[Kimball]

Looking for advice. Almost finished construction on a paver patio that parallels the back of the house on one side and the driveway on the other. Patio height was determined by bulkhead, and then sloped away, which leaves a 4.5 inch grade change from driveway to patio accomplished by a retaining wall. A fence with a 48" walk gate divides the driveway and patio areas.

The question is what is the best placement for the 4.5" step down into the patio. My main concerns are reducing any awkward arrangement that leads to tripping. As I see it I can have a step down right at the gate, an appropriate tread run beyond the gate, or a larger landing pad. Concerns are gate swing, and visual recognition of step, lack of teetering on the step to walk through.

Any experience with similar design issues?

[Kimball]

I need to update the info above. The gate swings into the patio, which you probably could guess by the grade, but thought I'd clarify.

[Mitchell Landscapes]

One time I installed a patio like this and the customer did not want a step (kids on skate boards wanted to go from patio to driveway) so I backed off the step area about 3-5 feet and built up patio base (in this case it was ABC gravel) in the form of a ramp - once that was in place I laid my bedding sand over that and paved over that with my pavers to create a gradual sloping ramp up to the finished grade of the driveway. Its looked great and was very functional.

[mybigdog1]

width of gate plus 50% is what we do