I want to create a garden path that is straight from one window of my house. I don’t have any real reference points to align the path to as the house is in the middle of a rural block (20acres). I’m not sure the house is sitting straight on the block (do have survey documents somewhere) anyway!
All the information I can find online about creating a straight line in a garden rely upon a fence line or existing reference point, I live in a rural area and there isn’t a fence line that is parallel to where I want the path.
I can use google maps and see where I want the path … could I rely upon my phone’s GPS and have a point to create a string line?
If you just want the path to have no curve, put a stake in the ground outside the window, tie kite string to it and do the same at the other end of the path keeping the string taut.
If by “straight” you mean something else like, “perpendicular to the back wall of the house” I think we need a bit more info.
If you need it perpendicular to the front or back wall of your house you could put two stakes equidistant from the start of your path and along the reference wall of your house. Then tie a string to each stake and scribe an arc in the ground using the taught string as the radius of each arc. make sure the arcs overlap (long enough string / arcs in appropriate place). Now a line drawn (or taught string pulled) from the point where the path is to start and the point where the arcs cross will be straight and perpendicular to your reference wall.
Who is going to measure how inaccurate it is ?
Well anyway, if you just want to make a 90 degree angle, there is an easy way.
Make two strings of equal length. Whatever length, just equal… Suggest make them approx 30 feet each.
Mark a point on the wall/window. This is the “central” point. This may well be one edge of your path, think about where to put it. (for a 3 foot wide path, put it one and a half feet from the centre of the window… for example.)
Go along the wall an equal distance (suggest 15 feet approx) in each direction from the central point, these are the ends.
Attach the strings at the ends on the wall. Now where the strings meet, is one end of the perpendicular. Mark this point and adjust the string to run from there to the central point. .a string perpendicular to the wall.
Well, there is a way to do the same thing with one string. you don’t have to use two strings, just use one string to make a mark out at the likely location, and then move the string.
you would need to do the perpendicular line twice to give the path edges.
or if you used the perpendicular line as the path center then you would need to create a perpendicular off the center line at some distance to create the edges.
real exactness isn’t going to matter anyway. when you have your construction techniques (maybe people with shovels or machine) and how it will exist (ground and things on it move), then inches are the best you can get at a distance.
If you mean “perpendicular to the property line” (I.e. house front wall is possibly not parallel to front of property) then start at the property line or sidewalk of the road.
Make a guess where perpendicular leading to window should be, at the property line. This is K on the diagram.
Use RP’s compass arcs trick to find the perpendicular point R and line K-R
The longer the compass or rope, the more accurate the line will be.
Sight along this line K-R from K. Does it seem to point to the window?
If not, estimate how many feet over you have to go.
(I.e. sighting down the line, it is 5 feet left of the window. Move right 5 feet.)
Repeat this, until sighting down your final line it starts at the property line and appears to end exactly at the point at the window (left side? Right side? Middle bar?) you want it to.
Stretch a strong string between the two stakes. You can also put in intermediate stakes along this string for guidance. If it’s too long for string, one person sites the line and guides the other to place intermediate stakes.
Do this for one side of the path. Rig a triangle of wood to hold one flat side against this line to mark/stake the other side of the path.
Warning. This process is only as accurate as the property line you started with.
The longer the compass rope you do the arcs with, the more accurate too.
Be sure not to involve stretching the rope.
If you want to see something at the end of the path, or something beyond your property just have someone stand out at the end of the path with a pole and have them move it until it lines up properly while you look out the window. Then run a string from the house out to that point.
alpine backwards has it right but to put it even more simply call it the 3-4-5 triangle, you can stake it out with tape measures and a friend, call it 9 feet by 12 feet by 15 feet. Pick a starting point for the path at the wall of the house, measure 9 feet down the wall and mark the two points. Pull 12 feet on one tape out from the start point in the direction of the path, pull 15 feet on a tape from the other point, bring the ends together to form a triangle, where 12 and 15 meet will be the second point of your perpendicular line. Stake the start point and the perpendicular point then pull a tight string line to the distance you need from the start point just kissing that second stake with the string and mark your path. Just remember the ratio of 3,4,5 and any unit of measure works. Do it this way and you can drink all the beer you want.
This does make sense … except for the first step “start with a line” … the only line I have is a window about 1m (3’3") wide (it is a bay window on a wing jutting out from the house … so no wall). The path will be 20m (65’) long. The nearest property edge is approximately 100m (328’) away and I don’t think that is straight in relation to the window.
Sorry, geometry is not my strong point … how can I start from 1m (3’3") to get a right angle for a long path?
That was my rough idea but I wasn’t sure if there was a more accurate way to do it!!
I just had a thought … can I use either side of the wing of the house … and extend straight lines out, find the centre … and that is the centre of my path?
The best choice is to measure off an existing wall. Even if it’s 250 feet away. It’s not that hard to measure 50ft. Move the tape. Measure 50 ft. etc. There will be some inaccuracy but not enough to notice if you use multiple points to measure from.
The fancy high dollar toy is a Laser Level on a tripod. It spins around and maps out the terrain. I’ve seen it used on several DIY shows. They shoot out all these red lines that indicate parallel and corners. They even map out the grade and can be used to level the ground. Or even indicate when all the poured footings for a deck are level with each other. I’ve never used one. Too expensive a toy for something that I might only need to do once or twice in my life. I’d guess it takes study and practice for contractors to use this thing.
Without seeing the exact set-up there’s guessing involved, but…
You could tape a flat mirror to the glass window and try to hit it with a laser pointer, so that the reflection bounces straight back at you. If your window is higher than your head, that would complicate things. And if the glass or window frame is built crooked, the end result might not feel right.
Or you could approach the problem from the opposite direction – stand inside the house as far back from the window as you can, in what “feels” like a straight line. project the laser out the center of the window, then stroll outside and see where it’s shining. You could tape a yard stick across the window frame to mark the center.
You might do well combining a geometry-based measurement with an intuition-based measurement (such as putting a pole in what feels lie the center of your vista.
This is the most accurate way to do it. The other means described here are telling you how to put in a path that is perpendicular to the side of your house. That may not provide a line of sight to the object you want to see. The only points of reference you want to use are your window and the object you’re looking at. If a string won’t reach all the way use a pole in the line of sight as I described before. To get more accuracy you’ll need to use an instrument like a surveyor’s transit, although much simpler forms of that can be used.
