in exhibiting at the show but had yet to actually sign up. This year, when the offer came round, I wanted to give it a try and booked the show at the end of February which gave us just over 2 month preparation time. I designed the stand using our smaller garden range as these are best suited for private garden projects. 

I wanted to show customers how they could use gabion baskets to transform their garden into a more useful living space, that was both functional and stylish. I designed a gabion seating area which comprised of 2no. 975mm x 450mm x 450mm gabions, and 1no. 450mm x 450mm x 450mm gabion to form the corner planter.

Devoran Garden Gabions stand at the CHLS 2015.

For the seat tops, I used reclaimed pallet wood which was free and readily available. If you do have any trouble sourcing pallets they don't cost a lot to buy direct. They were really simple to build, and you don't need to be an expert joiner to make them. The seat tops were made  by cutting 2 lengths of 80mm wide wood to 450mm long and laying them vertically across the gabion baskets (front to back) approx. 600mm apart and 185mm from each end - these act as a support and fixing point for the seat. Once these are in place, you then need to cut the horizontal pieces to 1000mmm, so they are slightly longer than the basket, and screw into place along the support. You then need to use 2 pieces of wood approx. 40mm wide to form a border around the front and sides of the gabion, and fix them to the ends. In this case we only needed to cover 2 ends as the back and 1 side would not be seen. 

Gabion seat made from 975 x 450 x 450mm gabion baskets filled with local stone from Trecarne Quarry,

For the planters I used 450mm, 375mm and 300mm gabion baskets and simply cut the top mesh panel to size to suit each flower pot so they could be dropped into place during filling. 

Gabion planter made from 450 x 450 x 450mm gabion baskets.

It was a lot of hard work preparing for the show, especially setting up the stand on the Friday but it was well worth it. We would like to say a huge thank you to Trecarne Quarry for giving us the beautiful stone to fill the baskets and to everyone else who helped out along the way. Despite the rainy start, and even though we almost lost the gazebo altogether on Saturday morning in the wind, it was a really good weekend and the weather soon cleared. We had a lot of great feedback on the gabions; it's interesting how many people in Cornwall have a pile of stone just sitting in the corner of their garden that they have no use for...and now they do!! 

If you would like to browse our range of garden gabions and see how you can transform your garden, visit our website www.devoran-garden-gabions.co.uk.

Customer Projects - Europe

Here at Devoran Gabions we love seeing how our customers transform their gardens using the gabions they buy from us. From small seating areas to full scale retaining walls and flood defences, we always enjoy receiving customer photos and feedback!

This year our BBA approved gabions have been shipped to various destinations across Europe including Luxembourg and France. This impressive retaining wall in Hobscheid, Luxembourg was delivered to a customer who needed to retain a large embankment at the back of his property. The wall was designed using our 4mm galfan gabions which have been stepped at each course. The size of stone that he has used is perfect as it gives a very professional finish to the wall and ensures stability and structure throughout the design life. To maintain a good aesthetic we advise that you use 4mm facing panels for walls exceeding 3m high.

Large gabion wall retaining a crumbling embankment in Hobscheid, Luxembourg.

Gabion wall that has been stepped at each course to improve stability.

Gabions have many uses, and not all walls need to be as high as the one above to make a difference. The gabion wall below, which spans over 35m long, has been built in Brittany, France to protect this customer's property from flooding. He comments, “your product is very good and the wall is going well; it is hard work for one person but good for the muscles”. The wall is still under construction but we especially love how he has incorporated seating areas and brightened the gabions with flower baskets.

Gabion wall built to protect a property from flooding in Brittany, France.

Brighten any gabion wall with flower baskets and seating areas.

You can purchase our BBA approved gabion baskets online at www.devoran-garden-gabions.co.uk

Cornwall Home Directory

Devoran Metals are now listed in the Cornwall Home Directory hosted by the Cornwall Home Show. Showcasing some of the best products and services available in Cornwall, you are sure to find something you love! 

You can find our profile at:

http://www.cornwallhomeshow.co.uk/cornwall-home-directory/gardens/devoran-garden-gabions/ 

Devoran Metals support local charity BF Adventure

As a Cornish business, Devoran Metals is always happy to help out local businesses and charities. In July 2014 we were approached by Penryn based charity BF Adventure as they started the build for a brand new kitchen block in the middle of their beautiful 60 acre site. All materials for the build are being supplied by donation, and Devoran Metals were more than happy to donate all the reinforcing mesh for the ground works.  

Delivering mesh to site in Penryn, Cornwall (photo courtesy of BF Adventure)

BF Adventure are a fantastic charity who help hundreds of disadvantaged and disabled children and adults across Cornwall every year. 

The kitchen block is being built to celebrate their 25 anniversary and will provide its members with the opportunity to learn important life skills that we all take for granted. Adrian, the CEO of BF Adventures, says:

"As part of our many focused programmes which support disadvantaged and disabled young people and adults we focus upon life skills starting with the basics of looking after ones-self, making a hot drink, washing up, washing clothes and preparing a meal.

We have taken this one step further developing a highly effective programme which supports entrepreneurial skills in the Kitchen, Young people plan a menu, take orders from the team, write a shopping list, manage their budget in the local ASDA supermarket, prepare, cook and serve the meal and even collect the bill reconciling monies taken and donating profit back into the BF charity tin which further supports the work we do - a real win win for everyone especially those of us enjoying a delicious home cooked lunch on site!"

You can follow the progress of the build at #bigkitchenbuild and can donate yourself by clicking on the link below

http://www.everyclick.com/kitchen25

We wish BF Adventures every success with the build and am sure that the new kitchen will be a brilliant and inspiring asset for the charity and all its members!!

The Summer is here and everything has turned...Orange!!

Devoran Metals are now approved stockists of Novoform permanent welded mesh form work. Novoform is used as a permanent form work to replace traditional materials, including timber, which had to be removed following the concrete pour. This is no longer the case! 

In production, the mesh is encapsulated in film and passed through a heat tunnel to be shrink wrapped. See our video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kv5rvvqO4D8

Novoform is made from welded mesh panels, traditionally with 150 x 75mm aperture. The panels measure 2.4m wide and lengths of 0.375m up to 3m are available. Novoform panels can be supplied in strips or bent into shapes L or U shapes. 

Devoran Metals offer a full in-house mesh bending service and can deliver your order direct to site. Call us on 01872 863 376 or email sales@devoran-metals co.uk for a competitive quote today! 

Devoran Garden Gabions: Single and ready to mingle!!

From April 2014 you can now order our BBA Approved Gabion Baskets as single units on the website rather than in packs.

Up until now www.devoran-garden-gabions.co.uk supplied gabions in pack sizes of 3 or 5, but now offer customers the choice to order as little or as many as they like. The company's sales team said, "we really value our customers and want to ensure that we are giving them the best possible service on the web. We understand how competitive the current gabion market is and think that giving our customers the option of purchasing single units rather than packs will help us gain new custom and keep us at the forefront of the market".

Why buy a Devoran Gabion?

Devoran Gabions are not inferior quality imports from the Far East. These Far Eastern Gabions may be slightly cheaper but in our experi-ence you will find that you get what you pay for. Devoran Gabions are BAA Approved and are of superior strength and quality. You can feel confident that when you buy from Devoran you are buying the best.

See our hand check list below to make sure you;re buying the right product.